Now they can get you out of a ticket. Thirty-six states now allow drivers to show electronic proof of insurance coverage during a traffic stop, according to the Property Casualty Insurance Association of America (PCI).
A late payment can stay on your credit report for up to seven years. This is the standard time limit for most items. Only a bankruptcy can stay longer -- up to 10 years in some cases. But for late payments, seven is the magic number. You can think of your credit reports as a record of your previous debt payments.
1 According to federal law, a late payment can stay on your credit report for up to seven years. After that the entry must be removed.  How much damage it does will depend on three factors -- (1) how late you were, (2) how recent it was, and (3) whether or not there's a pattern of delinquencies.