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Arizona Auto Insurance & Crash Law · Citizen Guide 02
Required Auto Insurance & Minimum Liability Limits
Arizona requires financial responsibility for vehicles operated on its highways. For most private motorists that means liability insurance with at least 25/50/15 limits. But those minimum limits are only the statutory floor—not a determination of who is insured or how much insurance may actually be available after a crash.
Arizona requires financial responsibility—not merely possession of an insurance card
A.R.S. §28-4135 requires a motor vehicle operated on an Arizona highway to be covered by an authorized form of financial responsibility.
Liability insurance policy
The ordinary method is an automobile or motor vehicle liability policy with limits not less than those required by §28-4009.
Authorized alternate coverage
Arizona law recognizes specified alternative methods of establishing financial responsibility when the statutory requirements are met.
Self-insurance
A qualifying person or entity can obtain a certificate of self-insurance under §28-4007 rather than relying exclusively on an ordinary personal auto policy.
Transportation financial responsibility
Commercial transportation, TNC and other specialized operations can be governed by additional financial-responsibility statutes.
The ordinary Arizona liability minimum is 25 / 50 / 15
For an ordinary owner's motor vehicle liability policy issued or renewed beginning July 1, 2020, §28-4009 establishes the following compulsory liability limits, subject to the statute's specific provisions and self-insurance exception.
The per-person and per-accident limits answer different questions
The $25,000 limit applies to bodily injury or death of one person. The $50,000 limit is the aggregate bodily-injury limit for two or more people injured or killed in the same accident, subject to the individual $25,000 limit.
An Arizona owner's policy follows the covered vehicle and its permitted use
Section 28-4009(A) defines the required structure of an owner's motor vehicle liability policy.
Identify the vehicles
The policy must designate the vehicles for which coverage is granted by explicit description or appropriate reference.
Insure the named insured
The statute requires liability protection for the person named as insured under the owner's policy.
Protect permissive users
The statutory omnibus provision also protects a person using the covered vehicle with the named insured's express or implied permission.
Permission can determine whether another driver is insured
Section 28-4009(A)(2) protects a person using the covered motor vehicle with the named insured's express or implied permission.
Express permission
The owner or named insured directly authorizes the person to use the vehicle.
Examples can include handing over the keys, verbally authorizing use or otherwise expressly allowing the particular driver to operate the automobile.
Implied permission
Permission can also arise from conduct, relationship, established practice or surrounding circumstances rather than an express statement.
Whether implied permission exists is therefore often a factual investigation rather than a question answered by the policy card.
Evidence of permission may include
- who possessed the keys
- prior vehicle use
- household relationship
- texts or messages
- owner statements
- driver statements
- purpose of the trip
- frequency of prior borrowing
- restrictions placed on use
- employment or agency relationship
- police-report statements
- testimony of household members or witnesses
Arizona also recognizes an operator's liability policy
Section 28-4009(B) distinguishes an operator's motor vehicle liability policy from an owner's policy.
Coverage organized around specified vehicles
The policy identifies covered vehicles and protects the named insured and qualifying permissive users under the statutory framework.
Coverage organized around the named person
The policy insures the named person against liability arising from use of a vehicle the person does not own, subject to statutory terms and limits.
Arizona permits a specifically named driver to be excluded—but the statute requires a written agreement
Section 28-4009(A)(3) allows the named insured and insurer to agree in writing that a particular identified person is excluded as an insured while operating a motor vehicle.
The compulsory layer and the excess contractual layer are not always identical
Section 28-4009 does more than state minimum limits. It also defines what Arizona requires a motor vehicle liability policy to protect and what liability the statute does not require the policy to insure.
Employee / workers' compensation liability
The compulsory-policy statute does not require certain workers' compensation liability or specified employee bodily-injury liability to be insured under the motor vehicle liability policy.
Property in the insured's control
Section 28-4009 identifies specified property owned by, rented to, in charge of or transported by the insured as outside the compulsory liability requirement.
