People normally only consider the cost of the vehicle when looking to buy a car, and not everything else that comes with it. There are many expenses associated with a vehicle purchase. Car insurance is one of those things that actually make buying a car more complicated and a bit more difficult. This is partly due to state car insurance requirements, which differ depending on where you live. There is not one list of requirements that's universal across the country. In general, car insurance agencies take a number of personal factors into consideration when determining the premium you'll have to pay. But the agency is not the only group you'll need to deal with, as mentioned before, the state plays a big part–as does the SR22 form.
The SR22 form is something that is almost mandatory but probably not something you may have heard or remember seeing before. That is because the car insurance agency where you decide to get your policy actually has this form on file. The SR22 serves one specific purpose that you need to worry about. Your state uses this form to verify your car insurance status. Without this form, the state has no way of knowing for sure if you truly have car insurance or that you intend on getting some. State car insurance requirements, regardless of the state you live, usually list this form as a must.
How do you get an SR22 form? The answer to this is simple–get car insurance. When you have decided on a car that you'd like to drive and then purchase it, your next step is to go get insurance for it. After selecting an agency to move forward with, you'll proceed to sign policy forms and at that point, your agent will normally get this form out. One of the first steps your agent will take after you've signed your policy and paid your deposit is send this form out to the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) for your particular state. This is almost automatic and ensures that no problems will arise between you and the state and the state and your car insurance agent. In this way, your state can verify right away that you have car insurance on your vehicle and are legally able to drive it.
It's important to make sure the SR22 is sent from your car insurance company to the DMV so that you can avoid any problems. Call your agent a few days after signing the policy and verify that it was sent. If it wasn't, request that it be sent right away.
