Auto & Driving
Uninsured Motorist Coverage by State
Sourced from WalletHub's state-by-state UM/UIM guide.
A meaningful share of drivers on the road carry no insurance at all. Whether coverage against them is required or optional depends entirely on your state.
Data sourced from WalletHub
The states that require it
Connecticut, Illinois, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oregon, South Carolina, South Dakota, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin, plus DC (21 total), mandate uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage, according to WalletHub's state-by-state data. Everywhere else, it is optional, though commonly recommended, purchasing it is left entirely up to the driver.
To check whether your own state requires it, and what it would cost, the uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage calculator covers all 50 states plus DC directly.
Uninsured vs. underinsured: a real, meaningful distinction
The two halves of "UM/UIM" cover different scenarios. Uninsured motorist coverage protects you when the at-fault driver carries no insurance at all. Underinsured motorist coverage protects you when the at-fault driver does have insurance, but not enough to cover your actual damages, a driver with only the bare state minimum causing a serious injury is a common example.
Most policies, and most state mandates, bundle both together as one combined coverage rather than requiring or selling them separately.
Worth considering even where it is optional
UM/UIM coverage typically costs only about $50 to $75 a year, according to WalletHub, a small addition relative to the exposure it protects against. Given that a meaningful share of drivers nationally carry no insurance or only the bare legal minimum, a serious accident caused by one of them can leave you covering the gap yourself unless you carry your own UM/UIM protection, regardless of whether your state happens to require it.
Frequently asked questions
Which states require uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage?
Connecticut, Illinois, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oregon, South Carolina, South Dakota, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin plus DC (21 total) mandate UM/UIM coverage, according to WalletHub.
Everywhere else, it is optional, though widely recommended given how many drivers on the road carry no insurance or only the bare state minimum.
What is the actual difference between uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage?
Uninsured motorist coverage protects you if the at-fault driver has no insurance at all. Underinsured motorist coverage protects you if the at-fault driver has some insurance, but not enough to cover your actual damages.
Most policies and most state mandates bundle both together as a single UM/UIM coverage, rather than requiring them separately.
How much does UM/UIM coverage typically cost?
Around $50 to $75 a year, according to WalletHub, a relatively small addition to a policy given what it protects against.
If my state does not require UM/UIM coverage, should I still buy it?
It is genuinely worth considering even where not required. A meaningful share of drivers nationally carry no insurance or only the bare state minimum, which means a serious accident caused by one of them could leave you paying out of pocket for damages beyond what their policy, if any, actually covers, unless you carry your own UM/UIM protection.