Current legislation in the field of vehicle operating rules does not allow using them without having valid MTPL insurance. As a punishment for drivers who did not take out a policy or did not take it with them on a trip, an administrative fine of 500 or 800 rubles is now used exclusively. Since the end of 2014, the penalty for driving without a compulsory motor liability insurance policy in the form of removal of car license plates and a ban on its operation has been abolished.
Today we will look at all the circumstances in which drivers can expect a fine for driving without an MTPL insurance policy or for its improper use.
Who needs insurance?
Federal Law No. 40 in Part 3 of Article 4 indicates that compulsory issuance of an MTPL insurance policy in 2021 is required for all vehicles, with the exception of the following categories:
- vehicles with a maximum speed of no more than 20 km/h;
- vehicles that, according to the laws of the Russian Federation, do not have the right to participate in road traffic;
- transport of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation and other formations that provide for military service, with the exception of vehicles that support the economic activities of the military;
- transport of foreign countries insured in international insurance systems (for example, “Green Card”);
- trailers for cars;
- tracked, half-tracked, sleigh and other types of non-wheeled transport.
Other vehicles are subject to compulsory insurance, the absence of which will result in fines of 500 or 800 rubles, depending on the circumstances.
Evacuation to impound lot for lack of compulsory motor insurance
Drivers are often interested in the question of whether their car can be detained for lack of insurance. In 2021 and 2017, the evacuation of vehicles to an impound lot if there is no insurance policy does not apply, so you will only face a fine for driving without compulsory motor insurance, amounting to 800 rubles.
Previously, traffic police officers could remove license plates from cars, but today these actions are also prohibited.
It is important to know that if you pay for the violation within 20 days, you will be able to pay the MTPL fine of 50 percent of the invoiced amount.
What is the fine if the policy is forgotten at home?
If the driver was stopped by a traffic police inspector, and he forgot his insurance at home, at work or in another place, then either a verbal warning or a fine of 500 rubles will be used as a punishment (Part 2 of Article 12.3 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation). A issued and forgotten insurance (or a photocopy of it) does not exclude the fact that the traffic police inspector needs to check that it exists at all.
Now almost every employee of the State Traffic Inspectorate has access to the electronic database of the RSA (Russian Union of Auto Insurers), which can be used to check whether the driver has an MTPL policy. At the same time, it is still advisable for the driver to know at least his policy number, the name of the organization that insured the car or the telephone number of the insurance agent. If the driver has a compulsory motor liability insurance policy, and the inspector issued a fine of not 500, but 800 rubles, then it can be disputed with the traffic police.
What is the fine for expired insurance in 2021?
So, fines will be collected if the car owner’s insurance has expired or he forgot it at home. The amount of this payment will vary. In the second case, they will be fined 500 rubles, and if the insurance is expired, then the full 800. Here are some violations that may result in a fine of 500 rubles:
- you purchased an MTPL policy online and did not print out the form;
- traffic police officers discovered the delay for the first time;
- you are driving a car when the insurance period has already expired. One of the features of the MTPL policy is that you can arrange for the period of driving a vehicle not for a whole year, but for six months, for example, if you only drive your car to the dacha.
What fine for overdue insurance will be imposed for mandatory payment. If your insurance is overdue even by a week or your name is not included in the policy, then the fine will be 800 rubles, its increase will increase with each day of delay, so take this seriously, especially since in this situation in the event of an accident you will want to count on help insurance company.
Is it necessary to take out insurance? There are a number of conditions when it is not needed:
- the vehicle is not capable of speeds exceeding 20 km/h;
- if the car is registered in the name of a military man or employee of the Russian Armed Forces;
- the car is registered abroad, foreigners drive in Russia without Russian insurance;
- the technical device does not have wheels (instead there is a caterpillar track).
So, if all these cases are not about your vehicle, then take out insurance and monitor its validity period, since in addition to the fine, you will have to pay for the impound lot and calling a tow truck. And being left without a car for some time is very problematic for many drivers. Since according to the law you cannot drive with expired insurance, the traffic police officer will necessarily move the car to the impound lot. To pick up your car, you will need to pay a fine. Let us remind you that until 2014, license plates were confiscated for delays. This law has now been repealed.
The amount of payment for overdue insurance is set in 2021, but its amount may be less in certain cases. There is an attractive point in the fact that if you deposit money within twenty days, starting from the day it was issued, then it can be deposited in the amount of 400 rubles instead of 800. But! If the fine is not paid on time, another payment will be assigned, which will be twice as much. They can also be arrested for an administrative violation for 15 days or assigned 50 hours of correctional labor.
Remember, in order to apply for compulsory motor liability insurance, you must have a valid diagnostic inspection card.
If the insurance is expired, it’s the same as if it doesn’t exist. And by law, driving a vehicle without an insurance policy is prohibited.
If, after being stopped by an inspector who issued a fine for lack of (overdue) insurance, a traffic police officer stops you 15 km later, he can issue a fine again, since the car is in a different place at a different time, but there is still no insurance policy. Therefore, immediately after the first stop, it is better to find the fastest way to pay off the fine and renew your insurance so that forced payments do not snowball.
