California’s minimum is liability only: it pays for injuries and damage you cause to others, up to 30/60/15. It does nothing for your own car or your own injuries. The old 15/30/5 limits stopped applying to policies issued or renewed on or after January 1, 2025, under SB 1107, and for policies issued or renewed on or after January 1, 2035, the minimums go up again to 50/100/25. You have to carry proof in the car and show it when an officer asks. Driving without proof can mean fines and a court-ordered impound, and an uninsured crash can mean a license suspension of up to four years. The minimum is a legal floor, not a recommendation.
The limits since January 1, 2025
California’s financial responsibility law, Vehicle Code 16056, sets the floor for any auto liability policy or bond used to meet the requirement. For a policy or bond issued or renewed on or after January 1, 2025, the minimums are:
- $30,000 for bodily injury or death of one person in any one accident.
- $60,000 for bodily injury or death of two or more people in any one accident.
- $15,000 for damage to or destruction of other people’s property in any one accident.
Those numbers replaced the 15/30/5 limits that applied before 2025. The change came from SB 1107 (Chapter 717, Statutes of 2022), signed September 28, 2022. Vehicle Code 16430, which defines the proof of financial responsibility the DMV can require, and Vehicle Code 16451, which sets what an owner’s policy has to cover, carry the same 30/60/15 figures.
The next increase in 2035
The same law schedules a second step. For policies issued or renewed on or after January 1, 2035, each minimum goes up again: by $20,000 per person, $40,000 per accident and $10,000 for property damage. That works out to 50/100/25. The Insurance Commissioner is directed to put out a bulletin soliciting insurer rate applications by July 1, 2033, ahead of the change.
Alternatives to an insurance policy
Insurance is the usual way to meet the requirement, but the DMV lists other options:
- A $75,000 cash deposit with the DMV. SB 1107 raised the deposit from $35,000, and under Vehicle Code 16435 it goes up by another $50,000, to $125,000, on January 1, 2035.
- A $75,000 surety bond from a surety company admitted to do business in California.
- A DMV self-insurance certificate. Under Vehicle Code 16052, this is available to a person with more than 25 vehicles registered in their name.
Proof of insurance and penalties
Vehicle Code 16020 requires every driver and owner to be able to show financial responsibility at all times and to carry evidence of it in the vehicle. Under Vehicle Code 16028, you show it when an officer writes you a ticket or is called to a reportable collision, and the evidence can be on paper or on your phone. Insurers report coverage to the DMV electronically, and if the DMV doesn’t receive proof of insurance for a vehicle, the registration is suspended and the vehicle can’t be driven or parked on public roads until proof is submitted.
Under Vehicle Code 16029, a first conviction for driving without proof of financial responsibility carries a fine of $100 to $200 plus penalty assessments, and a second within three years $200 to $500 plus assessments. The court can also order the vehicle impounded. The bigger risk comes after a crash. Under Vehicle Code 16000, a collision with more than $1,000 of damage to anyone’s property, or any injury or death, has to be reported to the DMV on an SR-1 within 10 days. If you didn’t have insurance, the DMV suspends your driving privilege for up to four years, no matter who was at fault.
The California Low Cost Automobile Insurance Program
For drivers who can’t afford a standard policy, the state runs the California Low Cost Automobile Insurance Program through the California Automobile Assigned Risk Plan. To be eligible you generally need to:
- Be at least 16 and hold a valid California driver’s license.
- Own a vehicle valued at $25,000 or less.
- Have household income at or below 250 percent of the federal poverty level.
- Have a good driving record: in the past three years, no more than one at-fault property-damage accident or one point for a moving violation, no at-fault injury or death accident, and no felony or misdemeanor Vehicle Code conviction on record.
The program’s policy has its own statutory limits, $10,000/$20,000/$3,000, set in Insurance Code 11629.71. It’s available regardless of immigration status.
Why the minimum is rarely enough
A $15,000 property damage limit doesn’t go far when you hit a late-model car, and $30,000 per person doesn’t go far after a serious injury. Anything above your limits is your problem, not the insurer’s. When I quote auto insurance, I start well above the floor.
Uninsured motorist coverage matters too. Under Insurance Code 11580.2, a California auto liability policy has to include it unless you delete or reduce it in a written agreement with the insurer, and it can’t be reduced below the 16056 minimums. Underinsured coverage must be offered at the same limits as your uninsured coverage.
If you want an umbrella, the minimums won’t qualify. Umbrella carriers publish the auto limits they require underneath; one insurer’s published guideline, for example, lists 250/500 split limits or a $300,000 combined single limit. See umbrella insurance, how much umbrella coverage you need, personal liability insurance and high-value auto insurance.
If the DMV requires you to file proof, the SR-22 is the insurance proof certificate it accepts, and under Vehicle Code 16430 that proof has to meet the same 30/60/15 minimums. After a suspension for driving uninsured in a collision, the DMV requires proof to be filed and kept on file for three years. More in SR-22 insurance in California and SR-22 vs. FR-44.
Common questions
Is California’s minimum still 15/30/5?
No. For policies issued or renewed on or after January 1, 2025, the minimum is 30/60/15 under Vehicle Code 16056, as changed by SB 1107.
Will the minimum change again?
Yes. For policies issued or renewed on or after January 1, 2035, the law raises it to 50/100/25.
Does the minimum cover my own car?
No. The required coverage is liability for injuries and property damage you cause to others. Damage to your own car needs separate physical damage coverage.
Can I show proof of insurance on my phone?
Yes. Vehicle Code 16028 lets you show evidence of financial responsibility on a mobile electronic device, and the officer is limited to viewing the insurance information.
What happens if I crash without insurance?
If the collision had to be reported to the DMV (more than $1,000 of property damage, or any injury or death), the DMV can suspend your driving privilege for up to four years, no matter who was at fault. To get it back during the last three years, you file an SR-22 or SR-1P and keep it in force.
Sources
- California Vehicle Code 16056 (leginfo): minimum liability limits
- SB 1107 (2022), Chapter 717 (leginfo): bill text and Legislative Counsel’s Digest
- California Vehicle Code 16430 (leginfo): proof of financial responsibility amounts, 2035 increase
- California Vehicle Code 16435 (leginfo): $75,000 cash deposit, $50,000 increase on January 1, 2035
- California Vehicle Code 16451 (leginfo): owner’s policy limits
- California Vehicle Code 16052 (leginfo): self-insurance certificate
- California Vehicle Code 16020 (leginfo): evidence of financial responsibility
- California Vehicle Code 16028 (leginfo): showing proof on demand, mobile devices
- California Vehicle Code 16029 (leginfo): fines and impoundment
- California Vehicle Code 16000 (leginfo): SR-1 accident report
- California DMV: insurance requirements
- California DMV Driver Handbook, Section 10: financial responsibility, insurance requirements and collisions
- California DMV: financial responsibility (insurance) actions
- California Insurance Code 11580.2 (leginfo): uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage
- California Insurance Code 11629.71 (leginfo): low-cost policy limits and vehicle value
- California Insurance Code 11629.73 (leginfo): low-cost program eligibility
- CA.gov: California Low Cost Auto eligibility
- State Auto: personal umbrella underlying limit requirements (insurer guideline example)
General information about California’s auto financial responsibility requirements as of October 2026, not legal advice; the California Vehicle Code, Insurance Code and current DMV procedures control. Coverage depends on underwriting and the terms, conditions and exclusions of the policy actually issued.