What Happens If Your Car Insurance Lapses in Michigan
A lapse is not only a gap in protection. In most states it is a reportable event with its own penalties.
- If you are under an SR-22
- Suspension resumes until proof is restored
For a driver under a financial responsibility filing, the insurer must notify the Secretary of State at least 10 days before cancelling the certified policy, and the license cannot be renewed unless proof is maintained until the judgment is satisfied.
- Reinstatement fee
- $25
A $25 service fee is paid to the Secretary of State when proof of insurance is submitted after an insurance-related suspension. No re-examination and no replacement licence fee are charged. The general $125 reinstatement fee applies to other suspension types, not to this one.
- Proof at a traffic stop
- Required
You must produce evidence of insurance on a police officer's request. An electronic certificate on your phone counts, and the officer may not browse the rest of the device. If you show the court valid proof that was in force at the time of the stop, the fine and costs are waived and no abstract goes to the Secretary of State.