S 990 Session 111 (1995-1996)
S 0990 General Bill, By McConnell, Alexander, Courtney, Hayes, Jackson,
Matthews, Patterson and Reese
Similar(S 1142)
A Bill to amend Title 56, Code of Laws of South Carolina, 1976, relating to
motor vehicles, by adding Chapter 2 so as to enact provisions governing motor
vehicle liability insurance policies; by adding Chapter 4 so as to enact
provisions relating to the titling, registration, and licensure of motor
vehicles; by adding Chapter 8 so as to enact provisions relating to the
regulation of automobile insurance rates; and by adding Chapter 12 so as to
enact provisions relating to regulation of certain insurance rates; and to
repeal Articles 1, 3, and 5, Chapter 77, Title 38, relating to automobile
insurance, purposes and definitions, the "mandate to write" and insurance
coverage, and the reinsurance facility and designated producers; Chapters 9
and 10 of Title 56, relating to the "Motor Vehicle Financial Responsibility
Act" and motor vehicle registration and financial security; and Sections
56-1-610 through 56-1-690, relating to the driver license compact.
01/09/96 Senate Introduced and read first time SJ-83
01/09/96 Senate Referred to Committee on Banking and Insurance SJ-83
A BILL
TO AMEND TITLE 56, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA,
1976, RELATING TO MOTOR VEHICLES, BY ADDING
CHAPTER 2 SO AS TO ENACT PROVISIONS GOVERNING
MOTOR VEHICLE LIABILITY INSURANCE POLICIES; BY
ADDING CHAPTER 4 SO AS TO ENACT PROVISIONS
RELATING TO THE TITLING, REGISTRATION, AND
LICENSURE OF MOTOR VEHICLES; BY ADDING CHAPTER 8
SO AS TO ENACT PROVISIONS RELATING TO THE
REGULATION OF AUTOMOBILE INSURANCE RATES; AND
BY ADDING CHAPTER 12 SO AS TO ENACT PROVISIONS
RELATING TO REGULATION OF CERTAIN INSURANCE
RATES; AND TO REPEAL ARTICLES 1, 3, AND 5, CHAPTER 77,
TITLE 38, RELATING TO AUTOMOBILE INSURANCE,
PURPOSES AND DEFINITIONS, THE "MANDATE TO
WRITE" AND INSURANCE COVERAGE, AND THE
REINSURANCE FACILITY AND DESIGNATED PRODUCERS;
CHAPTERS 9 AND 10 OF TITLE 56, RELATING TO THE
"MOTOR VEHICLE FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
ACT" AND MOTOR VEHICLE REGISTRATION AND
FINANCIAL SECURITY; AND SECTIONS 56-1-610 THROUGH
56-1-690, RELATING TO THE DRIVER LICENSE COMPACT.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. Title 56 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
"CHAPTER 2
Liability Insurance Policies
Section 56-2-10. Except as otherwise provided in this title, no
restrictions, conditions, or provisions in or endorsed on an insurance
policy is valid unless the condition or provision is printed in type as
large as eight point type, or is written in ink or typewritten in or on
the policy. This section does not apply to a copy of an application or
parts of an application, attached to or made part of an insurance
policy.
Section 56-2-20. The purposes of this chapter are to:
(1) establish standards for the collection, use, and disclosure of
information gathered in connection with insurance transactions by
insurance institutions, agents, or insurance-support organizations;
(2) maintain a balance between the need for information by those
conducting the business of insurance and the public's need for fairness
in insurance information practices, including the need to minimize
intrusiveness;
(3) establish a regulatory mechanism to enable natural persons to
ascertain what information is being or has been collected about them
in connection with insurance transactions and to have access to such
information for the purpose of verifying or disputing its accuracy;
(4) limit the disclosure of information collected in connection
with insurance transactions; and
(5) Enable insurance applicants and policyholders to obtain the
reasons for any adverse underwriting decision.
Section 56-2-30. (A) The obligations imposed by this chapter
shall apply to those insurance institutions, agents, or
insurance-support organizations that:
(1) in the case of life or accident and sickness insurance:
(a) collect, receive, or maintain information in connection
with insurance transactions that pertains to natural persons who are
residents of this State; or
(b) engage in insurance transactions with applicants,
individuals, or policyholders who are residents of this State; and
(2) in the case of property or casualty insurance:
(a) collect, receive, or maintain information in connection
with insurance transactions involving policies, contracts, or
certificates of insurance delivered, issued for delivery, or renewed in
this State; or
(b) engage in insurance transactions involving policies,
contracts, or certificates of insurance delivered, issued for delivery, or
renewed in this State.