Intentional injury
The statute does not require liability coverage for damage or bodily injury intentionally caused by or at the direction of the insured.
TNC / rideshare use
An ordinary private-passenger policy is not required to insure designated TNC activity unless the policy or an endorsement expressly provides that coverage. Arizona has a separate TNC insurance statute.
The statute expressly distinguishes additional coverage
Under §28-4009(D), an Arizona policy may provide insurance above or in addition to the statutory minimum. The compulsory provisions of the financial-responsibility chapter apply to the portion of coverage required by the statute; excess or additional coverage can remain governed by the policy contract and other Arizona insurance law.
Household exclusions illustrate the distinction
Arizona Supreme Court decisions including Arceneaux recognized that a household exclusion could not eliminate the liability protection required by the financial-responsibility law, while allowing contractual limitations above the compulsory minimum in appropriate circumstances.
Averett adds an important second inquiry: even where an exclusion can legally operate against coverage above the compulsory floor, the surrounding insurance transaction may still require analysis under Arizona's reasonable-expectations doctrine.
Once a covered crash occurs, the compulsory liability cannot simply disappear afterward
Section 28-4009(C)(5) includes important protections that operate after the injury or property damage has occurred.
Liability becomes absolute
The insurer's liability with respect to insurance required by the chapter becomes absolute when covered injury or damage occurs.
No retroactive cancellation
An insurer and insured cannot cancel or annul the compulsory liability after the crash in the manner prohibited by the statute.
Judgment need not be paid first
Satisfaction of a judgment by the insured is not a prerequisite to the insurer's obligation to make a covered payment.
Arizona requires evidence of financial responsibility and verifies it after crashes
A person operating a motor vehicle on an Arizona highway generally must have current evidence of financial responsibility applicable to the vehicle.
Paper or electronic evidence
Section 28-4135 permits evidence of financial responsibility to be displayed on a wireless communication device. Showing the insurance proof does not itself consent to law-enforcement access to other contents of the device.
Crash investigation
Under §28-4134, an officer investigating a motor-vehicle accident generally requires the operator to produce evidence of financial responsibility.
ADOT accident verification
Section 28-4143 authorizes ADOT to verify whether financial responsibility was valid on the date of an accident.
Registration verification
Section 28-4142 authorizes financial-responsibility verification in connection with vehicle registration and renewal.
Current §28-4135 penalties
| Violation | Minimum civil penalty | Additional statutory consequence |
|---|---|---|
| First violation | $500 | Three-month driving-privilege suspension or qualifying restricted privilege under the current statute. |
| Second within 36 months | $750 | Six-month driver-license and vehicle-registration/license-plate suspension. |
| Third or subsequent within 36 months | $1,000 | One-year driver-license and vehicle-registration/license-plate suspension, with future proof-of-financial-responsibility requirements specified by statute. |
Not every financially responsible Arizona vehicle is insured through an ordinary personal auto policy
Section 28-4007 allows qualifying persons and entities to obtain certificates of self-insurance or partial self-insurance.
More than ten registered vehicles
A person in whose name more than ten motor vehicles are registered may qualify to seek self-insurer status if the statutory requirements are satisfied.
Financial ability matters
ADOT must determine that the applicant is financially able and will continue to be able to pay judgments obtained against the applicant.
Partial self-insurance
Arizona law also provides for qualifying partial self-insurance in specified transportation contexts.
Status can be cancelled
Failure to pay judgments or maintain the statutory financial capacity can support cancellation of the self-insurance certificate.
The minimum-limits inquiry should lead directly into a complete coverage investigation
The insurance card answers very little about a serious Arizona crash.
Documents to obtain
- insurance identification card
- complete declarations page
- complete policy
- all endorsements
- named-driver exclusion agreement
- vehicle registration
- VIN
- driver's license
- crash report
- ADOT financial-responsibility correspondence
- coverage-confirmation letter
- reservation-of-rights letter
- coverage-denial letter
- driver's separate policy
- household policies
- employer policy
- commercial-auto policy
- umbrella policy
- excess policy
- fleet self-insurance certificate
- TNC or delivery records
- rental agreement where applicable
Common mistakes
“The minimum is $25,000, so the claim is worth $25,000.”
