New Mexico requires at least $25,000 of bodily injury liability per person, $50,000 per accident and $10,000 of property damage liability, often written as 25/50/10. Uninsured motorist coverage, which in New Mexico also covers underinsured drivers, comes with every policy unless the named insured rejects it.
New Mexico doesn’t require personal injury protection. The Motor Vehicle Division (MVD) tracks coverage through an insurance database, and if your insurer doesn’t report your car as insured, your registration can be suspended.
Key Takeaways
- New Mexico requires 25/50/10 liability coverage. Uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage is included unless the named insured rejects it, and the state’s insurance rule says a rejection has to be made part of the policy.
- In New Mexico, underinsured motorist coverage is reduced by what the at-fault driver’s insurance pays, so it fills the gap between their limit and yours.
- MVD checks coverage through its Insurance Identification Database. If your insurer doesn’t report your coverage within 30 days of a Notice of Noncompliance, your registration is suspended until you fix it and pay a reinstatement fee.
- Driving uninsured is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of up to $300, up to 90 days in jail or both. If you’re cited for it after a crash, the officer takes or defaces your plate and gives you a 30-day temporary sticker.
New Mexico Minimum Car Insurance at a Glance
| Coverage | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Bodily injury liability | $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident |
| Property damage liability | $10,000 per accident |
| Uninsured and underinsured motorist | Included unless the named insured rejects it, at limits of at least 25/50/10 and up to your liability limits |
| Personal injury protection | Not required |
| Medical payments | Not required |
| Collision and comprehensive | Not required by law, but lenders and lessors often require them |
The MVD lists these limits on its page about what auto insurance New Mexico requires. Under NMSA 66-5-205, an owner can’t let an uninsured vehicle be driven, and no one can drive one. Instead of a policy, the law also accepts a surety bond or a cash deposit with the State Treasurer, totaling $60,000. RateFrog’s guide to liability limits explains how the three numbers work.
Uninsured and Underinsured Motorist Coverage in New Mexico
Under NMSA 66-5-301, every policy for a car registered or principally garaged in New Mexico has to include uninsured motorist (UM) coverage, at least at the 25/50/10 minimums and up to your policy’s liability limits, unless the named insured rejects it. If you reject it, the same insurer doesn’t have to add it back at renewal unless you ask for it in writing.
The statute’s rejection sentence doesn’t spell out how you reject. The Office of Superintendent of Insurance (OSI) fills that in. Its rule, 13.12.3.9 NMAC, says the rejection has to be endorsed, attached, stamped or otherwise made part of the policy, and New Mexico courts have required the rejection to be in writing. If you’re not sure what you chose, ask your insurer for a copy of your selection or rejection form.
How Underinsured Coverage Works
New Mexico folds underinsured motorist (UIM) coverage into UM. The statute treats a driver as underinsured when their bodily injury limits are lower than your UM limits. UM also covers property damage, and the law allows an exclusion of up to the first $250 of property damage per accident.
What you collect from UIM is reduced by what the at-fault driver’s insurer pays. OSI’s uninsured motorist rule (13.12.3 NMAC) says UM payments are reduced by sums paid by or for the at-fault owner or driver, including liability payments, along with workers’ compensation and disability benefits and certain property insurance payments. The same rule excludes the part of your damages paid under medical payments coverage.
Hypothetical example: you carry UM of $50,000 per person, and the at-fault driver has $25,000 per person in liability coverage. If their insurer pays its full $25,000, your UIM would pay at most another $25,000. These numbers are illustrations, not quotes. Your policy wording controls.
Stacking (combining UM limits from more than one vehicle) isn’t addressed in the statute or the UM rule. New Mexico courts have generally allowed stacking where separate premiums were paid unless the insured rejected it in writing. Check your policy and selection forms. RateFrog’s guide to uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage explains these coverages in general.
Proposed UM Changes That Didn’t Pass
Some websites say New Mexico made UM mandatory starting January 1, 2026. That’s not right. SB 319 and HB 97 in the 2025 session would have removed the right to reject UM, and SB 319 would also have banned the offset described above. The legislature’s site lists both bills as having died. The most recent published version of the statute (2025) still lets the named insured reject the coverage.
Proof of Insurance in New Mexico
New Mexico’s Mandatory Financial Responsibility Act requires you to carry proof of financial responsibility in the car whenever it’s driven on the state’s highways. Since a 2019 amendment, proof of an insurance policy can be on paper or on your phone. Showing your phone doesn’t mean you consent to an officer looking at anything else on it, and you’re responsible for any damage to the device.
