Tennessee car insurance: minimums, SR-22 rules and costs
Last updated: November 12, 2026
Tennessee drivers must carry at least $25,000/$50,000 of bodily injury liability and $25,000 of property damage liability. In 2023, insured drivers in Tennessee spent an average of $1,049.83 on car insurance, 18% below the national average of $1,281.60, according to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC). That makes Tennessee the 18th least expensive of the 50 states and D.C. by that measure.
Minimum car insurance required in Tennessee
| Coverage | Minimum |
|---|---|
| Bodily injury liability, per person | $25,000 |
| Bodily injury liability, per accident | $50,000 |
| Property damage liability, per accident | $25,000 |
You'll often see this written as 25/50/25. The first two numbers are the bodily injury limits in thousands of dollars (per person and per accident), and the last is property damage. Those amounts are the most the policy pays for injuries and damage you cause to others. Anything above them can come back to you personally.
Is Tennessee a no-fault state?
No. Tennessee isn't one of the 12 no-fault states listed by the Insurance Information Institute, so the driver who causes a crash, and their insurer, is generally responsible for the other people's injuries and damage. That's why the liability limits above matter so much.
SR-22 rules in Tennessee
Tennessee's Department of Safety and Homeland Security requires an SR-22 for many reinstatements, including after an uninsured crash, an unpaid judgment, a points suspension, DUI and refusing a test. Each reinstatement that needs one carries a $50 SR-22 fee on top of the reinstatement fee.
If your insurer reports that your SR-22 policy was canceled (an SR-26) before your requirement ends, the state sends a notice. You then have 20 days to file a new SR-22 to avoid a suspension. After an uninsured crash, an employer can provide SR-22 coverage so you can get a restricted license for work.
For more detail on coverage, see our Tennessee car insurance requirements guide.
Read more: what an SR-22 is and how it works.
What drives car insurance costs in Tennessee
Average spending in Tennessee rose 21% from 2019 to 2023, compared with 19% nationwide. Here's average annual spending per insured vehicle, from the NAIC:
| Year | Tennessee average | U.S. average |
|---|---|---|
| 2019 | $864.94 | $1,075.08 |
| 2020 | $856.02 | $1,047.76 |
| 2021 | $869.92 | $1,060.23 |
| 2022 | $924.10 | $1,124.45 |
| 2023 | $1,049.83 | $1,281.60 |
The NAIC's "average expenditure" is total written premium divided by insured vehicles. It isn't a quote, and your own price depends on your driver profile and the coverage you choose.
- Uninsured drivers. An estimated 21.3% of drivers in Tennessee were uninsured in 2023, higher than the national estimate of 15.4%. That's the 5th highest rate among the 50 states and D.C. When more drivers are uninsured, insured drivers' own uninsured motorist coverage pays more claims, which pushes up its price.
- Crash deaths. Tennessee recorded 1,197 motor vehicle crash deaths in 2024, or 1.52 per 100 million miles driven, higher than the U.S. rate of 1.19 (the 5th highest of the 50 states and D.C.). Severe crashes drive up bodily injury claim costs.
- Where and how crashes happen. In 2024, 40% of Tennessee's crash deaths happened in rural areas (U.S.: 41%), 19% involved speeding (U.S.: 29%), and 13% of those killed were pedestrians (U.S.: 18%).
Ways to save on car insurance in Tennessee
- Compare at least three quotes. Insurers weigh the same facts differently, so prices for the same driver in Tennessee can vary widely. More ways to lower your bill.
- Don't drop uninsured motorist coverage to save money. With roughly 1 in 5 drivers in Tennessee uninsured, it's what pays your injury bills if one of them hits you. How UM coverage works.
- Shop at every renewal. Prices in Tennessee rose faster than the national average from 2019 to 2023, so a renewal increase is a good reason to compare.
- Pick a deductible you can actually pay. Raising it lowers your premium, but only if you could cover it after a claim. How deductibles work.
- Ask about discounts. Common ones include safe driver, multi-car, bundling, paying in full, good student and usage-based programs. They're not always applied automatically.
See other states in our car insurance guides by state.
Sources
- Insurance Information Institute, Automobile Financial Responsibility Limits and Enforcement by State (as of July 2024)
- NAIC, 2023 Auto Insurance Database Average Premium Supplement (June 2025), Table 4: average expenditure
- Insurance Information Institute, Background on: No-fault auto insurance
- Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security, Financial responsibility laws
- Insurance Information Institute / Insurance Research Council, Facts + Statistics: Uninsured motorists (2023 estimates)
- IIHS-HLDI, Fatality Facts 2024: State by state
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