(B) The rights granted by this chapter shall extend to:
(1) in the case of life or accident and sickness insurance, the
following persons who are residents of this State:
(a) natural persons who are the subject of information
collected, received, or maintained in connection with insurance
transactions; and
(b) applicants, individuals, or policyholders who engage in
or seek to engage in insurance transactions; and
(2) in the case of property or casualty insurance, the following
persons:
(a) natural persons who are the subject of information
collected, received, or maintained in connection with insurance
transactions involving policies, contracts, or certificates of insurance
delivered, issued for delivery, or renewed in this State; and
(b) applicants, individuals, or policyholders who engage in
or seek to engage in insurance transactions involving policies,
contracts, or certificates of insurance delivered, issued for delivery, or
renewed in this State.
(C) For purposes of this section, a person is considered a resident
of this State if the person's last known mailing address, as shown in
the records of the insurance institution, agent, or insurance-support
organization, is located in this State.
(D) Notwithstanding subsections (A) and (B) of this section, this
chapter shall not apply to information collected from the public
records of a governmental authority and maintained by an insurance
institution or its representatives for the purpose of insuring the title to
real property located in this State.
Section 56-2-40. The following definitions shall apply to this
section:
`Adverse underwriting decision' means:
(1) any of the following actions with respect to insurance
transactions involving insurance coverage that is individually
underwritten:
(a) a declination of insurance coverage;
(b) a termination of insurance coverage;
(c) failure of an agent to apply for insurance coverage with a
specific insurance institution that an agent represents and requested
by an applicant;
(d) in the case of a property or casualty insurance coverage:
(i) placement by an insurance institution or agent of a risk
with a residual market mechanism or an unlicensed insurer; or
(ii) the charging of a higher rate on the basis of
information that differs from that which the applicant or policyholder
furnished; or
(2) Notwithstanding item (1) of this definition, the following
actions shall not be considered adverse underwriting decisions, but
the insurance institution or agent responsible for their occurrence
shall provide the applicant or policyholder with the specific reason or
reasons for their occurrence:
(a) the termination of an individual policy form on a class or
statewide basis;
(b) a declination of insurance coverage solely because such
coverage is not available on a class or statewide basis;
(c) the rescission of a policy.
`Affiliate' of `affiliated' means a person that directly, or indirectly
through one or more intermediaries, controls, is controlled by, or is
under common control with another person.
`Agent' when used without qualification, means an individual,
partnership, limited liability company, or corporation that solicits,
negotiates, procures, or effects contracts of insurance or annuity in
this State and shall include surplus lines brokers.
`Applicant' means any person who seeks to contract for insurance
coverage other than a person seeking group insurance that is not
individually underwritten.
`Consumer report' means any written, oral, or other communication
of information bearing on a natural person's credit worthiness, credit
standing, credit capacity, character, general reputation, personal
characteristics, or mode of living that is used or expected to be used
in connection with an insurance transaction.
`Consumer reporting agency' means any person who:
(1) regularly engages, in whole or in part, in the practice of
assembling or preparing consumer reports for a monetary fee;
(2) obtains information primarily from sources other than
insurance institutions; and
(3) furnishes consumer reports to other persons.
`Control', including the terms `controlled by' or `under common
control with', means the possession, direct or indirect, of the power to
direct or cause the direction of the management and policies of a
person, whether through the ownership of voting securities, by
contract other than a commercial contract for goods or
nonmanagement services, or otherwise, unless the power is the result
of an official position with or corporate office held by the person.
`Declination of insurance coverage' means a denial, in whole or in
part, by an insurance institution or agent of requested insurance
coverage.
`Department' means Department of Insurance.
`Director' means Director of the Department of Insurance.
`Individual' means any natural person who:
(1)in the case of property or casualty insurance, is a past, present,
or proposed named insured or certificate holder;
(2) is a past, present, or proposed policyowner;
(3) is a past or present applicant;
(4) is a past or present claimant; or
(5) derived, derives, or is proposed to derive insurance coverage
under an insurance policy or certificate subject to this chapter.
`Institutional source' means any person or governmental entity that
provides information about an individual to an agent, insurance
institution or insurance-support organization, other than:
(1) an agent;
(2) the individual who is the subject of the information; or
(3) a natural person acting in a personal capacity rather than in a
business or professional capacity.
