The Insurance Suspension
Mo. Rev. Stat. § 303.025 — a misdemeanor, and the court's choice of a suspension, four points, or supervision
The duty. An owner of a vehicle registered or required to be registered in the state does not operate, register or maintain the registration of it, or permit another to operate it, without the required financial responsibility. A person who knows the owner of a vehicle has not maintained it does not operate that vehicle unless they have financial responsibility covering their own operation of it.
Stored or inoperable. An owner is not in violation for failing to maintain coverage on a vehicle that is inoperable or being stored and not in operation.
The penalty. A first violation is a class D misdemeanor. A second or subsequent violation may be punished by up to fifteen days in the county jail, and is punished by a fine of not less than two hundred dollars but not more than five hundred dollars.
Coverage at the time of the citation. No person is found guilty if the operator demonstrates to the court that the financial responsibility requirements were met at the time the citation was written.
On a conviction, the court notifies the director of revenue and does one of the following. Fines owed to the state under the section may be eligible for payment in installments.
- An order suspending the driving privilege, for the length subsection 2 of section 303.042 prescribes.
- The record of the conviction forwarded for an assessment of four points.
- An order of supervision in place of points, which is not used more than one time in any thirty-six-month period.
- For a nonresident, a suspension of driving privileges in the state, with notice to the official who issues licenses in the state where the person lives.
How much coverage the law requires, and anything more that reinstatement takes, are set out in other sections that are not on this page. Whether a particular charge applies is a question for a licensed Missouri attorney.
Sources for this section (1)
- Mo. Rev. Stat. § 303.025 — Financial responsibility required, and the penalties for not maintaining it
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of October 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Missouri attorney.