The MVD accepts a current insurance card, a copy of your current policy, or a letter on your insurer’s letterhead confirming coverage. MVD won’t issue or renew a registration without valid coverage or other evidence of financial responsibility. RateFrog’s guide to getting proof of insurance quickly can help if you need a card today.
How New Mexico Checks Your Coverage
According to the MVD insurance page, the state contracts with PASCO, which runs the New Mexico Insurance Identification Database (IIDB). Your insurer has to report your coverage electronically, and once it does, your registration record should update the next business day. Under state law, MVD’s rules require insurers to report canceled, terminated and new policies each month. The IIDB call center is (866) 891-0665.
If your car shows up as uninsured, MVD’s process runs like this:
- MVD sends a Verification of Mandatory Automobile Insurance letter, then a Notice of Noncompliance 30 days later.
- If your insurer doesn’t report your coverage to the IIDB within 30 days of that notice, MVD suspends the registration.
- After a Notice of Suspension of Registration, you have to return the registration and plate to MVD within 10 days.
- You can request a hearing on form MVD-10792 within 20 days of the date the Notice of Noncompliance was mailed.
Once your insurer reports, MVD says to wait at least 24 hours before going to a field office. To reinstate, you pay a fee. NMSA 66-5-33.1 sets a $25 reinstatement fee, while MVD’s insurance page lists $30 for a suspended registration. Check the amount with MVD before you go. If your car is insured out of state or not in use, the MVD page describes an affidavit (form MVD-11268) to file with the IIDB.
Penalties for Driving Without Insurance in New Mexico
The consequences come from a court, from the officer at a crash scene and from MVD. You can face more than one.
Court Penalties
Under NMSA 66-5-205, driving uninsured is a misdemeanor punished as provided in NMSA 66-8-7, which sets a fine of up to $300, up to 90 days in jail, or both. The no-insurance statute used to state the $300 fine itself, but a 2013 amendment removed it, so the penalty now comes from 66-8-7. The offense isn’t on the state’s penalty assessment list of fixed ticket amounts, so it’s handled as a court misdemeanor.
Neither 66-5-205 nor 66-8-7 sets a higher penalty for a repeat offense. If you show the court proof of financial responsibility that was valid when you were cited, you can’t be convicted.
Plate Removal After a Crash
If you’re in a crash and an officer cites you for no insurance, NMSA 66-5-205.1 requires the officer to give you a temporary operation sticker good for 30 days and either take your license plate and send it to MVD or permanently deface it. You get the plate back or a replacement once you show compliance and pay a $25 fee. The fee is waived if you submit proof within 15 days of getting the sticker.
Registration Consequences
MVD can suspend a registration for up to one year for driving in violation of the insurance law, and the suspension steps above apply. MVD’s insurance page also warns that uninsured drivers can face plate confiscation and a citation for no proof of insurance.
A Crash Without Insurance
If a court enters a judgment against you after a crash and you don’t pay it, state law suspends your driver’s license and registration until the judgment is stayed or satisfied and you file evidence of financial responsibility. MVD’s reinstatement requirements say certain suspensions require proof of a current liability policy that lists you as a driver. RateFrog’s guide to what happens when your insurance lapses covers the broader risks.
SR-22 Filings in New Mexico
MVD and OSI pages don’t use the term SR-22. New Mexico law calls it evidence of financial responsibility, which can be an insurance policy, a surety bond or a $60,000 cash deposit. It applies to people convicted of, or forfeiting bail for, certain offenses and to people who didn’t pay a crash judgment or settlement.
State law requires MVD to waive the filing after one year of satisfactory evidence. The waiver isn’t allowed while a damages lawsuit is pending, a judgment is unpaid, or if you had a qualifying accident in the prior year. MVD tells you what to file for your case. RateFrog’s SR-22 guide explains how these filings work in other states.
If You Can’t Find Coverage
The New Mexico Motor Vehicle Insurance Plan is for eligible drivers who can’t get coverage in the regular market. According to AIPSO, the plan is serviced by the Western Association of Automobile Insurance Plans (WAAIP), which matches applicants with an insurer. Applications go through a licensed agent or producer. The plan office number is (800) 227-4659.
How New Mexico Insurers Set Rates
Under New Mexico’s rating law, rates can’t be excessive, inadequate or unfairly discriminatory. OSI’s auto insurance page lists factors insurers use, including where you live, your vehicle, your driving history, gender, age and insurance credit score.
The same rating law says your premium can’t go up because of an accident you didn’t cause, and an insurer can’t cancel or nonrenew you for it. An insurer can decide you were at fault despite the accident report only after an investigation.
Credit use is limited by the Personal Insurance Credit Information Act. Under NMSA 59A-17A-4:
- An insurer can’t deny, cancel, nonrenew or rate you on credit without considering other underwriting factors.
