Read the date ALEA fills in on your DI-46A
ALEA answers reinstatement requests on a form called Request for Reinstatement Requirements (DI-46A). Only the boxes ALEA checks apply to you. One box reads "Must File SR22 Insurance Showing Coverage for Alabama Until" followed by a blank, and ALEA writes the date there.
That date is your finish line. Your filing has to stay active up to it, on a policy that covers you in Alabama.
Order matters too. The form says to hold the reinstatement fee and the SR22 until every ticket is settled and any required hearing is complete.
Alabama's fee depends on how the license was pulled
The ALEA reinstatement page sorts cases by type. A suspended or cancelled license costs $100 to reinstate, and a revoked one costs $175.
Alcohol or drug cases are $275, suspended or revoked. A drug case adds $25 more, and an ignition interlock license carries a $150 issuance fee.
Two extra charges catch people. Failing to surrender your license within 30 days adds $50, and so does failing to pay child support. ALEA takes no personal checks, and you can reinstate online through its driver license portal.
A hardship license keeps the SR-22 in force
Alabama offers a hardship driver license for some people with a suspended or revoked license. Under ALEA rule 760-X-1-.24, anyone revoked who owes an SR-22 must keep carrying it while holding that license.
The rule shuts some drivers out. It bars anyone adjudicated or convicted of DUI under Section 32-5A-191, and anyone with a moving violation causing serious injury or death.
The policy behind your Alabama filing
Your insurer files the SR-22 against a real liability policy. The Alabama Department of Insurance states the floor as 25/50/25. That is $25,000 per person for injuries, $50,000 for all injuries in one accident, and $25,000 for property damage.
Watch the cancellation clock. ALDOI says a company must give 10 days notice before cancelling for a missed premium. For any other reason, it must give 20 days.
Revenue can suspend your tag on top of your license
Alabama also checks insurance through the car. The Department of Revenue suspends a vehicle's registration when it finds the vehicle was uninsured under the mandatory liability law.
Getting the tag back costs $200 for a first violation and $400 for each later one. You also show proof of current liability insurance. The policy has to be an Alabama policy from a company qualified to write auto liability insurance in Alabama.