DUI laws in Washington deal with penalties for driving under the influence of alcohol, drugs, medications, or a combination of these substances. Intoxicants include legal or illegal drugs, and prescription or over the counter medications.
DUI Laws in Washington
The penalties of DUI laws in Washington are severe, reflecting the seriousness of motor vehicle violations involving alcohol and other drugs. Penalties for DUI are personally and financially costly. They include license suspension, fines and fees, and possible jail time. You’ll also have to carry SR22 insurance for several years as a condition for license reinstatement.
What is high risk insurance?
High risk insurance is also known as SR22 insurance or FR44 insurance. Sometimes young, inexperienced drivers or people who own very expensive vehicles can be considered high risk by insurance providers. If you have an excessive number of points on your driving record or have a DUI conviction, you will usually be categorized as a high risk driver. This means that your insurance rates will increase. You may be required to carry SR22 high risk insurance, especially if your license has been suspended.
What is high risk insurance, or non-standard insurance? Many people have a driving record that’s less than perfect, and have had to file multiple insurance claims due to accidents or other driving violations. Insurance companies categorize individuals with numerous violations and insurance claims as high risk, because they are assumed to stand a greater chance of filing future insurance claims.
Being required to purchase SR22 high risk insurance, means that you will need to file an SR22 certificate with the state. This is also known as high risk SR22 insurance. SR22 is a certificate of financial responsibility that serves as a monitoring device between the policyholder’s insurance company and the state. It serves to guarantee the state that the driver is insured without interruption for the period of time required by the state.
Who may need high risk insurance?
A driver can be considered high risk for a variety of reasons, such as repeated moving violations or accidents and driving without insurance. Convictions for driving under the influence of alcohol or other drugs require SR22 DUI insurance. Note: In Florida and Virginia, license reinstatement for alcohol and drug related motor vehicle offenses require an FR44 certificate, rather than an SR22, to be filed with the state. As a result of multiple violations accumulating to more than 6 points, a driver no longer qualifies for preferred insurance rates in most cases. Individuals who may require high risk insurance often include teenagers, even those with a clean driving record. Teens are initially categorized as high risk due to age and lack of driving experience. Young drivers have comparatively more accidents and traffic violations than older drivers with more experience behind the wheel, which increases the already high cost insurance. A driver whose license has been suspended or revoked will need to purchase a high risk auto insurance policy before their license will be reinstated.
High risk insurance is more costly than standard auto insurance. If a driver has multiple speeding tickets, statistically it is only a matter of time before that driver has an accident or additional tickets – and that’s why they are penalized with a higher insurance rate. On the other hand, people who have an excellent driving record are rewarded with lower premiums, because the probability of their having to file an insurance claim is much lower.
Insurance companies that insure few high risk drivers tend to charge much higher rates to drivers in this category. If you require high risk insurance, UltraCar Insurance specializes in protecting you with cost effective SR22 and FR44 insurance policies. Give us a call today for a quick quote and SR22 filing.