Wrong question. Damages determine the legal loss. Policy limits determine only one potential source of payment.
“The insurance card lists the only policy.”
The card may identify only one primary vehicle policy. Other owner, driver, household, employer, commercial, umbrella or excess coverage may exist.
“The driver wasn't listed, so there is no coverage.”
A covered vehicle's permissive user may be an insured even though not listed as a named insured. Investigate permission and exclusions.
“The driver was excluded.”
Obtain the actual written named-driver agreement and test it against §28-4009 rather than accepting the assertion.
“An exclusion eliminates every dollar.”
Arizona's compulsory financial-responsibility floor and higher contractual liability limits can require separate analyses.
“Self-insured means uninsured.”
It does not. A qualifying self-insurer has elected a different statutory method of demonstrating financial responsibility.
Arizona authority map
Frequently asked questions
What is the minimum Arizona liability insurance?
For an ordinary policy under the current §28-4009 framework, the minimum is $25,000 for bodily injury or death of one person, $50,000 for bodily injury or death of two or more people in one accident, and $15,000 for property damage.
Does 25/50/15 mean every injured person can recover $25,000?
No. Each claimant remains subject to the per-person bodily-injury limit, and all bodily-injury claimants collectively are subject to the per-accident limit. Liability, damages and other applicable insurance must also be determined.
Is $25,000 the maximum value of an Arizona injury claim?
No. It is the ordinary minimum per-person liability insurance required by §28-4009. Damages may be much greater, and other insurance or legally responsible parties may exist.
Is someone covered if they borrowed the insured vehicle?
Potentially. Arizona's owner's-policy statute generally requires liability protection for another person using a covered vehicle with the named insured's express or implied permission, subject to applicable statutory provisions and lawful exclusions.
Does permission have to be in writing?
No. Section 28-4009 expressly recognizes both express and implied permission. The facts surrounding vehicle use may therefore determine whether the driver qualifies as a permissive insured.
Can an Arizona policy exclude a particular driver?
Yes. Section 28-4009 permits a named insured and insurer to agree in writing to exclude a specifically designated person as an insured when operating a motor vehicle. Obtain and review the actual written agreement.
Does the driver have to carry a paper insurance card?
Arizona requires evidence of current financial responsibility in the vehicle, but §28-4135 permits the evidence to be displayed electronically on a wireless communication device.
Can the police ask for proof of insurance after a crash?
Yes. Section 28-4134 requires the financial-responsibility inquiry in qualifying accident and traffic investigations.
Can Arizona verify the insurance after the crash?
Yes. Section 28-4143 allows ADOT to verify whether financial responsibility was in force on the date of the accident.
Does a household exclusion eliminate all liability coverage?
Not necessarily. Arizona decisions distinguish the compulsory statutory liability protection from coverage purchased above the statutory minimum. The actual exclusion, current statute and Arizona contract-law principles must be analyzed.
What does it mean when a company says it is self-insured?
It can mean the company has qualified under Arizona's statutory self-insurance system rather than purchasing an ordinary liability policy for the entire risk. The self-insurance certificate, claims administrator, retention and any excess coverage should be identified.
What should I do if the insurer says only $25,000 is available?
Treat that as the beginning of the coverage investigation. Obtain the policy and declarations, determine ownership and insured status, and search for driver, household, employer, commercial, umbrella, excess and first-party coverage. Guide 03 addresses that investigation.
The minimum policy is the beginning of the insurance inquiry—not the end.
Confirm the vehicle. Identify the owner and driver. Determine permission. Obtain the complete policy. Examine any written driver exclusion. Identify the actual liability limits. Then search for every additional owner, driver, household, employer, commercial, umbrella, excess or specialized policy that may respond to the crash.