Driving without required Proof of Insurance?

[Jim Johnson]

http://www.seacoastonline.com/articles/20120514-PUBLICRECORDS-120519880

From the N.H. State Police, Troop A, arrest log:

5:02 p.m. - Eric McMath, 36, of Rochester, N.H., was arrested on Route 16 in Portsmouth and charged with Operating after Suspension and Driving without required Proof of Insurance.

I think some Trooper is living a little to close to Massachusetts.

[WithoutAPaddle]

I'm not up on the current law, but I thought that New Hampshire licensed drivers who were classified as "assigned risks" were required to have insurance, and if they are, then I would expect there to be a corresponding requirement for them to furnish proof of insurance under certain circumstances.

I had my NH license suspended in, I think, 1975 for having three uninspected vehicle violations in one year, and so I had to have a form SR-22 (?) on file with the DMV for the next three years, but back then, they didn't require me to actually carry a card with me.  A decade or so later, I got pulled for something in Massachusetts and didn't have an insurance card with me, but the car, which was my mothers, was insured, so the next day, I called her insurance agent and they said that they often were asked to issue those cards by New Hampshire licencees who often drove in Massachusetts, but that at that time, they still didn't furnish them unless they were requested.  Now I am insured by Geico and they send me a new insurance card with each policy renewal, even though I am not required by New Hampshire law to be insured.

[Russell Kanning]

crazy ..... I had a cop in Kansas once say that I needed proof of insurance. I mentioned that NH didn't require it or nearby Missouri. I guess he was right since he had the gun and I always lose these arguments.

[WithoutAPaddle]

As it was explained to me by the Magistrate that dropped all of the charges against me (including the more legitimate ones), the Massachusetts proof of insurance and mandatory insurance laws initially did not apply to those driving on out-of-state licenses, but they had recently been revised to require it of all drivers.

[KBCraig]

I'm not upon the current law, but I thought that New Hampshire licensed drivers who were classified as "assigned risks" were required to have insurance, and if they are, then I would expect there to be a corresponding requirement for them to furnish proof of insurance under certain circumstances.

Correct. It's RSA Chapter 264. If you don't have insurance and are at fault in a wreck, and are found in default for not paying the other persons' expenses, you can be forced to carry insurance in NH.

There are other violations that can prompt them to suspend your license unless you carry proof of insurance.

This is one of the reasons why it's a good idea to have liability insurance, especially since it's cheap in NH.

That, and the fact that if you ever operate your car outside NH, all the other states require insurance, and they don't care that NH doesn't. It's no different than driving with a radar detector in Virginia, or window tint too dark in other states.

[Russell Kanning]

interesting .... so anyone driving from NH could be a possible victim?

[KBCraig]

interesting .... so anyone driving from NH could be a possible victim?

All it takes is sideswiping a Mercedes in a snowstorm. If you can't cough up the money to pay to fix it, your license will be suspended until you have proof of insurance.

[doobie]

That, and the fact that if you ever operate your car outside NH, all the other states require insurance, and they don't care that NH doesn't. It's no different than driving with a radar detector in Virginia, or window tint too dark in other states.

Can't guarantee it'll work,....but I've talked to a number of people who have told police in MA, ME, and VT that they were just visiting and didn't know they needed insurance since they live in NH and don't usually drive out of NH and the police let them off.

[Lloyd Danforth]

FIFY

[KBCraig]

FIFY

F what F whom?

[Lloyd Danforth]

Yup!

[KBCraig]

That, and the fact that if you ever operate your car outside NH, all the other states require insurance, and they don't care that NH doesn't. It's no different than driving with a radar detector in Virginia, or window tint too dark in other states.

Can't guarantee it'll work,....but I've talked to a number of people who have told police in MA, ME, and VT that they were just visiting and didn't know they needed insurance since they live in NH and don't usually drive out of NH and the police let them off.

Didn't work for Russell in Kansas. Hasn't worked for a lot of other people. When we were en route to PF'06, we saw a motor home with NH plates, parked on the VT side of the river. Even at interstate speeds as we passed by, we could plainly read the huge orange state police sticker that said "NO INSURANCE".

[Russell Kanning]

also you could have insurance in NH, but not have the required "minimums" for MA or whatever

[Russell Kanning]

and actually in Kansas ... the car had plenty of Kansas insurance .... he just didn't like my lack of license ... and probably that I didn't love big brother enough.