`Insurance institution' means any corporation, association,
partnership, reciprocal exchange, inter-insurer, Lloyd's type of
organization, fraternal benefit society, or other person engaged in the
business of insurance. `Insurance institution' shall not include agents
or insurance-support organizations.
`Insurance-support organization' means any person who regularly
engages, in whole or in part, in the practice of assembling or
collecting information about natural persons for the primary purpose
of providing the information to an insurance institution or agent for
insurance transactions, including (i) the furnishing of consumer
reports or investigative consumer reports to an insurance institution or
agent for use in connection with an insurance transaction or (ii) the
collection of personal information from insurance institutions, agents
or other insurance-support organizations for the purpose of detecting
or preventing fraud, material misrepresentation or material
nondisclosure in connection with insurance underwriting or insurance
claim activity. However, the following persons shall not be
considered `insurance-support organization' for purposes of this
chapter: agents, governmental institutions, insurance institutions.
`Insurance transaction' means any transaction involving insurance
primarily for personal, family, or household needs rather than
business or professional needs that entails:
(1) the determination of an individual's eligibility for an insurance
coverage, benefit or payment; or
(2) the servicing of an insurance application, policy, contract, or
certificate.
`Investigative consumer report' means a consumer report or a
portion thereof in which information about a natural person's
character, general reputation, personal characteristics, or mode of
living is obtained through personal interviews with the person's
neighbors, friends, associates, acquaintances, or other who may have
knowledge concerning such items of information
`Personal information' means any individually identifiable
information gathered in connection with an insurance transaction
from which judgments can be made about an individual's character,
habits, avocations, finances, occupation, general reputation, credit,
health, or any other personal characteristics. `Personal information'
includes an individual's name and address, but does not include
privileged information.
`Policyholder' means any person who in the case of individual
property or casualty insurance, is a present named insured;
`Pretext interview' means an interview whereby a person, in an
attempt to obtain information about a natural person, performs one or
more of the following acts:
(1) pretends to be someone he or she is not;
(2) pretends to represent a person he or she is not in fact
representing;
(3) misrepresents the true purpose of the interview, or
(4) refuses to identify himself or herself upon request.
`Privileged information' means any individually identifiable
information that (i) relates to a claim for insurance benefits or a civil
or criminal proceeding involving an individual, and (ii) is collected in
connection with or in reasonable anticipation of a claim for insurance
benefits or civil or criminal proceeding involving an individual.
However, information otherwise meeting the requirements of this
subsection shall nevertheless be considered personal information
under this chapter if it is disclosed in violation of Section 56-2-150 of
this chapter.
`Residual market mechanism' means an association, organization,
or the entity defined, described, or provided for in the South Carolina
Automobile Insurance Plan as set forth in Chapter 8 of this title.
`Termination of insurance coverage' or `termination of an insurance
policy' means either a cancellation or nonrenewal of an insurance
policy other than by failure to pay a premium as required by the
policy.
`Unlicensed insurer' means an insurance institution that has not
been granted a license by the Department to transact the business of
insurance in South Carolina.
Section 56-2-50. No insurance institution, agent, or
insurance-support organization shall use or authorize the use of
pretext interviews to obtain information in connection with an
insurance transaction. However, a pretext interview may be
undertaken to obtain information from a person or institution that
does not have a generally or statutorily recognized privileged
relationship with the person about whom the information relates for
the purpose of investigating a claim where, based upon specific
information available for review by the Director, there is a
reasonable basis for suspecting criminal activity, fraud, material
misrepresentation, or material nondisclosure in connection with the
claim.
Section 56-2-60. (A) An insurance institution or agent shall
provide a notice of insurance information practices to all applicants or
policyholders in connection with insurance transactions as provided
in this section.
(1) in the case of an application for insurance a notice shall be
provided no later than:
(a) at the time of the delivery of the insurance policy or
certificate when personal information is collected only from the
applicant or from public records; or
(b) at the time the collection of personal information is
initiated when personal information is collected from a source other
than the applicant or public records;
(2) in the case of a policy renewal, a notice shall be provided no
later than the policy renewal date, except that no notice shall be
required in connection with a policy renewal if;
(a) personal information is collected only from the policy
holder or from public records; or
(b) a notice meeting the requirements of this section has
been given within the previous twenty-four months; or
(3) in the case of a policy reinstatement or change in insurance
benefits, a notice shall be provided no later than the time a request for
a policy reinstatement or change in insurance benefits is received by
the insurance institution, except that no notice shall be required if
personal information is collected only from the policyholder or from
public records.
