Glossary

SR-22

A form an insurer files with the state to certify that a high-risk driver carries the required liability coverage, often for about three years.

Also called: SR22, SR-22 insurance, certificate of financial responsibility

An SR-22 is a certificate of financial responsibility: a form your insurer files with the state motor vehicle agency to prove you carry at least the required liability insurance. It is not a type of insurance, even though people often say "SR-22 insurance." States typically require one after a DUI, driving uninsured, serious or repeated violations, an at-fault crash without insurance, or a license suspension.

Here is how it works. You buy a policy from an insurer that files SR-22s in your state, pay a small filing fee, and the insurer sends the form to the state. You must keep the coverage continuously for the required period, commonly three years, though the length varies by state and offense. If the policy cancels or lapses, the insurer notifies the state, usually with an SR-26 form, and your license can be suspended again. If you do not own a car, a non-owner car insurance policy can carry the filing.

The filing itself costs little; the violation behind it is what raises your premium, often sharply. Florida and Virginia use an FR-44 for certain DUI convictions, which requires higher liability limits than an SR-22, and some states use their own forms or procedures instead. See SR-22 insurance explained.

Last reviewed October 4, 2026

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Related terms

FR-44 A certificate filed by an insurer in Florida or Virginia proving that a driver convicted of certain DUI offenses carries higher-than-minimum liability limits. High-risk driver A driver insurers expect to cost more in claims because of a DUI, tickets, crashes, a coverage lapse, little experience or similar factors. DUI Driving while impaired by alcohol or drugs, an offense that brings license penalties, possible SR-22 or FR-44 filings and steep insurance increases. Non-owner car insurance Liability coverage for people who drive but do not own a car, often bought to keep coverage continuous or to carry an SR-22 filing. Financial responsibility law A state law requiring drivers to show they can pay for injuries or damage they cause, almost always by carrying minimum liability insurance. Nonstandard auto insurance Coverage sold to drivers that standard insurers decline or price steeply, such as those with DUIs, many tickets, lapses or little license history.

Related guides

Assigned risk plans: insurance of last resort How state assigned risk plans and other residual market programs insure drivers no company will take, who qualifies, what it costs and how to apply. Car insurance after a DUI What a DUI does to your car insurance: surcharges, possible nonrenewal, SR-22 or FR-44 filings, how long it counts, and how to stay insured. FR-44 insurance in Florida and Virginia FR-44 filings prove higher liability limits after a DUI in Florida (100/300/50 for three years) and Virginia (double the minimums), unlike an SR-22. What happens if your car insurance lapses The legal, financial and pricing consequences of a gap in car insurance, how grace periods work, and what to do right away if your policy has lapsed. Non-owner car insurance: who needs it and how it works Non-owner car insurance gives drivers without a car their own liability coverage. Learn who needs it, what it covers and excludes, and how it handles an SR-22. Nonstandard auto insurers: who they serve and what to watch Nonstandard auto insurers cover drivers with violations, lapses, SR-22s or thin credit. The main companies, how policies differ and what to check.

Related insurers

AssuranceAmerica Atlanta nonstandard auto insurer founded in 1999 and private since 2013. It sells through more than 9,500 independent agents in 13 states, with no credit check. Bristol West Farmers-owned nonstandard auto insurer, founded in Florida in 1973 and sold through agents and brokers in 43 states to drivers with tickets, DUIs or no credit. Mendota Insurance (Citadel Partners Group) The NAIC group behind Mendota Insurance, a Nashville-area nonstandard auto insurer sold through independent agents to drivers other carriers turn away. Direct Auto Insurance Nonstandard auto brand sold in 450+ storefronts in 12 mostly Southern states, by phone and online; owned by Allstate through National General. GoAuto Insurance Baton Rouge low-cost auto insurer founded in 2009 that sells no-frills policies direct, online and in storefront offices, in eight Southern and Western states. Infinity Insurance Kemper-owned nonstandard auto name, now a Spanish-bilingual agency in 11 states that places drivers with Kemper Auto and other carriers.