Is Car Insurance Required in Wisconsin?

In Wisconsin, car insurance is required of all Wisconsin drivers, or in limited situations, other security that could be a surety bond, personal funds, or certificate of self-insurance when operating a motor vehicle in Wisconsin to pay for damages such as medical bills, wage loss, pain and suffering.

Wisconsin Stat. Sec. 632.32 is the law, which sets out the requirements for automobile insurance policies to provide protection to the public:

(3) Required provisions. Except as provided in sub. (5), every policy subject to this section issued to an owner shall provide that:

(a) Coverage provided to the named insured applies in the same manner and under the same provisions to any person using any motor vehicle described in the policy when the use is for purposes and in the manner described in the policy.

(b) Coverage extends to any person legally responsible for the use of the motor vehicle.

This law extends the named insured’s coverage to anyone using a vehicle as long as use of that car is with permission. An automobile insurance policy cannot limit coverage to only the policyholder or owner; it extends to anyone using with permission. An insurance insurance policy can limit coverage in other ways, so long as that exclusion applies to every user with permission including the owner or policyholder.

Section 632.32(5)(a) prohibits excluding persons related to the named operator by blood or marriage.

However, coverage is not going to extend to the policyholder or anyone else if they are driving another owned but not insured vehicle used for regular use. In other words, a person cannot own two vehicles, insure only one, and have coverage while operating both. If one is just using another vehicle, then he or she would be covered unless some other exception applies.

Also, Wisconsin law only applies to policies delivered in the state of Wisconsin.

Mandatory coverage in Wisconsin includes:

The automobile insurance policy must provide the

following minimum liability coverage:

• $25,000 for injury or death of one person;

• $50,000 for injury or death of two or more people;

and

• $10,000 for property damage.

Wisconsin law also requires uninsured motorist cover age with a minimum limit of $25,000 for one person and $50,000 for two or more people for bodily injury coverage.

If they can, most people protect themselves by purchasing more car insurance than the minimum required in Wisconsin. While the premium may be higher, the vast majority of premium cost is in collision coverage, not liability or uninsured or underinsured coverage.

McCormick Law Office in Milwaukee, Wisconsin obtains settlements for medical bills, wage loss, pain and suffering damages in automobile accident and crash cases.