(B) The notice required by subsection (A) of this section shall be
in writing and shall state:
(1) whether personal information may be collected from
persons other than an individual proposed for coverage;
(2) the types of personal information that may be collected and
the types of sources and investigative techniques that may be used to
collect such information;
(3) the types of disclosures identified in items
2,3,4,5,6,9,11,12, and 14 of Section 56-2-150 and the circumstances
under which such disclosures may be made without prior
authorization. However, only those circumstances need be described
that occur with such frequency as to indicate a general business
practice;
(4) a description of the rights established under Sections
56-2-100 and 56-2-110 and the manner in which those rights may be
exercised; and
(5) that information obtained from a report prepared by an
insurance-support organization may be retained by the
insurance-support organization and disclosed to other persons.
(C) instead of the notice prescribed in subsection (B) of this
section, the insurance institution or agent may provide an abbreviated
notice informing the applicant or policyholder that:
(1) personal information may be collected from persons other
than an individual proposed for coverage;
(2) the information, as well as other personal or privileged
information subsequently collected by the insurance institution or
agent, in certain circumstances, may be disclosed to third parties
without authorization;
(3) a right of access and correction exists with respect tot all
personal information collected; and
(4) the notice prescribed in subsection (B) of this section will
be furnished to the applicant or policyholder upon request.
(D) The obligations imposed by this section upon an insurance
institution or agent may be satisfied by another insurance institution
or agent authorized to act of its behalf.
Section 56-2-70. An insurance institution or agent shall clearly
specify those questions designed to obtain information solely for
marketing or research purposes from an individual in connection with
an insurance transaction.
Section 56-2-80. Notwithstanding any other provision of law of
this State, no insurance institution, agent, or insurance-support
organization shall utilize as its disclosure authorization form in
connection with insurance transactions involving insurance policies
or contracts issued after January 1, 1997, a form or statement that
authorizes the disclosure of personal or privileged information about
an individual to the insurance institution, agent, or insurance-support
organization unless the form or statement:
(1) is written in plain language;
(2) is dated;
(3) specifies the types of persons authorized to disclose
information about the individual;
(4) specifies the nature of the information authorized to be
disclosed;
(5) names the insurance institution or agent and identifies by
generic reference representatives of the insurance institution to whom
the individual is authorizing information to be disclosed;
(6) specifies the purposes for which the information is collected;
(7) specifies the length of time such authorization shall remain
valid, which shall be no longer than;
(a) in the case of authorizations signed for the purpose of
collecting information in connection with an application for an
insurance policy a policy reinstatement, or a request for change in
policy benefits;
(i) one year from the date the authorization is signed if the
application or request involves property or casualty insurance;
(b) in the case of authorizations signed for the purpose of
collecting information in connection with a claim for benefits under
an insurance policy:
(i) the term of coverage of the policy if the claim is for an
accident and sickness insurance benefit; or
(ii) the duration of the claim if the claim is not for an
accident and sickness insurance benefit; and
(8) advises the individual or a person authorized to act on behalf
of the individual that the individual or the individual's authorized
representative is entitled to receive a copy of the authorization form.
Section 56-2-90. (A) No insurance institution, agent, or
insurance-support organization may prepare or request an
investigative consumer report about an individual in connection with
an insurance transaction involving an application for insurance, a
policy renewal, a policy reinstatement or a change in insurance
benefits unless the insurance institution or agent informs the
individual;
(1) that he may request to be interviewed in connection with
the preparation of the investigative consumer report; and
(2) that upon a request pursuant to Section 56-2-100, he is
entitled to receive a copy of the investigative consumer report.
(B) If an investigative consumer report is to be prepared by an
insurance institution or agent, the insurance institution or agent shall
institute reasonable procedures to conduct a personal interview
requested by an individual.
(C) If an investigative consumer report is to be prepared by an
insurance-support organization, the insurance institution or agent
desiring the report shall inform the insurance-support organization
whether a personal interview has been request by the individual. The
insurance-support organization shall institute reasonable procedures
to conduct such interviews, if requested.
