Texas car insurance: minimums, SR-22 rules and costs
Last updated: November 12, 2026
Texas drivers must carry at least $30,000/$60,000 of bodily injury liability and $25,000 of property damage liability. In 2023, insured drivers in Texas spent an average of $1,428.94 on car insurance, 11% above the national average of $1,281.60, according to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC). That makes Texas the 13th most expensive of the 50 states and D.C. by that measure.
Minimum car insurance required in Texas
| Coverage | Minimum |
|---|---|
| Bodily injury liability, per person | $30,000 |
| Bodily injury liability, per accident | $60,000 |
| Property damage liability, per accident | $25,000 |
You'll often see this written as 30/60/25. 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 Texas a no-fault state?
No. Texas 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 Texas
According to the Texas Department of Public Safety, an SR-22 is required after certain convictions, including driving while intoxicated, drug offenses, driving while license invalid, and repeat convictions for having no liability insurance. You must keep it for two years from the date of your most recent conviction (or a judgment against you).
If you file it a year after the conviction, you only need to keep it one more year, but a new conviction can extend the requirement. DPS says processing can take up to 21 business days, and not every insurer offers SR-22s.
Read more: what an SR-22 is and how it works.
What drives car insurance costs in Texas
Average spending in Texas rose 25% from 2019 to 2023, compared with 19% nationwide. Here's average annual spending per insured vehicle, from the NAIC:
| Year | Texas average | U.S. average |
|---|---|---|
| 2019 | $1,143.91 | $1,075.08 |
| 2020 | $1,085.40 | $1,047.76 |
| 2021 | $1,123.12 | $1,060.23 |
| 2022 | $1,233.39 | $1,124.45 |
| 2023 | $1,428.94 | $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 14.5% of drivers in Texas were uninsured in 2023, lower than the national estimate of 15.4%. That's the 19th 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. Texas recorded 4,160 motor vehicle crash deaths in 2024, or 1.35 per 100 million miles driven, higher than the U.S. rate of 1.19 (the 15th highest of the 50 states and D.C.). Severe crashes drive up bodily injury claim costs.
- Where and how crashes happen. In 2024, 36% of Texas's crash deaths happened in rural areas (U.S.: 41%), 36% involved speeding (U.S.: 29%), and 18% of those killed were pedestrians (U.S.: 18%).
Ways to save on car insurance in Texas
- Compare at least three quotes. Insurers weigh the same facts differently, so prices for the same driver in Texas can vary widely. More ways to lower your bill.
- Check your uninsured motorist limits anyway. Even at 14.5%, uninsured and underinsured drivers are common, and UM coverage is usually inexpensive. How UM coverage works.
- Shop at every renewal. Prices in Texas 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
- Texas DPS, SR-22 (proof of financial responsibility) FAQ
- Texas DPS, Financial responsibility insurance certificate (SR-22)
- Insurance Information Institute / Insurance Research Council, Facts + Statistics: Uninsured motorists (2023 estimates)
- IIHS-HLDI, Fatality Facts 2024: State by state
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