Illinois reports 6% drop in uninsured vehicles since rollout of electronic verification

After supplying his license and insurance, Tavine was told that the Illinois Secretary of State's Office had suspended his registration after being unable to verify his insurance policy back in October. As a result, his vehicle was towed.

Tavine was later informed he should have received a letter from the Secretary of State's Office notifying him of his pending suspension.

"Since I didn't know about it (and) I don't remember getting it, I had to pay the secretary of state a $105 reactivation charge and another $350 to get the car out of tow," Tavine said.

Industry experts say what happened to Tavine represents a rare snag in the execution of a state law designed to crack down on uninsured drivers. And there is evidence it is working: The percentage of registered vehicles without verified insurance has dropped from 12.7% to 6.4% in the past two years, according to the Secretary of State's Office.

Some people, like Tavine, may be unaware of the law because the insurance verification process often takes place without the driver's involvement. Still, it's a good reminder to keep an eye on the mail: Drivers whose insurance cannot be verified electronically could have their vehicle registration suspended if they ignore the subsequent written request to provide it.

Secretary of State Spokesman Henry Haupt said the original insurance verification process began in 1990. The electronic verification process was launched in July 2021 as part of a new state law.

Instead of verifying a random sample of registered vehicle owners, as in the past, the Secretary of State's Office now works with insurance companies to confirm electronically that all motorists have appropriate coverage, Haupt said.

"Most vehicle owners do not have to do anything, as electronic verification of automobile insurance is confirmed automatically," he added.

To aid in the process, the state uses MV Solutions, a South Carolina-based software company, which is paid $320,000 a year to verify insurance policies.

Brett Gerger, director of education and agency resources for the Independent Insurance Agents of Illinois, said insurance providers who write over 1,000 policies a month submit data to the Secretary of State's Office every month on the vehicles they cover.

Haupt said all vehicle owners' car insurance is verified electronically at least twice a year at random intervals in order to ensure compliance.

If a VIN number is incorrect or other information doesn't line up, a warning letter is generated.

However, Gerber said his organization has not seen any recurring issues with insured motorists' registration being suspended.

"It definitely could be a problem, but we haven't seen it," Gerber said.

Alex Thoennes of Shelter Insurance in Bloomington said he receives between five and seven calls a week as result of the warning letters.

But since the rollout of the electronic program, he has only seen one situation where the system failed to accurately and automatically verify an insured motorist.

"In the rest of the situations, the individual either has not maintained insurance on the vehicle, has sold the vehicle and failed to notify SOS, or there is an error in the policy such as a missed digit in the vehicle's VIN," Thoennes said.

He added that in his experience, the system has been extremely accurate and reliable.

"There are a number of confusions and a bit of misinformation when dealing with the human component, but not at the fault of the (verification) system," Thoennes said.

Farmers Insurance agent R. Allan Hamilton, who operates in Springfield, said he handles two or three verifications a month, and he's only seen issues with the process a couple of times.

Haupt said motorists who are unsure of their insurance status can call the Secretary of State's Mandatory Insurance Division at 217-524-4946.

Contact Drew Zimmerman at 309-820-3276. Follow Drew on Twitter: @DZimmermanLee

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