Section 56-2-100. (A) If any individual, after proper
identification, submits a written request to an insurance institution,
agent, or insurance-support organization for access to recorded
personal information about the individual that is reasonably described
by the individual and reasonably able to be located and retrieved by
the insurance institution, agent, or insurance-support organization, the
insurance institution, agent, or insurance-support organization, within
thirty business days from the date the request is received shall:
(1) inform the individual of the nature and substance of the
recorded personal information in writing, by telephone, or by other
oral communication, whichever the insurance institution, agent or
insurance-support organization prefers;
(2) permit the individual to see and copy, in person, the
recorded personal information pertaining to him or to obtain a copy of
the recorded personal information by mail, whichever the individual
prefers, unless the recorded personal information is in coded form, in
which case an accurate translation in plain language must be provided
in writing;
(3) disclose to the individual the identity, if recorded, of those
persons to whom the insurance institution, agent, or insurance-support
organization has disclosed the personal information within two years
before the request, and if the identity is not recorded, the names of
those insurance institutions, agents, insurance-support organizations,
or other persons to whom the information is disclosed normally; and
(4) provide the individual with a summary of the procedures by
which he may request correction, amendment, or deletion of recorded
personal information.
(B) Any personal information provided pursuant to subsection (A)
of this section shall identify the source of the information if it is an
institutional source.
(C) Medical record information supplied by a medical care
institutions or medical professional and requested under subsection
(A) of this section, together with the identity of the medical
professional or medical care institution that provided the information,
must be supplied either directly to the individual or to a medical
professional designated by the individual and licensed to provide
medical care with respect to the condition to which the information
relates, whichever the insurance institution, agent, or
insurance-support organization prefers. If it elects to disclose the
information to a medical professional designated by the individual,
the insurance institution, agent, or insurance-support organization
shall notify the individual, at the time of the disclosure, that it has
provided the information to the medical professional.
(D) Except for personal information provided under Section
56-2-120, an insurance institution, agent, or insurance-support
organization may charge a reasonable fee to cover the costs incurred
in providing a copy of recorded personal information to individuals.
(E) The obligations imposed by this section upon an insurance
institution or agent may be satisfied by another insurance institution
or agent authorized to act on its behalf. With respect to the copying
and disclosure of recorded personal information pursuant to a request
under subsection (A) of this section, an insurance institution, agent, or
insurance-support organization may make arrangements with an
insurance-support organization or a consumer reporting agency to
copy and disclose recorded personal information on its behalf.
(F) The rights granted to individuals in this section shall extend to
all natural persons to the extent information about them is collected
and maintained by an insurance institution, agent, or
insurance-support organization in connection with an insurance
transaction. The rights granted to all natural persons by this
subsection shall not extend to information about them that relates to
and is collected in connection with or in reasonable anticipation of a
claim or civil or criminal proceeding involving them.
(G) For purpose of this section, `insurance-support organization'
does not include `consumer reporting agency'.
Section 56-2-110. (A) Within thirty business days from the date
of receipt of a written request from an individual to correct, amend, or
delete any recorded personal information about the individual within
its possession, an insurance institution, agent, or insurance-support
organization shall either:
(1) correct, amend, or delete the portion of the recorded
personal information in dispute; or
(2) notify the individual of:
(a) its refusal to make the correction, amendment, or
deletion;
(b) the reasons for the refusal; and
(c) the individual's right to file a statement as provided in
subsection (C).
(B) If the insurance institution, agent, or insurance-support
organization corrects, amends, or deletes recorded personal
information in accordance with item (1) of subsection (A) of this
section, the insurance institution, agent, or insurance-support
organization shall notify the individual in writing and furnish the
correction, amendment, or fact of deletion to:
(1) any person specifically designated by the individual who,
within the preceding two years, may have received the recorded
personal information;
(2) any insurance-support organization whose primary source
of personal information is insurance institutions if the
insurance-support organization has received systematically the
recorded personal information from the insurance institution within
the preceding seven yeas. The correction, amendment, or fact of
deletion need not be furnished if the insurance-support organization
no longer maintains recorded personal information about the
individual; and
(3) any insurance-support organization that furnished the
personal information that has been corrected, amended, or deleted.
(C) Whenever an individual disagrees with an insurance
institution's agent's or insurance-support organization's refusal to
correct, amend, or delete recorded personal information, the
individual is permitted to file with the insurance institution, agent, or
insurance-support organization:
(1) a concise statement setting forth what the individual thinks
is the correct, relevant, or fair information; and
(2) a concise statement of the reasons why the individual
disagrees with the insurance institution's, agent's, or insurance-support
organization's refusal to correct, amend, or delete recorded personal
information.
(D) If an individual files either statement as described in
subsection (C), the insurance institution, agent, or support
organization shall:
(1) file the statement with the disputed personal information
and provide a means by which anyone reviewing the disputed
personal information will be made aware of the individual's statement
and have access to it; and
(2) in a subsequent disclosure by the insurance institution,
agent, or support organization of the recorded personal information
that is the subject of disagreement, clearly identify the matter or
matters in dispute and provide the individual's statement along with
the recorded personal information being disclosed; and
(3) furnish the statement to the persons and in the manner
specified in subsection (B).
