Texas Begins Test of Driver Verification Program

A coalition of Texas state agencies on June 2 launched a 60-day test of TexasSure, a program aimed at reducing the number of uninsured drivers in the state. The program, also known as the Texas Financial Responsibility Verification Program, was initiated in the Austin area and is a joint project involving the Texas Department of Insurance, the Texas Department of Public Safety, the Texas Department of Transportation and the Texas Department of Information Resources.

For the trial period, DPS officers in rural Travis and Williamson counties will be armed with access to a database designed to let officers know at the time of a routine traffic stop whether or not the detained driver is insured. When the program is launched statewide, all law enforcement officers conducting traffic stops will have real time access to the database.

Insurers are hopeful the uninsured driver database will work as planned, according to one Texas-based insurer trade group.

For the past two years insurance companies have provided volumes of data to the Texas Department of Insurance, said Jerry Johns, president of Southwestern Insurance Information Service.

“While we were skeptical of the legislation when it was introduced based on the experience of similar programs in other states, we are optimistic that the testing phase will go smoothly and the program will go statewide soon. The delay in implementing the program will be time well spent if it operates in an efficient and effective manner,” Johns said.

The state estimates that around one in five drivers in Texas is uninsured.

Johns said in the Rio Grande Valley there may be as many as 50 percent of drivers who are uninsured.

Texas requires that drivers carry minimum liability coverage of $25,000 per injured person, $50,000 for everyone injured in an accident and $25,000 for property damage (25/50/25). A first conviction for driving without liability insurance could result in a fine between $175 and $350. Penalties for subsequent convictions could include fines of $350 to $1,000, suspension of driver’s license, and automobile impoundment.

National estimates of uninsured drivers run from 5 percent to 30 percent. More than 30 other states have implemented insurance verification programs that have successfully reduced the numbers of uninsured motorists, according to TDI. The agencies implementing the program anticipate it will lower the uninsured motorist rate in Texas.

Insurance agents’ responsibilities under the program depend on how the companies or managing general agents they represent decide to collect information for the program. The insurance company has the ultimate responsibility for compliance, TDI says.

Topics Texas Personal Auto