Minnesota Car Insurance

By Javier Marín, Editor·Last reviewed September 2026·How we check this

Minnesota is a no-fault state for auto insurance — one of just over a dozen in the U.S. The 1974 Minnesota No-Fault Automobile Insurance Act requires every registered vehicle to carry medical, wage-loss, and replacement-services coverage that pays the policyholder regardless of who caused a crash, plus liability protection for damages to others. The mandatory package is among the most comprehensive in the country.

Mandatory coverages

Every Minnesota policy must include:

$30,000 bodily injury liability per person.
$60,000 bodily injury liability per accident.
$10,000 property damage liability per accident.
$40,000 Personal Injury Protection (PIP) — $20,000 medical and $20,000 wage loss/replacement services.
$25,000 uninsured motorist (UM) bodily injury per person.
$50,000 UM bodily injury per accident.
$25,000/$50,000 underinsured motorist (UIM) bodily injury.

The shorthand is 30/60/10 + $40K PIP + 25/50 UM/UIM. Together these requirements mean a basic Minnesota policy provides at least $145,000 in liability and first-party coverage on a single accident — substantially more than tort-only states like Arizona or Florida.

How no-fault works

Under the 1974 Act, most accident-related medical bills, lost wages, and replacement service costs are paid by the policyholder's own insurer through PIP, regardless of fault. The driver does not have to wait for a liability determination, and the insurer cannot sue the at-fault driver to recover those payments (with limited exceptions). This reduces small-claim litigation but raises base premiums.

The tort threshold

To bring a personal injury claim against the at-fault driver, the injured party must meet at least one of the statutory thresholds in § 65B.51:

$4,000 or more in reasonable medical expenses.
60+ days of disability.
Permanent injury.
Permanent disfigurement.
Death.

These thresholds prevent every fender-bender from becoming a lawsuit. Drivers with serious injuries can still sue for non-economic damages (pain and suffering) and for medical and wage-loss damages above the PIP cap.

PIP coverage detail

The $40,000 PIP package is split:

Medical Expense Benefit ($20,000): covers reasonable medical and rehabilitation expenses related to the crash.
Income Loss Benefit ($20,000): covers lost wages, with a weekly cap of $500 (subject to indexing).
Replacement Services: includes household services and other costs while disabled, drawn from the same $20,000 income loss pool.
Funeral Benefit ($5,000): separate, available regardless of fault.
Death/Survivors Loss ($20,000): separate, available to dependents.

PIP follows the person, not the vehicle — covered persons include the policyholder, family members in the household, passengers, and pedestrians struck by the insured vehicle.

Uninsured/underinsured motorist

Minnesota requires both UM and UIM at minimum 25/50 limits. UM pays when an at-fault driver has no insurance; UIM pays when the at-fault driver's policy is exhausted by other claims. Minnesota's UM and UIM are unusually robust because the state's tort threshold can prevent the injured driver from recovering directly — UM/UIM fills the gap.

Penalties for driving uninsured

Driving without proof of insurance under § 169.797:

First offense: misdemeanor. Up to $1,000 fine and 90 days in jail. License suspension until SR-22 is filed.
Second offense within 10 years: gross misdemeanor. Up to $3,000 fine and 1 year in jail.
Vehicle owner allowing operation without insurance: separate penalty — fine plus possible misdemeanor charge.

The administrative consequences include automatic license revocation and registration suspension until proof of coverage is filed.

SR-22 filings

An SR-22 is a financial responsibility certificate that an insurance carrier files with DVS to confirm an at-risk driver has at least the 30/60/10 minimum. Minnesota requires SR-22 filing for:

Reinstatement after a DWI conviction — 3 years.
Driving uninsured suspension — 3 years.
Repeat traffic violation suspensions — 3 years.
Implied Consent revocation — 3 years from reinstatement.

The SR-22 must remain in force without lapse for the full filing period. A single day of policy lapse triggers automatic re-revocation reported back to DVS.

Average premiums

Minnesota's full-coverage average annual premium runs around $1,800-$2,000 for a 30-year-old with a clean record, with significant variation between metro Twin Cities (higher) and rural counties (lower). The state's no-fault system raises base premiums but reduces lawsuit exposure, so the net cost to drivers is similar to neighboring tort states.

Discounts unique to Minnesota

Defensive Driving discount — completion of an approved 4-hour course offers 10%-15% premium reduction for drivers 55 and older for 3 years.
Anti-theft discount — Minnesota has higher than average theft rates in metro counties.
Multi-policy discount for bundling auto with homeowners or renters.
Good Student discount for full-time students with a 3.0+ GPA.

For new policyholders moving from a tort state, the increase in base premium is real but the coverage breadth often eliminates the need for separate medical and disability gap policies. After a license action, work directly with your carrier to file the SR-22 — most major insurers offer it as a standard endorsement.