(E) The rights granted to individuals in this section extend to all
natural persons to the extent information about them is collected and
maintained by an insurance institution, agent, or insurance-support
organization in connection with an insurance transaction. The rights
granted to all natural persons by this subsection do not extend to
information about them that relates to and is collected in connection
with or in reasonable anticipation of a claim or civil or criminal
proceeding involving them.
(F) For purposes of this section, `insurance-support organization'
does not include `consumer reporting agency'.
Section 56-2-120. (A) In the event of an adverse underwriting
decision, including those that involve policies referred to in item 1 of
subsection (E) of Section 56-2-400 and in item (3) of subsection (F)
of Section 56-2-370, the insurance institution or agent responsible for
the decision shall give a written notice in a form approved by the
department that:
(1) provides the applicant, policyholder, or individual proposed
for coverage with the specific reason or reasons for the adverse
underwriting decision in writing; and
(2) provides to the applicant, policyholder, or individual
proposed for coverage, a form preaddressed to the Director of the
Department of Insurance which may serve as a request for review
under Section 56-2-370(H). The form must:
(a) state the reasons for the adverse underwriting decision;
(b) state the name of the applicant, or policyholder, or
individual proposed for coverage;
(c) state the name of the insurance institution and agent
making the adverse underwriting decision;
(d) include the signature of the agent;
(e) be capable of mailing as a postcard;
(f) conform to other specifications deemed appropriate by
the Director of the Department of Insurance, and;
(3) provides the applicant, policyholder, or individual proposed
for coverage with a summary of the rights established under
subsection (B) of this section and Sections 56-2-100 and 56-2-110.
(B) Upon receipt of a written request within ninety business days
from the date of the mailing of notice or other communication of an
adverse underwriting decision to an applicant, policyholder, or
individual proposed for coverage, the insurance institution or agent
shall furnish to the person within twenty-one business days from the
date of receipt of the written request:
(1) the specific items of personal and privileged information
that support those reasons; however:
(a) the insurance institution or agent shall not be required to
furnish specific items of privileged information if it has a reasonable
suspicion, based upon specific information available for review by the
department, that the applicant, policyholder, or individual proposed
for coverage has engaged in criminal activity, fraud, material
misrepresentation, or material nondisclosure; and
(b) specific items of medical-record information supplied by
a medical-care institution or medical professional must be disclosed
either directly to the individual about whom the information relates or
to a medical professional designated by the individual and licensed to
provide medical care with respect to the condition to which the
information relates, whichever the insurance institution or agent
prefers; and
(3) the names and addresses of the institutional sources that
supplied the specific items of information given pursuant to
subsection (B)(2) of this section. However, the identity of any
medical professional or medical-care institution must be disclosed
either directly to the individual or to the designated medical
professional, whichever the insurance institution or agent prefers.
(C) The obligations imposed by this section upon an insurance
institution or agent may be satisfied by another insurance institution
or agent authorized to act on its behalf. However, the insurance
institution or agent making an adverse underwriting decision shall
remain responsible for compliance with the obligations imposed by
this section.
(D) When an adverse underwriting decision results solely from an
oral request or inquiry, the explanation of reasons and summary of
rights required by subsection (A) of this section may be given orally.
Section 56-2-130. No insurance institution , agent, or
insurance-support organization may seek information in connection
with an insurance transaction concerning: (i) any previous adverse
underwriting decision experienced by an individual, or (ii) any
previous insurance coverage obtained by an individual through a
residual market mechanism, unless the inquiry also requests the
reasons for any previous adverse underwriting decision or the reasons
why insurance coverage was previously obtained through a residual
market mechanism.
Section 56-2-140. No insurance institution or agent may base an
adverse underwriting decision in whole or in part:
(1) on the fact of a previous adverse underwriting decision or on
the fact that an individual previously obtained insurance coverage
through a residual market mechanism. However, an insurance
institution or agent may base an adverse underwriting decision on
further information obtained from an insurance institution or agent
responsible for a previous adverse underwriting decision;
(2) on personal information received from an insurance -support
organization whose primary source of information is insurance
institutions. However, an insurance institution or agent may base an
adverse underwriting decision on further personal information
obtained as the result of information received from an
insurance-support organization; or
(3) on the fact that an individual previously obtained insurance
coverage from a particular insurance institution or agent.
