14 percent lack any coverage

A couple years ago, Mark Hunsaker, a Columbia insurance claims adjuster, grew fed up with watching his clients be victimized by uninsured drivers.

He said he seemed to be writing out a steady stream of claims for men and women caught in fender-benders with drivers who were often unlicensed, uninsured and suspected of driving while under the influence. He became even more steamed when he would open up the newspaper each day, scan the arrest log and find the charge "failure to show proof of insurance" tacked onto some other reckless driving offense.

"Can't there be a way to stop these illegal, dangerous drivers before they cause accidents?" he wondered.

So Hunsaker got to tinkering on his computer and eventually devised a system he says is so simple, it's almost ridiculous.

The invention Hunsaker produced and later applied to be patented is a simple decal that displays clearly that a driver carries up-to-date liability insurance on his or her vehicle. The decal would include the name of the insurance company and a rectangle indicating the insurance policy was current every three months.

The decal would also be reflective to make it visible at night. Failure to show this sticker could, with a change of state law, become probable cause for a police officer to pull a motorist over.

"Right now, a policeman has no chance to see the uninsured driver until after he hits us," Hunsaker said interview in his north Columbia home. "And by that time, it's too late."

Hunsaker, 50, has worked 25 years in the insurance adjustment field and is not prone to impulsive acts, but he is passionate about this idea. He has begun writing letters to state legislators and said that every chance he gets -- at a gas station or coffee shop -- he shares the idea with police.

"I'm prepared to do whatever it takes to move this forward," he said. "I think there are just so many benefits. Not only just keeping some of these people in check, particularly if they have a DWI history, but it will save lives, and it costs the state nothing."

Surveys indicate there are numerous drivers who fit Hunsaker's model on the nation's roadways. Earlier this year, the Insurance Research Council released data indicating that nearly 14 percent of all drivers in the United States are uninsured. New Mexico leads the way with 29 percent of all motorists not carrying insurance, and Massachusetts had the lowest portion with only about 1 percent of drivers lacking insurance.

Missouri sits at about the national average with 14 percent of motorists lacking insurance. However, the Insurance Council predicts a spike in the national numbers because the economic recession could be pushing people to cut costs wherever possible.

And all of these uninsured drivers are a financial burden to the law-abiding ones.

A 2005 report issued by then-state Auditor Claire McCaskill showed that uninsured drivers add about $23 in cost to the premiums paid on each vehicle in the state and cost Missouri motorists a whopping $90 million per year. An "Enhanced Sampling Program" was implemented in 2000 by the Missouri Department of Revenue using insurance industry data to identify uninsured motorists and suspend their licenses.

But McCaskill found that the problem persists, asserting there were numerous holes in the data sets being sampled by the revenue department.

There are no similar studies for the likelihood of uninsured drivers being involved in accidents, but a 2008 study by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety found that 15 percent of drivers involved in fatal car accidents in Missouri were unlicensed drivers. The study found these drivers much more likely than those holding valid licenses to be involved in fatal accidents.

Hunsaker said he believes taking uninsured drivers off the roadways would have a similar effect on safety. He hasn't yet found a state legislator willing to champion his cause but said he'll keep trying. "I could sense the sincere frustration that people who have insurance and have paid the premiums and lived by the rules, their frustration is when they get hit by an uninsured motorist, they're basically left holding the bag," Hunsaker said. "I just don't think that's fair."