About 22 percent of Alabama’s drivers don’t have liability insurance, but a new online system could change that starting next year.

Limestone County is one of 10 piloting the new Insurance Verification System, which by law will be fully implemented statewide by Jan. 1.

The system will allow officials who issue license plates to immediately verify the insurance status of the vehicle’s owner. If insurance can’t be verified, proof of insurance will have to be presented before a tag is issued.

The new system was necessitated by the passage of the Alabama Mandatory Liability Insurance Law, which State Sen. Arthur Orr, R-Decatur, helped sponsor during the 2011 session.

Limestone County License Commissioner Greg Tucker served on a committee comprised of licensing officials and representatives from the insurance industry and the Alabama Department of Revenue. He said his participation on the committee enabled Limestone to become a pilot county for the program.

Tucker said his office is currently testing the program and working to get information out to residents about the changes. The bottom line, he said, is the system will make it easier on residents who have insurance and put the focus on those who don’t.

Under the new law, drivers will have to pay $200 for a reinstatement fee, while second or subsequent violations will require a $400 reinstatement fee and a mandatory four-month registration suspension.

Tucker said while the new law is insurance industry driven, he recognizes the need to protect insured drivers. One of the positives for license officials, he said, is that it will be a Web-based system allowing a variety of state officials to view the information.

The old method of insurance verification involved reviewing three months of state files that tag offices had to check against their own records. The new system will offer an active comparison.

Law-enforcement officers will also be able to access the system to verify if a driver is insured. And though officers with computers in their patrol cars can access the information, Tucker recommended drivers continue to carry verification.

He said when he accesses a vehicle on the site, he’ll be looking for a “green light” or a “red light,” and officers will see the same information.

“There may be cases where the insurance has lapsed or a parent was unable to get (insurance information) in a teenager’s vehicle,” he said.

If Tucker or an officer receives a “red light,” a driver may soon be able to prove he or she is insured via a smartphone application. He said Geico insurance now offers an app that enables a user to pull up information, and other insurance companies may soon follow suit.

“Now is the time to get insurance,” he said. “When January hits, it’s going to cost you, depending on the citation.”