Section 56-2-150. An insurance institution, agent, or
insurance-support organization shall not disclose any personal or
privileged information about an individual collected or received in
connection with an insurance transaction unless the disclosure is:
(1) with the written authorization of the individual, provided:
(a) if the authorization is submitted by another insurance
institution, agent, of insurance-support organization, the authorization
meets the requirements of Section 56-2-80; or
(b) if the authorization is submitted by a person other than an
insurance institution, agent, or insurance-support organization, the
authorization is:
(i) dated,
(ii) signed by the individual, and
(iii) obtained one year or less before the date a disclosure is
sought pursuant to this item; or
(2) to a person other than an insurance institution, agent, or
insurance-support organization, provided the disclosure is reasonably
necessary:
(a) to enable that person to perform a business, professional or
insurance function for the disclosing insurance institution, agent, or
insurance-support organization and that person agrees not to disclose
the information further without the individual's written authorization
unless the further disclosure:
(i) would otherwise be permitted by this section if made by
an insurance institution, agent, or insurance-support organization; or
(ii) is reasonably necessary for that person to perform its
function for the disclosing insurance institution, agent, or
insurance-support organization; or
(b) to enable that person to provide information to the
disclosing insurance institution, agent, or insurance-support
organization for the purpose of:
(i) determining an individual's eligibility for an insurance
benefit or payment; or
(ii) detecting or preventing criminal activity, fraud, material
misrepresentation, or material nondisclosure in connection with an
insurance transaction; or
(3) to an insurance institution, agent, or insurance-support
organization, or self-insurer, provided the information disclosed is
limited to that which is reasonably necessary:
(a) to detect or prevent criminal activity, fraud, material
misrepresentation, or material nondisclosure in connection with
insurance transactions; or
(b) for either the disclosing or receiving insurance institution,
agent or insurance-support organization to perform its function in
connection with an insurance transaction involving the individual; or
(4) to a medical-care institution or medical professional for the
purpose of (i) verifying insurance coverage or benefits, (ii) informing
an individual of a medical problem of which the individual may not
be aware or (iii) conducting an operations or service audit, provided
only that information is disclosed as is reasonably necessary to
accomplish the foregoing purposes; or
(5) to an insurance regulatory authority; or
(6) to a law enforcement or to other government authority:
(a) to protect the interests of the insurance institution, agent or
insurance-support organization in preventing or prosecuting the
perpetration of fraud upon it; or
(b) if the insurance institution, agent, or insurance
support-organization reasonably believes that illegal activities have
been conducted by the individual; or
(c) upon written request of any law enforcement agency, for all
insured or claimant information in the possession of an insurance
institution, agent, or insurance-support organization which relates an
ongoing criminal investigation, such insurance institution, agent, or
insurance-support organization shall release such information,
including, but not limited to, policy information, premium payment
records, record of prior claims by the insured or by another claimant,
and information collected in connection with an insurance company's
investigation of an application or claim. Any information released to
a law enforcement agency pursuant to such request shall be treated as
confidential criminal investigation information and not be disclosed
further except as provided by law. Notwithstanding any provision in
this chapter, no insurance institution, agent, or insurance-support
organization shall notify any insured or claimant that information has
been requested or supplied pursuant to this section before notification
from the requesting law enforcement agency that its criminal
investigation is completed. Within ninety days following the
completion of any such criminal investigation, the law enforcement
agency making such a request for information shall notify any
insurance institution, agent, or insurance-support organization from
whom information was requested that the criminal investigation has
been completed.
