Wis. Stat. » CHAPTER 344 — VEHICLES — FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
Wisconsin Statutes

Wis. Stat. § 344.31 (2026)

Certification of insurance as proof

✓ current as of July 2026
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344.31344.31 Certification of insurance as proof. Proof of financial responsibility for the future may be furnished by filing with the secretary the written certification of any insurer duly authorized to do business in this state that there is in effect a motor vehicle liability policy for the benefit of the person required to furnish proof of financial responsibility or by transmitting such certification to the secretary by another means approved by the secretary. Such certification shall give the effective date of such motor vehicle liability policy, which date shall be the same as the effective date of the certification and shall certify coverage for any motor vehicle operated by the named insured if the certification is required to be furnished by a vehicle operator or coverage for any motor vehicle owned by the named insured if the certification is required to be furnished by a vehicle owner.
344.31 HistoryHistory: 1973 c. 90; 1977 c. 29 s. 1654 (7) (c); 1979 c. 102 s. 236 (3); 1987 a. 27; 1999 a. 80.
344.31 AnnotationNo policy issued pursuant to the ch. 344 financial responsibility statutes may exclude coverage for persons related by blood or marriage to the operator as mandated by s. 632.32 (6) (b) 1. Bindrim v. Colonial Ins. Co. 190 Wis. 2d 525, 527 N.W.2d 321 (1995).
344.31 AnnotationThis section does not mandate insurance on the person (an operator’s policy) and on all the vehicles such person may own (an owner’s policy). It is incumbent upon the person seeking insurance to inform the insurance company of whether he or she wants an operator’s policy, an owner’s policy, or both. It is not the insurer’s duty, absent instruction from the insured, to issue both types of policies. McKillip v. Bauman, 2005 WI App 165, 285 Wis. 2d 646, 702 N.W.2d 79, 04-2489.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 10 cases, 1963–2013 · leading case: Cardinal v. Leader Nat'l Ins. Co., 480 N.W.2d 1 (Wis. 1992).
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Cardinal v. Leader Nat'l Ins. Co., 480 N.W.2d 1 (Wis. 1992). · cites it 8× “, 1989-90, 2 and by certifying such coverage under sec. 344.31, Stats., 1989-90. 3 To comply with the financial responsibility statutes, Wilson applied for and purchased automobile liability insurance from Leader.”
State v. Collova, 255 N.W.2d 581 (Wis. 1977). · cites it 2× “Collova complied with this requirement by the filing of a certificate of insurance as provided in sec. 344.31, Stats. However, on November 1, 1974, the Division of Motor Vehicles mailed a notice to Collova advising him that his insurance certificate would terminate on November…”
Nutter v. Milwaukee Ins., 481 N.W.2d 701 (Wis. Ct. App. 1992). · cites it 6× “Section 344.31, Stats. 4 As a result of a poor driving record, Phillip Nutter was required by the State of Wisconsin to provide proof of financial responsibility for the future.”
Bindrim v. B. & J. Ins. Agency, 527 N.W.2d 320 (Wis. 1995). · cites it 3× “3 by filing a Form SR22 with the Department of Transportation pursuant to sec. 344.31, Stats. 4 Mr. Degano was required to satisfy those requirements because he had had his license revoked.”
Cardinal v. Leader Nat'l Ins., 461 N.W.2d 799 (Wis. Ct. App. 1990). · cites it 5× “*153 Royal responds that because sec. 344.31, Stats., requires a certification for coverage of "any motor vehicle operated by the insured," vehicle insurance rather than just non-owner insurance is mandated.”
Hechimovich v. Acuity, 2014 WI App 14 (Wis. Ct. App. 2013). · cites it 5× “Westra's Acuity policy was issued pursuant to Wis. Stat. §§ 344.31 and 344.33, which are part of Wisconsin's financial responsibility law.”
Lang v. Kurtz, 301 N.W.2d 262 (Wis. Ct. App. 1980). “On the cover is the following certification: “This is to certify that this is a true and actual copy of this policy as it existed on 04-23-78.”
McKillip v. Bauman, 2005 WI App 165 (Wis. Ct. App. 2005). · cites it 4× “33 and by certifying such coverage under Wis. Stat. § 344.31 . Section 344.33(2) provides in pertinent part: (2) MotoR vehicle liability policy.”
Bindrim v. Colonial Ins., 512 N.W.2d 210 (Wis. Ct. App. 1994). · cites it 3× “Colonial filed an SR-22 form on behalf of Giuliano as proof of financial responsibility pursuant to sec. 344.31, Stats. 2 Bindrim filed suit alleging that Colonial's policy issued to Giuliano also provided coverage for Susan.”
Donahue v. Banner Mut. Ins., 121 N.W.2d 228 (Wis. 1963). “12 By the Court. — Orders modified to extend the time for defendant’s pleading to twenty days after filing of remittitur and, as so modified, affirmed.”
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.