When an inspector stops a car, he can look through the OSAGO database, to which he has access, to see what condition the policy is in. This access was introduced in 2015. Now they are conducting an experiment in some cities of Russia, where they installed a system in CCTV cameras that automatically reads which car is driving without insurance. If such an experiment is successful, then such a system will be installed in all cities of the country, which will certainly increase penalties for late payments. In addition, the government is considering a law that would increase the payment to 2.5 thousand rubles.
If a motorist decides to purchase fake insurance, this entails not only a fine, but also criminal liability.
Pay close attention to your insurance policy and issue or renew it on time. This is, first of all, your “magic wand” in an unexpected accident.
Insurance was not issued or expired
Responsibility for driving a car in cases where there is no insurance provides for an administrative fine in the amount of 800 rubles (Part 2 of Article 12.37 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation). Expired insurance is equivalent to its complete absence, therefore the fine in this case will be the same - 800 rubles. Until 2009, after the insurance expired, you were allowed to drive for another month without it. But now this norm no longer applies.
Temporary use of a vehicle in cases where there is no insurance is allowed for those drivers who have just purchased it. They are allowed to use the car for a maximum of 10 days after the conclusion of the purchase and sale agreement, which are given for the opportunity to issue a policy. During these days, the driver should carry the contract for the purchase of the car along with other documents for the car.
The amount of the fine for expired MTPL insurance and what to do in the event of an accident?
The Code of Administrative Offenses has recently been updated with enviable regularity, so many motorists simply do not have time to track and comprehend all the changes in time. The latter, dated October 15, 2014 and came into force on November 15, directly relate to our topic related to punishment for driving an uninsured vehicle.
This is interesting: The amount of the fine for driving without insurance in 2018
If you are puzzled by the question of what fine you will have to pay for expired insurance now, we hasten to reassure you - the amount of fines has remained the same, and violators will be able to drive without compulsory motor liability insurance more confidently. However, let's start with fines.
What is the fine if the driver is not included in the insurance?
If a driver is found driving a car who is not included in the MTPL insurance policy for this vehicle, he will be charged with a fine of 500 rubles (Part 1 of Article 12.37 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation). However, if this driver does not yet have a driver’s license on him (it was forgotten at home), then the owner of the car will be additionally fined 3,000 rubles for transferring control of the vehicle to a person who does not have the right to do so (Part 3 of Art. 12.3 Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation).
How many times can a fine be issued?
The Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation has an interesting rule according to which no driver can be punished twice for the same offense (Part 5 of Article 4.1 of the Code of Administrative Offenses). Does this mean that a driver cannot be fined twice a day for not having insurance? It turns out they can.
The law does not say that you cannot issue a fine 2 or more times per day. If the driver received a fine and continued driving without an insurance policy, then after 10 kilometers he will again be issued an administrative violation order if he is stopped.
We will be talking here about another place and another time of violation of the law, therefore the specified article of the Code of Administrative Offenses will not apply. Traffic police inspectors can fine a driver for lack of insurance an infinite number of times within one day.
What is the penalty for using fake insurance?
The use of a deliberately counterfeit MTPL policy entails much more severe consequences for the driver than ordinary driving without an insurance policy. In accordance with Part 3 of Article 327 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (use of a knowingly forged document), one of the following penalties will be applied to such a driver:
- fine up to 80,000 rubles;
- a fine in the amount of the driver’s salary or other income for up to 6 months;
- compulsory work up to 480 hours;
- correctional labor for up to 2 years;
- arrest up to 6 months.
If there are suspicions about the authenticity of the MTPL insurance policy, a traffic police officer usually immediately checks it using the RSA electronic database. If insurance is not found, the misdemeanor case will go to trial. To avoid the penalties listed above, the driver will need to prove that he used false insurance out of ignorance and not with criminal intent.
Other consequences of not having insurance
Along with a fine for driving without an insurance policy, the vehicle owner can expect other consequences in 2021, including an increase in the BMR coefficient (and an increase in the cost of the policy) and termination of further relations with the insurance company. By these measures, insurers are trying to force all drivers to take out MTPL, as well as renew insurance on time (which is directly related to their income).
If the driver was involved in an accident during a period when he did not have an insurance policy (or its validity period had expired), then after the insurer compensates the damage to the injured party, a lawsuit will be filed against the driver. If the claim is satisfied, the car owner will be required to reimburse the insurance company for the financial costs incurred.
Driving with an expired insurance policy
It is prohibited to drive a vehicle with an expired policy. This rule has been in effect since 2008 and is punishable by fines. The state strictly monitors the implementation of the laws it issues, and it is impossible to avoid punishment. If previously a driver, having forgotten about his insurance policy, could drive a car for another 30 days without the risk of being punished, in 2021 it will not be possible to drive like that.
Important! Traffic police officers can punish drivers with insurance policies that are expired even by one day.
The worst consequence for the driver will not be a fine, the amount of which is not so large. The greatest danger is faced by a driver involved in an accident with expired insurance. If such a motorist becomes a participant in this unpleasant event, and his insurance policy is expired, compensation for all losses will fall entirely on his shoulders.
This is interesting: What traffic violations can a driver not pay for if he is caught by a traffic camera?
