HB 800: Motor vehicles; optional vehicle equipment inspections and premium discounts if policyholders obtain such inspections; provide

Georgia currently does not require or offer a formal state vehicle equipment inspection program tied to insurance discounts. This bill creates a new, optional inspection system run by the Department of Public Safety. Vehicle owners could take their car to a certified 'vehicle equipment inspection station' to be checked by a licensed 'mechanic inspector.' If the vehicle passes, the owner gets a certificate and sticker valid for one to five years depending on the vehicle's model year. Once a driver has a valid certificate and tells their insurer in writing, insurers must offer a premium discount, which the Insurance Commissioner must approve as part of the company's rate filing. The bill also sets up licensing for inspection stations and mechanics, reinspection rules for vehicles that fail, a hardship extension for repairs, and misdemeanor penalties (fines of $50 to $250) for fraud or operating without proper certification. It takes effect July 1, 2026.

• Requires insurers to offer a premium discount on auto policies issued or renewed after July 1, 2026 if the policyholder's vehicle has a valid inspection certificate and the insurer is notified in writing.
• Creates a new optional vehicle equipment inspection program run by the Department of Public Safety, replacing the old officer-based inspection law.
• Sets inspection validity periods based on a vehicle's model year: five years for newer cars, two years for mid-age cars, one year for older cars.
• Establishes a certification process for inspection stations and a licensing process for mechanic inspectors, including fees based on the cost of performing inspections.
• Requires reinspection within 30 days at no charge if a vehicle fails, with a hardship extension option for needed repairs.
• Creates misdemeanor penalties of $50 to $250 for counterfeit certificates, unlicensed inspection stations, or unlicensed mechanic inspectors.

Georgia drivers and vehicle owners who choose to get the optional inspection, auto insurance companies that must offer the discount and file it with the state, motor vehicle dealerships and garages that could become certified inspection stations, mechanics seeking inspector licenses, and the Department of Public Safety and Insurance Commissioner, who administer the new rules.

Drivers who get their vehicle voluntarily inspected and certified could see a lower insurance premium, while insurers face a new mandatory discount offering subject to state approval. Businesses that want to become inspection stations face new licensing and fee requirements, and violators face fines.

• New O.C.G.A. § 33-9-45 (Section 1) requires insurers to offer a premium discount, subject to Insurance Commissioner approval, for vehicles with a valid inspection certificate.
• New O.C.G.A. § 40-8-200 (Section 2) defines key terms including 'inspection term,' which sets certificate validity at one, two, or five years based on vehicle age.
• O.C.G.A. § 40-8-201 gives the Department of Public Safety power to set inspection standards, station and mechanic licensing criteria, and inspection fees tied to actual costs.
• O.C.G.A. § 40-8-203 and § 40-8-204 make the inspection optional, describe what a passing certificate certifies, and require free reinspection within 30 days for vehicles that fail.
• O.C.G.A. § 40-8-205 bars the department from limiting the number or location of certified inspection stations or creating centralized testing contracts.
• O.C.G.A. § 40-8-208 makes counterfeiting certificates, operating without certification, or posing as a licensed mechanic inspector a misdemeanor punishable by a $50 to $250 fine.
• Section 2 repeals the prior Article 3 of Chapter 8, Title 40 covering officer-conducted vehicle inspections and replaces it entirely with the new system.

1. 2026-02-18House Withdrawn, Recommitted (House)
2. 2025-03-25House Second Readers (House)
3. 2025-03-21House First Readers (House)
4. 2025-03-20House Hopper (House)

• Steve Tarvin (R, HD-002)Primary sponsor
• Alan Powell (R, HD-033)

• auto insurance discounts
• vehicle inspections
• motor vehicle equipment
• Department of Public Safety
• insurance regulation