A proof of car insurance won't save your life in an accident, but it could save you at least $400 in fines.

That is, if you fall victim to current "bad driver" laws designed to punish people who do not actually have insurance at the time of a driving infraction. The only problem is, drivers who have insurance but can't immediately prove it are fined as well.

Now there is a pending legislation designed to usurp this ridiculous rule. Under an amendment to the "bad driver" laws, courts would allow residents to pay only a $25 fine if they can prove before the court that they did, in fact, have insurance at the time of a driving citation.

The state House and Senate have passed the bill and it now awaits a go-ahead from Gov. Jennifer Granholm.

Eliminating hefty fees for driving without proof of insurance seems only logical. The purpose of purchasing insurance is to protect the driver financially in the case of an accident, not to ensure that he or she has an extra slip of paper to store in the glove compartment.

Under current laws, a driver who goes the extra mile to purchase insurance can receive equal punishment as a driver without it.

Most astonishing, perhaps, is that there is no fee for licensed drivers who do not carry their licenses with them.

A person who is pulled over for a driving infraction and is unable to provide a license can appear in court at a later date to have the fee written off by the traffic officer. But under current laws, that same person, without proof of insurance, could be forced to pay hundreds of dollars in fines.

Someone either has a license or doesn't. Likewise, a driver either has insurance or doesn't. Equal violations should garner equal punishment - not fines.

And in the long run, a piece of paper does not make a person a safe driver.