Failure to show proof of insurance is a criminal traffic charge in Florida. A person can be charged with it if they are pulled over in their vehicle by a law enforcement officer and are not able to show the officer proof that they have car insurance on the vehicle they are driving. This will likely be due to the fact that the driver isn’t carrying their car insurance card in a nearby wallet or glove compartment. It doesn’t matter if the driver actually has car insurance; the driver can still get cited with a ticket and summoned to court for failure to show proof of insurance, and the fines can be hefty.

Most cases of failure to provide proof of insurance are easy to get dismissed. One simply has to bring proof of insurance to traffic court on the date indicated on the citation. The issue can also be dealt with before court by bringing proof of insurance to the court clerk. It is best to get this taken care of before court if possible, as the judge may be more inclined to be lenient if the driver is able to provide proof of insurance to the clerk. A fine may not be issued at all in such cases, or if one is issued, it is often small in comparison to the typical fine for such an offense.

If a driver truly does not have insurance, it must be obtained before going to court. A fine will still be issued in most cases, but it can often be reduced if the driver can show that he or she has obtained auto insurance within 30 days of getting the citation.

If all else fails and the driver fails to produce proof of insurance for the court or get insurance before going to court, a private attorney can help that person avoid points on their license, or even a license suspension for failure to carry auto insurance. A private traffic ticket lawyer will usually fight the charge by questioning the legality of the original traffic stop or by promising the court that the driver will obtain auto insurance within a certain amount of time. Hiring a private attorney may not be cheap, but in some cases of failure to show proof of insurance, it can make the difference between a driver’s license suspension and keeping the driver’s license.