Guide to Auto Insurance in Mississippi

• Bodily injury liability: ​​You need at least $25,000 in bodily injury liability coverage per accident involving one person and $50,000 per accident involving two or more people. Bodily injury liability covers the cost of treatment for injuries you cause to someone else. It does not cover injuries that you or your passengers sustain.
• Property damage liability: You need a minimum of $25,000 in property damage liability coverage. Property damage liability pays for damage you cause to someone else’s property, usually their car. It does not pay for damages to your vehicle.

Mississippi does not require drivers to carry uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage (UIM) or medical payments coverage.

While Mississippi requires only bodily injury and property damage liability, it’s wise to purchase additional coverage. UIM coverage is a particularly good idea, considering 29 percent of drivers in Mississippi are uninsured — the highest rate in the country, according to the Insurance Research Council.¹

On average, Mississippians spend $979 on auto insurance annually. The average annual cost of liability coverage is $540, collision coverage is $363, and comprehensive coverage is $246. ²

These are averages, and you might pay more or less depending on other factors like your age, credit, vehicle, driving record, coverages, and provider. We’ve seen annual premiums as low as $301 and as high as $8,989. The cost of insuring teen drivers tends to be highest. To find the best rates, shop around with multiple providers before choosing one.

• AAA
• Alfa
• Allstate
• Amica
• Direct
• Esurance
• Farm Bureau
• GEICO
• Liberty Mutual
• MetLife
• National General
• Nationwide
• Progressive
• Safe Auto
• Safeway
• Shelter
• Southern Farm Bureau
• State Farm
• The General
• Travelers
• USAA

Auto insurance is a significant monthly expense, and it makes sense to find the cheapest car insurance provider. Additionally, here are some ways you can lower your costs without switching providers:

1. Take advantage of discounts. Auto insurance providers offer discounts for a number of things, like using a GPS monitor, owning a vehicle with certain safety features, and having a clean driving record. Discounts are especially helpful for lowering the cost of insuring a teen driver. Teens get discounts for being a good student, enrolling in college, and taking driver’s education courses.

Like most states, Mississippi requires you to have proof of insurance. If you drive without insurance in Mississippi, you’ll face a $500 fine and a license suspension of up to one year. However, if you show proof of insurance before your hearing, the fine will decrease to $100 and your license suspension will be lifted.³

Avoid unnecessary fines, suspensions, and other headaches by always driving with proof of insurance. Mississippi accepts both paper and digital proof.

Check whether your provider offers digital proof of insurance on a mobile app, which you could then add to your smartphone wallet. You might also have the option to download a PDF. Of course, an old-fashioned paper insurance card in your glove compartment works just as well.

Fault System

Mississippi is an at-fault state, which means that the driver responsible for the accident must pay for the other party’s property damage and medical treatments. (In no-fault states, each party pays for their own medical treatments). That’s why it’s a good idea to purchase medical payments coverage. Hospital bills can accumulate quickly, and you don’t want to be on the hook for paying someone’s bills out of your own pocket.

Additionally, Mississippi has pure comparative negligence laws. This means that if you and the other party were each partially responsible for the accident, you can split the costs according to the degree of fault. With pure comparative negligence, you can sue the other party to recover damages, even if you hold a higher degree of fault. For example, if you hold 90 percent of the fault for the accident, you can still sue the defendant for 10 percent of the damages.

Uninsured Motorists

UIM coverage helps you pay for expenses if a driver hits you and their liability limits are too low to pay for the damages, or they lack insurance altogether. While Mississippi does not require drivers to carry UIM coverage, it’s wise to purchase it anyway.

About 29 percent of Mississippi drivers — over 600,000 individuals — are uninsured. That’s 57 percent above the national average and the highest rate in the country. Because Mississippi has so many uninsured drivers, it will probably cost more to add UIM coverage to your policy than it would in other states.⁴

In Mississippi, UIM insurance is stacked, meaning you can combine your UIM coverage across multiple cars on a policy. If you choose to stack UIM coverage, your selected limits multiply by the number of cars you have. For example, if you choose limits of $50,000 for an accident involving one person and $100,000 for accidents involving two or more people, and you have two cars, your limits will increase to $100,000/$200,000. Additionally, UIM insurance in Mississippi covers hit-and-runs.

DUI Laws

In Mississippi, a DUI stays on your driving record for five years. While Mississippi does not increase penalties for high blood alcohol content (BAC), penalties do increase for each subsequent DUI offense. For example, for second and subsequent offenses, the state requires the use of an ignition interlock device.

Seat Belt Laws

Mississippi’s seat belt law is under primary enforcement, which means the police can pull you over just for being unbuckled (as opposed to needing another reason, like speeding). Whether you’re sitting in the front or back seat, you must buckle up. A seat belt ticket is $25 for each unbuckled individual. The state also requires restraint systems, like car seats or boosters, for children under the age of 7.

Distracted Driving Laws

Distracted driving includes texting and driving, eating and drinking while driving, and even changing the music in the car. It endangers yourself and others on the road.

Mississippi does not impose a special cell phone ban on young drivers, but texting and driving is illegal for all drivers. The penalty for texting and driving is a $100 fine. In some cases, a texting-and-driving violation can lead to a reckless driving conviction. And if texting while driving results in the death of another person, the state may charge the driver with vehicular manslaughter.

Distracted driving is under primary enforcement, meaning the police can pull you over solely for texting and driving. Mississippi allows all other handheld cell phone use, except for commercial drivers.

