Texas · Cancel after the new policy is bound
A cancel date with nothing behind it is a lapse.
Texas expects a registered vehicle to carry at least 30/60/25 liability. That floor pays other people. It does not fix your car. TexasSure is the check that a registered vehicle is insured. Cancel the old policy only after the new one is bound, with the dates overlapping. A day in between is a lapse: a crash that day has no contract, and a later quote can be priced as if you went bare. This is educational, not DMV or legal advice.
Ask for the cancel in the way the carrier’s contract requires, and keep the written date and time. Unearned premium may come back. A mid-term cancel can also involve earned premium, a minimum earned premium, or short-rate math. The declarations and the cancel clause say which. Do not expect a fixed refund. An SR-22, if a court or the state required one, is a filing, not a second policy. Tell the new carrier before you kill the old filing, or the filing drops with the policy. Selling the car is different from shopping: you still need the bill of sale, and you still cancel only the unit that is gone if other cars stay on the policy. Plates and registration do not cancel themselves.
Changing the agent while you keep the company is often a broker-of-record letter, not a cancel. That path is change the agent, keep the company. A carrier dropping you is a different event: cancellation versus nonrenewal. A car you are storing, not driving, may still need comprehensive if you want hail and theft covered: non-operational cars in Texas. Registration proof: insurance and registration.
Same idea in other states, different floors: canceling in Tennessee and canceling in Missouri. Texas product pages: Texas insurance and Texas auto.
