Illinois SR-22 requirements after a DUI

Which filing, and what triggers it

Form: SR-22

The Illinois Secretary of State calls it Financial Responsibility Insurance (SR-22). The SOS states the SR-22 must be submitted on a Financial Responsibility Certificate from the home office of an insurance company authorized to write SR-22 policies for Illinois (with a power of attorney on file in Illinois), and that the certificate is sent directly to the Secretary of State's office; 625 ILCS 5/7-315(a) provides that proof is made by filing the insurer's electronic certificate with the Secretary of State.

“To obtain an SR-22, you must contact an insurance company authorized to write SR-22 policies for Illinois. The issuing agency also must have a power of attorney on file in Illinois. The SR-22 must be submitted on a Financial Responsibility Certificate from the home office of the insurance company.”

What triggers it

Revocation. The SOS states financial responsibility insurance is required for individuals with safety responsibility suspensions, unsatisfied judgment suspensions, revocations, mandatory insurance supervisions and three or more mandatory-insurance convictions; a DUI conviction is a mandatory revocation under 625 ILCS 5/6-205(a)(2), and 625 ILCS 5/7-301 and 7-304 apply the proof requirement to persons whose license was revoked. The SOS reinstatement-fee page states the $500 revocation fee is processed only after the office has received the SR22 certificate or an out-of-state insurance waiver. A statutory summary suspension (the administrative DUI suspension) is not in the SOS list.

“Financial Responsibility Insurance is required in Illinois for individuals with safety responsibility suspensions, unsatisfied judgment suspensions, revocations, mandatory insurance supervisions and individuals who receive three or more convictions for mandatory insurance violations.”

How long it stays on file, and from when

3 years, counted from the date the certificate is filed.

The SOS states the insurance must be maintained for three years, without naming a start event. 625 ILCS 5/7-305 states the proof is to be maintained for a period of 3 years after the date such proof is first filed; 7-304 says 'thereafter maintain for a period of 3 years' after the proof is given. The SOS states SR-22 insurance must be renewed at least 45 days in advance to avoid insurance-related suspensions.

“such proof to be maintained by said person in a manner satisfactory to the Secretary of State for a period of 3 years after the date such proof is first filed.”

If the policy is cancelled or lapses

The SOS states that if the SR-22 expires or is cancelled the insurer is required by law to notify the Safety and Financial Responsibility Section by an SR-26 Cancellation Certificate, the driving record is suspended on receipt, and the suspension cannot be removed until the insurance filing has been reinstated; if the insurer does not receive a renewal 15 days before expiration it must notify the SOS. 625 ILCS 5/7-318 requires 15 days' prior electronic notice of cancellation, and 7-327 requires suspension pending other proof when the proof on file no longer fulfils its purpose. Whether the three-year period restarts is not stated.

“If the SR-22 expires or is cancelled, the insurance company is required by law to notify the Safety and Financial Responsibility Section by a SR-26 Cancellation Certificate. Upon receipt, the driving record will be suspended.”

Non-owner and out-of-state policies

The SOS states the SR-22 is issued as an Operator's Certificate (covers the motorist in the operation of any non-owned vehicle), an Owner's Certificate (owned vehicles) or an Operators-Owners Certificate. 625 ILCS 5/7-315(b) provides the certificate need not describe vehicles when issued to a person who is not the owner of a motor vehicle, and 7-317(c) defines the operator's policy; 7-325 lets the SOS accept an owner's proof for a non-owner who drives for an employer or family member.

“Operator's Certificate — covers the motorist in the operation of any non-owned vehicle. Owner's Certificate — covers vehicles owned by the driver. The type of vehicle must be listed on the SR-22 or may be issued for all owned vehicles.”

625 ILCS 5/7-316 lets a nonresident file the certificate of an insurer authorized in the state where the vehicle is registered (or, if the nonresident owns no vehicle, where the nonresident resides), and the Secretary of State must accept it if the insurer executes a power of attorney for service of process, adopts a resolution conforming its policies to Illinois law and agrees to accept Illinois judgments. The SOS states the issuing insurer must be authorized to write SR-22 policies for Illinois and have a power of attorney on file in Illinois. For drivers who have moved, the SOS states out-of-state residents may instead request that the Illinois proof requirement be waived by filing an Out of State Affidavit Financial Responsibility Insurance Waiver, and that moving back to Illinois within three years of the waiver reinstates the SR-22 requirement.

“Any nonresident owner of a motor vehicle not registered in this State may give proof of financial responsibility by filing with the Secretary of State a certificate or certificates of an insurance carrier authorized to transact business in the state or province of the Dominion of Canada”

Liability limits the filing certifies

Minimum limits: 25/50/20

625 ILCS 5/7-317(b)(3) sets the certified motor vehicle liability policy limits at $25,000 bodily injury per person, $50,000 bodily injury per crash and $20,000 property damage (for policies issued or renewed on or after January 1, 2015); 7-317(c) applies the same limits to an operator's policy. No uninsured-motorist component is stated in 7-317. The SOS states the alternative to SR-22 insurance is a $70,000 deposit of cash or securities, a surety bond or a court-approved real estate bond.

“of $25,000 for bodily injury to or death of one person as a result of any one crash and, subject to such limit as to one person, the amount of $50,000 for bodily injury to or death of all persons as a result of any one crash and the amount of $20,000 for damage to property of others”

How the filing is confirmed

The SOS states the SR-22 certificate is sent directly to the Secretary of State's office by the insurer, may take up to 30 days to process, and that the individual receives a copy of the SR-22 from the insurance company and a letter from the Secretary of State's office. The SOS page describing the filing is Financial Responsibility (SR-22) Insurance.

Agency page: web.archive.org

“The SR-22 certificate is sent directly to the Secretary of State's office and may take up to 30 days for processing. The individual will receive a copy of the SR-22 from the insurance company and a letter from the Secretary of State's office. The insurance must be maintained for three years.”

Financial-responsibility statute

625 ILCS 5/7-301 et seq. (Illinois Vehicle Code ch. 7, art. III, Proof of Financial Responsibility for the Future), esp. 625 ILCS 5/7-304, 7-305, 7-315, 7-317, 7-318

“the Secretary of State shall not issue to any such person any new or renewal of driver's license and shall not register or re-register in the name of such person any motor vehicle until permitted under this Article and not then unless and until said person gives proof of his financial responsibility”