Auto insurance in North Dakota: what’s required, and what isn’t
North Dakota requires three coverages and ties them together tightly: liability at 25/50/25, no-fault coverage of $30,000 per person that pays first regardless of fault, and uninsured motorist coverage with underinsured limits pinned to match it. The no-fault benefit is one of the more generous in the country, and the overall effect is that a minimum North Dakota policy protects considerably more than its headline liability numbers suggest.
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What North Dakota requires you to carry
| Bodily injury, per person | $25,000 |
|---|---|
| Bodily injury, per accident | $50,000 |
| Property damage, per accident | $25,000 |
North Dakota also requires
- Basic no-fault (PIP) — $30,000 per person
- North Dakota requires $30,000 per person of no-fault coverage for economic loss — medical expenses and work loss — payable without regard to fault. Under North Dakota law your no-fault coverage is primary, meaning it pays first whatever the circumstances of the crash.
- Uninsured and underinsured motorist — UIM matching your UM limits
- Both are compulsory, and state law requires underinsured limits equal to your uninsured motorist limits. You cannot carry one without the other or set them apart.
These are floors, not recommendations. North Dakota sets the minimum a driver may legally carry. It does not assess whether that amount would cover a claim you caused. Anything above your limits is your personal exposure.
How North Dakota enforces it
North Dakota requires liability, no-fault and UM/UIM coverage on every registered vehicle, and verifies against carrier data. For drivers who cannot obtain coverage in the regular market, the North Dakota Automobile Insurance Plan — the assigned risk plan — exists so that the requirement remains satisfiable.
How rates are set in North Dakota
North Dakota is a no-fault state. Your own no-fault coverage pays economic losses — medical expenses and work loss — first and regardless of who caused the crash, and it is primary under state law. Suits against the at-fault driver for general damages are limited unless injuries clear a statutory threshold.
The North Dakota Insurance Department regulates carriers, handles complaints and publishes an auto insurance cost comparison survey. North Dakota is a competitive-rating state, so carriers apply their own filed models.
The requirement is unusually complete: liability, no-fault and UM/UIM together, with underinsured limits required to equal uninsured limits. There is no version of a compliant North Dakota policy that leaves one of these out.
Credit-based insurance scores in North Dakota
North Dakota permits credit-based insurance scores in rating. The Insurance Department publishes a periodic auto insurance cost comparison survey — a rare case of a regulator putting competitive pricing side by side — which is worth reading before assuming any one carrier is cheap for your profile.
What actually moves your premium here
No-fault coverage is primary, and it is generous
At $30,000 per person, North Dakota’s no-fault benefit is among the more substantial in the country — roughly seven times Kansas’s medical figure. And because it is primary regardless of fault, it is the coverage that actually responds first after most North Dakota crashes.
Three compulsory coverages leaves little to trim
Liability, no-fault and UM/UIM are all required, with UIM pinned to your UM limits. A North Dakota driver has fewer ways to make a policy cheaper than a driver almost anywhere else, which means comparing carriers matters more than restructuring coverage does.
Winter severity and long distances
Extreme cold, blowing snow and long rural distances at highway speed produce a claims profile skewed toward severity and toward single-vehicle incidents. Collision and comprehensive respond to those; liability does not.
The assigned risk plan is a real backstop
Because coverage is compulsory and the market is small, North Dakota maintains an assigned risk plan so drivers turned down in the regular market can still comply. It is not cheap, but it means being declined is not the end of the road.
See what you’d be matched with in North Dakota
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Comparing carriers in North Dakota
Read the Insurance Department’s cost comparison survey before you start. Few regulators publish anything like it, and it will tell you quickly whether a quote you have been given is competitive for the state.
Because so much of the policy is fixed by statute, the productive comparison here is across carriers at identical coverage rather than across coverage configurations. There is not much to restructure.
One habit matters more than any single carrier choice: re-check every year or two, and again after anything that changes your risk profile — a move across town, a new vehicle, a driver added or removed, or a violation ageing off your record. Carriers re-weight their rating factors continuously, so the one that priced you best three years ago is often not the one that prices you best today.
If you need an SR-22 in North Dakota
North Dakota requires proof of financial responsibility to be filed after certain suspensions, including driving uninsured and DUI convictions. Your insurer files it with the Department of Transportation. Confirm the period for your case with NDDOT, since it runs from your reinstatement date.
North Dakota auto insurance FAQ
- What is the minimum car insurance required in North Dakota?
- Liability of $25,000 per person and $50,000 per accident for bodily injury plus $25,000 property damage, basic no-fault coverage of $30,000 per person for economic loss, and uninsured motorist coverage with underinsured limits equal to it. All three are required.
- Is North Dakota a no-fault state?
- Yes. Your own no-fault coverage pays economic losses — medical expenses and work loss — regardless of who caused the crash, and under North Dakota law that coverage is primary.
- What does North Dakota no-fault coverage pay?
- Up to $30,000 per person for economic loss arising from accidental injury — principally medical expenses and work loss — without regard to fault. It is among the more generous no-fault benefits in the country.
- What if I cannot get auto insurance in North Dakota?
- The North Dakota Automobile Insurance Plan, commonly called the assigned risk plan, exists so drivers who cannot obtain coverage in the regular market can still get the required coverages. It is more expensive than the standard market but it means being declined is not the end of the road.
- Do I have to carry underinsured motorist coverage in North Dakota?
- Yes, and state law requires your underinsured limits to equal your uninsured motorist limits. They move together.
Sources
Requirements on this page were verified against North Dakota’s own regulator and motor vehicle agency on the date shown at the top. Rules change — if you are making a decision that turns on an exact figure, confirm it at the source.
- North Dakota Insurance Department — Auto
- North Dakota Insurance Department — Automobile Assigned Claims Plan
- North Dakota Insurance Department — Auto insurance cost comparison survey
Consumer help in North Dakota: North Dakota Insurance Department, (800) 247-0560.