Why Progressive FR-44 Costs More Than You Expected
You received a DUI conviction in Florida, DHSMV notified you that FR-44 filing is required for reinstatement, and you went to Progressive's website to get a quote. The number came back $280 per month when your old liability policy was $95. You assumed the FR-44 form itself carried a steep fee, but that's not the structural reality. Florida FR-44 requires 100/300/50 liability minimums—$100,000 per person bodily injury, $300,000 per accident, $50,000 property damage—compared to the 10/20/10 minimums most standard Florida policies carry for PIP and property damage only.
Progressive writes FR-44 in Florida and will file electronically with DHSMV on your behalf, typically within 1–2 business days of policy binding. The FR-44 filing fee itself is $15–$25. The cost you're seeing reflects the DUI surcharge Progressive applies to high-risk drivers plus the substantially higher liability limits FR-44 mandates. That $280 quote breaks down to approximately $180–$210 for the underlying 100/300/50 liability policy and $70–$100 DUI surcharge, not a filing fee.
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Get Your Free QuoteFlorida FR-44 Liability Minimums
100/300/50
Florida and Virginia are the only two states requiring FR-44 instead of SR-22 for DUI offenses. FR-44 mandates ten times the bodily injury coverage of a standard SR-22 state, which is why your quote jumped even before the DUI surcharge was applied.
Florida Statutes § 324.023
What FR-44 Actually Requires From Your Policy
FR-44 is not a separate insurance product. It is a certificate of financial responsibility your carrier files with DHSMV proving you maintain the required liability minimums. Progressive's FR-44 filing certifies you carry at least 100/300/50 liability, which satisfies Florida's post-DUI financial responsibility requirement under Florida Statutes § 324.023. The filing remains active for 3 years from your reinstatement date, not your conviction date.
Your policy must remain continuously active during the entire 3-year FR-44 period. If you cancel, miss a payment, or let coverage lapse for any reason, Progressive notifies DHSMV electronically within 24 hours via the Florida Insurance Tracking System. DHSMV suspends your license again immediately—no grace period, no warning letter. The suspension stays in effect until you file a new FR-44 and pay a $150 reinstatement fee for the first lapse, $250 for a second within three years.
Progressive offers month-to-month billing for FR-44 policies, but the 3-year filing requirement means you cannot drop the coverage or switch to a non-FR-44 policy without triggering suspension. Some carriers require 6-month prepayment for DUI cases; Progressive does not, which makes monthly cash flow easier but does not reduce the total cost over three years.
FR-44 filing lasts 3 years from reinstatement, not conviction. If you let coverage lapse at month 34, you start the 3-year clock over plus pay the reinstatement fee.
How Progressive Prices FR-44 Policies in Florida
Base liability premium for 100/300/50 coverage in Florida runs $140–$210/month for a clean-record driver in most counties. Miami-Dade, Broward, and Hillsborough counties run 15–25% higher due to claim frequency and uninsured motorist rates. That base rate applies before any DUI surcharge. If you were quoted $95/month for minimum PIP/PDL coverage before your DUI, moving to 100/300/50 alone would have pushed you to $160–$180/month in a mid-cost county like Orange or Duval.
Progressive's DUI surcharge adds $60–$120/month on top of the base liability rate for the first three years post-conviction. The surcharge decreases after year three if no additional violations occur, but you still must maintain FR-44 filing for the full three years from reinstatement. If you were convicted in 2024 and reinstated in early 2025 after completing DUI school, your FR-44 requirement runs until early 2028 even though Progressive's DUI surcharge may drop in 2028. Some drivers see quotes in the $320–$400/month range in high-cost counties with aggravating factors—prior at-fault accidents, young driver age, or refusal charge stacked on the DUI.
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Whether Progressive Is the Lowest FR-44 Option
Progressive writes FR-44 in Florida and prices competitively in the non-standard tier, but they are not always the lowest quote for post-DUI drivers. Carriers writing FR-44 in Florida include Progressive, Geico, State Farm, Nationwide, Acceptance Insurance, Bristol West, Dairyland, The General, Infinity, Kemper, and National General. Geico and State Farm typically quote $200–$290/month in mid-cost counties for the same driver profile Progressive quotes at $240–$320.
The gap between carriers widens based on how each prices DUI risk. Progressive applies a flat DUI surcharge; Geico uses a tiered system that penalizes refusal charges more heavily than standard DUI but prices first-offense DUI lower; State Farm prices based on years since conviction and drops surcharges faster after year three. If your conviction included a refusal or your BAC was over 0.15, Geico may quote higher than Progressive. If you are over age 30 with no prior violations, State Farm often quotes lower.
Non-standard carriers—Acceptance, Bristol West, Dairyland, The General—specialize in high-risk drivers and often provide the lowest quotes for drivers with stacked violations or multiple DUIs. A second DUI within five years triggers significantly higher surcharges at standard carriers; non-standard carriers price that risk differently and can quote $80–$100/month less than Progressive for the same coverage. The tradeoff: non-standard carriers typically require 6-month prepayment and offer fewer payment plan options than Progressive's month-to-month billing.
Florida FR-44 Filing Period
3 years
The 3-year FR-44 requirement starts from your reinstatement date, not your conviction date. If you delay reinstatement for a year after completing DUI school, the FR-44 clock does not start until you actually reinstate, which extends the total time you pay elevated premiums.
Florida Statutes § 324.023
What Happens If You Switch Carriers Mid-Filing
You can switch carriers during your 3-year FR-44 filing period without penalty, but the new carrier must file FR-44 with DHSMV before your Progressive policy cancels. The timing matters: if there is any gap—even one day—between Progressive's cancellation notice reaching DHSMV and the new carrier's FR-44 filing, DHSMV suspends your license automatically. Progressive is required to notify DHSMV within 24 hours of cancellation via the Florida Insurance Tracking System.
Most carriers will not bind a new FR-44 policy until your current policy's cancellation date, which creates execution risk if you do not coordinate the switch carefully. The safest sequence: purchase the new policy with an effective date matching your Progressive cancellation date, confirm the new carrier has filed FR-44 with DHSMV, then cancel Progressive. If you cancel Progressive first and the new carrier delays filing, you lose your license again and pay the $150 reinstatement fee even though you had continuous coverage.
Compare FR-44 Quotes Across Florida Carriers
Progressive prices FR-44 competitively in Florida's standard and non-standard tiers, but the $60–$120/month variation between carriers for the same coverage and driver profile makes comparison essential. FR-44 quotes depend on county claim rates, DUI surcharge structure, and how each carrier prices years-since-conviction. A quote from Progressive in Duval County may run $260/month while Geico quotes $210 and Acceptance quotes $185 for identical 100/300/50 liability limits with FR-44 filing. The difference over three years is $2,700–$5,400 in total premium paid for the same legal compliance.