- Insurance scores can’t be calculated using income, gender, address, race, color, national origin, religion or marital status.
- If you have no credit history or no score can be calculated, the insurer has to treat that as average or better, or not use credit at all.
- Credit inquiries can’t be used as a scoring factor, and an insurer that uses credit at renewal has to recalculate your score at least every 36 months.
New Mexico law requires a premium reduction for a principal operator 55 or older who completes an approved accident prevention course. Under NMSA 59A-32-14, the reduction lasts three years, and the law doesn’t set a percentage. OSI’s auto page lists a mature driver discount for ages 50 to 65 in its general list of discounts, so ask your insurer what it offers. RateFrog’s guide to what affects car insurance rates covers the rest.
Cancellation and Nonrenewal Rules
Under NMSA 59A-18-29, an insurer can cancel for nonpayment at any time and can cancel without cause in the first 60 days of a new policy, with at least 10 days’ written notice in either case. After that, it needs reasonable cause.
OSI’s cancellation rule (13.8.4 NMAC) allows cancellation after 60 days for a substantial change in the risk, with at least 30 days’ notice, or for one of these reasons:
- Fraud or material misrepresentation in getting the policy
- Willful and negligent acts or omissions by the insured that substantially increased the hazards insured against
- Suspension or revocation of the license of the named insured or another driver who lives in the household or usually drives the car
- A claim based on fraud or material misrepresentation
Cancellations for those four reasons need at least 15 days’ notice. An insurer that won’t renew has to give at least 30 days’ notice before the policy expires, and the rule doesn’t require it to give a reason. RateFrog’s guide to car insurance grace periods explains what usually happens when a payment is late.
Is New Mexico’s Minimum Coverage Enough?
A 25/50/10 policy can run out quickly in a serious crash, and $10,000 of property damage coverage may not pay for a newer car you hit. If a claim is more than your limits, you could owe the rest.
Think carefully before rejecting UM. If an uninsured or underinsured driver hurts you, it may be the coverage that pays your medical bills. Because of the offset, the underinsured part only helps if your UM limits are higher than the other driver’s liability limits. Higher limits cost more, so weigh the premium against your savings and what you’d stand to lose. RateFrog’s guide to how much car insurance you need can help you choose, and you can compare car insurance quotes at the same coverage levels.
Where to Get Help
For problems with an insurer, a claim or a cancellation, OSI takes calls at 855-427-5674 and lists its offices on its contact page. Its complaints page links to the online complaint form and suggests contacting your insurer first. For registration suspensions and insurance verification notices, contact MVD or the IIDB call center.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Uninsured Motorist Coverage Required in New Mexico?
It’s included in every policy unless the named insured rejects it. OSI’s rule says the rejection has to be made part of the policy. In New Mexico, UM also covers underinsured drivers.
What Happens If MVD Can’t Verify My Insurance?
MVD sends a verification letter and then a Notice of Noncompliance. If your insurer doesn’t report your coverage to the database within 30 days of that notice, your registration is suspended and you have to return the plate and registration within 10 days.
What Is the Fine for Driving Without Insurance in New Mexico?
Up to $300, up to 90 days in jail, or both. Plate removal after a crash and registration reinstatement fees can apply separately.
Can I Show Proof of Insurance on My Phone in New Mexico?
Yes. Since 2019, New Mexico law accepts proof of an insurance policy on a portable electronic device, and showing it doesn’t give an officer consent to look at anything else on the device.
Sources
- New Mexico MVD: What Automobile Insurance Am I Required to Have?
- New Mexico MVD: Insurance
- New Mexico MVD: Chapter 10 Reinstatement Requirements
- New Mexico MVD: Form MVD-10792 (Hearing Request)
- New Mexico Office of Superintendent of Insurance: Auto Insurance
- New Mexico Office of Superintendent of Insurance: Complaints
- New Mexico Office of Superintendent of Insurance: Contact Us
- NMSA Chapter 66, Article 5, Part 3 (Mandatory Financial Responsibility Act)
- NMSA 66-5-205
- NMSA 66-5-205.1
- NMSA 66-5-301
- NMSA 66-5-33.1
- NMSA 66-8-7
- NMSA 66-8-116
- NMSA Chapter 59A, Article 17
- NMSA 59A-17A-4
- NMSA 59A-18-29
- NMSA 59A-32-14
- 13.12.3 NMAC: Uninsured Motorist Coverage
- 13.12.3.9 NMAC
- 13.8.4 NMAC: Cancellation, Nonrenewal or Change in Coverages
- New Mexico Legislature: SB 319 (2025)
- New Mexico Legislature: HB 97 (2025)
- AIPSO: New Mexico Motor Vehicle Insurance Plan