Why Alabama DUI Convictions Don't Appear as Points
You received a DUI conviction in Alabama and searched for how many points it adds to your license. The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency doesn't assign point values to DUI offenses. Instead, ALEA suspends your license for 90 days under a separate violation-tracking system that treats DUI as a mandatory suspension trigger, not a point accumulation event.
This structural reality confuses drivers who assume every traffic violation operates through the point system. Alabama maintains two parallel enforcement tracks: the point system governs moving violations like speeding and reckless driving, while major violations — DUI, refusing a chemical test, vehicular homicide — trigger immediate administrative action without point assignment. Your DUI conviction appears on your driving record as a conviction, not as a point total, and carries consequences the point system never touches.
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Get Your Free QuoteAlabama First-DUI Suspension
90 days
The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency suspends licenses for 90 days following a first DUI conviction. This suspension runs independently of any point-based suspension you may already be serving.
Alabama Law Enforcement Agency
What Actually Happens to Your License After DUI
ALEA processes your DUI conviction as an administrative suspension. The 90-day period begins on the conviction date, not the arrest date. If you refused the chemical test at arrest, you faced a separate administrative license suspension of 90 days that ran concurrently with any pre-conviction period. The conviction suspension replaces or extends that administrative period depending on timing.
Your driving record now shows the DUI conviction with the suspension dates. Insurance carriers see this conviction when they pull your Motor Vehicle Report, and they reprice your policy based on the conviction itself — not on a point value. The conviction remains visible on your MVR for 10 years under Alabama Code §32-6-1, though insurance surcharges typically apply for 3 to 5 years depending on the carrier.
Alabama requires you to complete a DUI education program before reinstatement. The court orders this as part of sentencing, and ALEA will not reinstate your license until you submit proof of completion.
The 90-day suspension clock starts on your conviction date, not your arrest date — if your court case took months to resolve, your administrative suspension may have already expired before the conviction suspension begins.
SR-22 Filing Requirement After Alabama DUI
The SR-22 is a certificate your insurance carrier files with ALEA proving you maintain continuous liability coverage meeting Alabama's minimum requirements: $25,000 bodily injury per person, $50,000 bodily injury per accident, and $25,000 property damage. Your carrier charges a one-time filing fee to submit the SR-22 electronically to ALEA.
Most standard-tier carriers — State Farm, Allstate, Auto-Owners — either refuse to write policies for DUI convictions or require you to work through a broker they won't refer you to directly. Nine carriers write post-DUI SR-22 policies in Alabama with direct access: Acceptance Insurance, Bristol West, Dairyland, Direct Auto, Farmers, GAINSCO, Geico, National General, Progressive, The General, and USAA. These carriers file SR-22 same-day when you bind coverage, but you must maintain the policy without lapse for the full 3-year period or ALEA suspends your license again and restarts the SR-22 clock.
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Reinstatement Process and Timing
You cannot apply for reinstatement until the 90-day suspension period ends. Processing typically takes 5 to 10 business days once ALEA receives all required documentation.
If you let your SR-22 lapse at any point during the 3-year filing period — by canceling your policy, missing a payment and allowing the carrier to cancel for non-payment, or switching carriers without ensuring the new carrier files SR-22 before the old carrier withdraws theirs — ALEA suspends your license immediately. The suspension remains in effect until you file new SR-22 proof, and the 3-year clock restarts from the date of the new filing.
Alabama does not offer hardship licenses for DUI convictions. The Hardship Driver License program under Alabama Code §32-6-7 explicitly excludes DUI and DWI suspensions from eligibility. You serve the full 90 days without any legal driving privileges unless you successfully petition for occupational driving privileges through the court that issued your conviction, which is rare and requires attorney representation.
Alabama SR-22 Filing Period
3 years
ALEA requires continuous SR-22 filing for 3 years following DUI conviction. Any lapse in coverage during this period triggers immediate suspension and restarts the 3-year requirement from the date you file new SR-22 proof.
Code of Alabama §32-7-20
Insurance Repricing Reality
Your DUI conviction moves you into the non-standard insurance tier. Standard carriers either decline to quote or quote premiums so high they function as soft denials. Non-standard carriers — the nine listed above that write post-DUI SR-22 — price DUI risk as their core business model and produce quotes 40% to 91% higher than your pre-conviction premium, according to combined ValuePenguin and Insurify state-level DUI rate analysis for Alabama published in 2026.
This repricing reflects the carrier's actuarial assessment of DUI conviction as a predictor of future claims. The surcharge persists for 3 to 5 years depending on carrier underwriting rules, then gradually decreases if you maintain a clean record.
Compare Carriers That Write Your Situation
Nine carriers write post-DUI SR-22 policies in Alabama with same-day filing capability. Premium spreads between these carriers run 2:1 to 3:1 for identical coverage limits and driver profiles. Acceptance Insurance, Bristol West, Dairyland, Direct Auto, GAINSCO, and The General operate as non-standard specialists and typically produce the lowest quotes for DUI convictions. Progressive, Geico, National General, and Farmers write across both standard and non-standard tiers and may quote competitively depending on your age, vehicle, and county.
Request quotes from at least three carriers in the non-standard tier and two in the standard tier that still write DUI policies. Bind coverage before your suspension period ends so the carrier files SR-22 with ALEA on the same day you apply for reinstatement. Waiting until after reinstatement to shop coverage wastes the 90-day suspension window and delays your return to legal driving.