Teen Driver Laws

Mississippi teens can apply for their learner’s permits when they turn 15. They must drive under adult supervision (21 and older) for at least one year before they can apply for an intermediate license. The fee to receive a learner’s permit is $7. To receive an unrestricted license, teens must provide proof of school enrollment, hold a high school diploma or equivalent, or be 18 years old.

The state imposes a curfew for teen drivers, prohibiting them from driving at night unless under adult supervision. The curfew lifts when the teen has held their unrestricted license for six months or when they turn 18, whichever comes first.⁶

Statute of Limitations for Claims

If you’re involved in an incident, you have three years to file a property damage or personal injury claim. After that, an insurance provider isn’t required to pay for the claim.⁷

Cancellation and Non-Renewal Notification Laws

Auto insurance companies are not allowed to cancel policies that have been in force for over 60 days, except in the following cases:

• You failed to pay the premium.
• You committed fraud or misrepresented yourself on your application.
• The state revoked or suspended your driver’s license.

In Mississippi, an insurance provider must give you at least 30 days’ notice for a midterm cancellation prior to the effective date. If you failed to pay your premium, however, it only has to give you 10 days’ notice.

Unlike cancellations, non-renewals mean that either you or your provider decided not to renew the policy once it expired. Like with cancellations, insurance companies must give you proper notice and explanation before dropping your policy.

There are several reasons a company might not renew your policy:

• The company no longer offers that type of insurance.
• The company doesn’t want to write as many policies in your area.
• You were arrested for drunk driving.

In Mississippi, if your insurance provider decides not to renew your policy, it must give you at least 30 days’ notice.

Self-Insurance

Like many other states, Mississippi allows individuals to self-insure a fleet of vehicles. To qualify for self-insurance, you must own more than 25 vehicles. The minimum required collateral is at the discretion of the Mississippi Insurance Department.

Car Inspection Requirements

Mississippi does not require annual safety inspections unless you own a vehicle with tinted windows. The purpose of the inspection, in this case, is to ensure enough light can enter the vehicle.

How to Register Your Vehicle in Mississippi

When you move to Mississippi, you have 30 days to register your vehicle. If you miss the deadline, you’ll have to pay a $250 fine plus late fees. If you buy a vehicle from a private party, you have seven days to register it from your date of purchase.

1. Gather the required documents and payments.
   • State-issued photo ID
   • Vehicle title or manufacturer’s statement of origin (MSO) if you purchased the vehicle out of state
   • An odometer reading if you purchased the vehicle out of state
   • Vehicle identification number, which is used to calculate taxes
   • Registration fees
     • Passenger vehicles: ​$15
     • ​Motorcycles: ​$8
     • ​Trailers: ​$​10
     • Pickup trucks: ​$7.20
   • Payment for motor vehicle ad valorem tax, which is based on the assessed value of the vehicle
     • The assessed value is 30 percent of the manufacturer’s suggested retail price (MSRP), minus depreciation for vehicles over 10 years old. The minimum assessed value for passenger vehicles is $100. Mississippi accepts credit/debit cards, cash, money orders, personal checks, and bank checks.
2. Visit your local tax collector’s office. You must visit the office in the county where your vehicle is domiciled or parked overnight. Some counties offer online registration services. Check your county’s website for more information.

Mississippi DMV Contact Information

How to Get a Copy of Your Vehicle Title in Mississippi

1. Print and fill out Form 78-006, the Application for Replacement Certificate of Title — https://www.dor.ms.gov/ sites/default/ files/Tags%20%26%20Titles
   /78006178.pdf.
2. Enclose a cashier’s check, personal check, certified check, or another form of certified funds for the proper fee made out to the Mississippi Department of Revenue.
   • Regular fee: $9
   • Expedited fee: $39 (complete Fast Track Form 78-026 for expedited service)
3. If you want the state to mail the title to anyone other than the vehicle owner, submit a power of attorney, executed by the owner. The person holding power of attorney must sign an application and indicate “P.O.A.” Licensed dealers must use the Secure Power of Attorney Form 78-003 — https://www.dor.ms.gov/sites/default/files/Business/78003218.pdf.
4. If you own the vehicle with someone else, include both of your signatures on the replacement application.
5. If there is a lien on the vehicle, the state can mail the replacement title to the lienholder only, unless the lienholder provides a completed lien release. If the lienholder has gone out of business or changed names, or if you’ve paid the loan in full, you still have to obtain a lien release.
6. Once the DMV issues a replacement title, the original title becomes void. If you find the original title, surrender it to the Mississippi Department of Revenue.
7. Mail all required documents to this address:
   • Mississippi Department of Revenue
   • Motor Vehicle Services
   • P.O. Box 1383
   • Jackson, MS 39215-1383

How to Contact Mississippi’s Insurance Department

In Mississippi, the average cost of car repairs is $396.36, which is about 3 percent higher than the national average. This breaks down to $160.45 for labor and $235.91 for parts.

Motor Vehicle Theft

In 2020, Mississippi saw 205 vehicle thefts per 100,000 residents, a rate 20 percent less than the national average. Often, larger cities see higher rates of vehicle theft, which means you may pay a higher premium if you live in any of the following metropolitan statistical areas.

Fatalities

In 2019, Mississippi had 643 fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles traveled, which is about 10 percent less than the national average.

You’re ready to get behind the wheel in Mississippi. Mississippi borders several other states, so if you’re making frequent trips across the border (or driving across the country!) check out our state driving guide for information on DUIs, tickets, car accidents, and more.