Updated June 2026
What Is Liability Insurance Insurance?
Liability insurance is the only coverage Georgia law requires you to carry. It pays for the other driver's medical bills and vehicle repairs when you cause an accident. The policy has two components: bodily injury liability covers medical expenses, lost wages, and legal fees for people you injure, while property damage liability pays for vehicles and structures you damage.
- You rear-end a stopped car at a red light. The other driver has $8,400 in medical bills and $6,200 in vehicle damage. Your bodily injury liability pays the $8,400 in medical costs. Your property damage liability pays the $6,200 repair bill. Your own vehicle damage is not covered — you pay that yourself or file a collision claim if you carry that coverage.
- You lose control on I-75 and cause a three-car pileup. Total injuries across both other vehicles reach $72,000. Georgia's minimum bodily injury limit is $50,000 per accident. Your policy pays the first $50,000. You are personally liable for the remaining $22,000, which can result in wage garnishment and asset seizure if you cannot pay.
- You strike a guardrail and total your car. No other vehicles are involved. Liability coverage does not apply because you did not damage another person's property or cause injury to another driver. You receive no payout. If you carry collision coverage, that policy pays for your vehicle repairs minus your deductible.
Who Needs Liability Insurance Insurance?
You must carry liability insurance if you want to drive legally in Georgia or satisfy reinstatement requirements after a suspension. Drivers with SR-22 filing obligations cannot let liability coverage lapse for even one day during the three-year filing period or the state re-suspends the license and restarts the clock. Drivers without a vehicle should carry non-owner liability to meet reinstatement conditions and maintain continuous coverage for future rate eligibility.
Buy liability coverage at minimum Georgia limits if you are only satisfying reinstatement requirements and have no assets to protect. Raise limits to 100/300/100 if you own a home, have significant savings, or caused a serious accident that led to your suspension — you are statistically more likely to cause another at-fault crash during the post-reinstatement period, and minimum limits leave you personally liable for damages exceeding the policy cap.
How Much Does Liability Insurance Insurance Cost?
Liability-only policies in Georgia average $45–$85/month for drivers with suspended licenses, or $540–$1,020/year. Adding an SR-22 filing increases the premium by $15–$35/month on average.
- Suspension cause: DUI suspensions increase liability premiums 80–150% compared to administrative suspensions like unpaid fines or lapsed insurance.
- Coverage limits: Georgia's minimum 25/50/25 costs $45–$65/month; raising limits to 100/300/100 adds $25–$40/month but eliminates most personal liability exposure.
- SR-22 filing requirement: The filing itself costs $15–$50 to process, but the high-risk classification it triggers raises your base liability rate for the full three-year filing period.
- Driving record: Each at-fault accident in the past three years adds 20–35% to liability premiums; points from moving violations add 10–25% per incident.
- Non-owner vs owned vehicle: Non-owner liability policies cost 30–50% less than standard policies because they exclude collision and comprehensive exposure entirely.