(7) otherwise permitted or required by law; or
(8) in response to a facially valid administrative or judicial order,
including a search warrant or subpoena; or
(9) made for the purpose of conducting actuarial or research
studies, provided:
(a) no individual may be identified in any actuarial or research
report and
(b) materials allowing the individual to be identified are
returned or destroyed as soon as they are no longer needed, and
(c) the actuarial or research organization agrees not to disclose
the information unless the disclosure would otherwise be permitted by
this section if made by an insurance institution, agent, or
insurance-support organization; or
(10) to a party or a representative of a party to a proposed or
consummated sale, transfer, merger, or consolidation of all or part of
the business of the insurance institution, agent, or insurance-support
organization, provided:
(a) before the consummation of the sale, transfer, merger, or
consolidation only such information is disclosed as is reasonably
necessary to enable the recipient to make business decisions about the
purchase, transfer, merger, or consolidation, and
(b) the recipient agrees not to disclose the information unless
the disclosure would other wise be permitted by this section if made
by an insurance institution, agent, or insurance-support organization;
or
(11) to a person whose only use of such information will be in
connection with the marketing of a product or service, provided:
(a) no medical-record information, privileged information, or
personal information relating to an individual's character, personal
habits, mode of living, or general reputation is disclosed, and no
classification derived from the information is disclosed,
(b) the individual has been given an opportunity to indicate
that he does not want personal information disclosed for marketing
purposes and has given no indication that he does not want the
information disclosed, and
(c) the person receiving such information agrees not to use it
except in connection with the marketing of a product or service; or
(12) to an affiliate whose only use of the information will be in
connection with an audit of the insurance institution or agent or the
marketing of an insurance product or service, provided the affiliate
agrees not to disclose the information for any other purpose or to
unaffiliated persons; or
(13) by a consumer reporting agency, provided the disclosure is to
a person other than an insurance institution or agent; or
(14) to a group policyholder for the purposed of reporting claims
experience or conducting an audit of the insurance institution's or
agent's operations or services, provided the information disclosed is
reasonably necessary for the group policyholder to conduct the review
or audit; or
(15) to a professional peer review organization for the purpose of
reviewing the service or conduct of a medical-care institution or
medical professional; or
(16) to a governmental authority for the purpose of determining the
individual's eligibility for health benefits for which the governmental
authority may be liable; or
(17) to a certificate holder or policy holder for the purpose of
providing information regarding the status of an insurance
transaction; or
(18) to a lienholder, mortgagee, assignee, lessor or other person
shown on the records of an insurance institution or agent as having a
legal or beneficial interest in a policy of insurance, provided that:
(a) no medical record information is disclosed unless the
disclosure would be permitted by this section; and
(b) the information disclosed is limited to that which is
reasonably necessary to permit such person to protect his interest in
the policy.
Section 56-2-160. If a duly appointed agent of an insurer
proposes to place a policy of motor vehicle insurance as defined in
Section 56-2-370 with another insurer or proposes to submit an
application to the South Carolina Automobile Insurance Plan as set
forth in Section 56-4-860 of this title solely because of a moratorium
on such agent's soliciting, negotiating, procuring, or effecting new
motor vehicle insurance that would otherwise be acceptable to such
insurer of such placement or submission would result in the
applicant's being charged a higher rate, the agent shall disclose to the
applicant the existence of the moratorium before such placement or
submission.
Section 56-2-170. (A) The Department shall have the power to
examine and investigate the affairs of any insurance institution or
agent doing business in this State to determine whether the insurance
institution or agent has been or is engaged in any conduct in the
violation of this chapter.
(B) The Department shall have the power to examine and
investigate the affairs of any insurance-support organization that acts
on behalf of an insurance institution or agent and that either (i)
transacts business in this State, or (ii) transacts business outside this
State and has an effect on a person residing in this State, in order to
determine whether the insurance-support organization has been or is
engaged in any conduct in violation of this chapter.
Section 56-2-180. (A) Whenever the Department has reason to
believe that an insurance institution, agent or insurance-support
organization has been or is engaged in conduct in this State that
violates this chapter, or whenever the Department has reason to
believe that an insurance-support organization has been or is engaged
in conduct outside this State that has an effect on a person residing in
this State, and that violates this chapter, the Department may issue
and serve upon the insurance institution, agent, or insurance-support
organization a statement of charges and notice of hearing to be held at
a time and place fixed in the notice. The date for such hearing shall
be at least ten days after the date of service.
(B) At the time and place fixed for the hearing, the insurance
institution, agent, or insurance-support organization charged shall
have an opportunity to answer the charges against it and present
evidence on its behalf. Upon good cause shown, the Department shall
permit any adversely affected person to intervene, appear, and be
heard at the hearing by counsel or in person.
(C) In all matters in connection with such investigation, charge, or
hearing the Department shall have the jurisdiction, power and
authority granted or conferred upon it by the laws of this State.
Section 56-2-190. For the purpose of this chapter, an
insurance-support organization transacting business outside this State
that has an effect on a person residing in this State and which is
alleged to violate this chapter is considered to have appointed the
clerk of the department to accept service of process on its behalf.
Service on the clerk shall be made in accordance with the provisions
of law.
Section 56-2-200. (A) If any insurance institution, agent, or
insurance-support organization fails to comply with Sections
56-2-100, 56-2-110, or 56-2-120, any person whose rights granted
under those sections are violated may apply to a court of competent
jurisdiction for appropriate equitable relief.
(B) An insurance institution, agent, or insurance-support
organization that discloses information in violation of Section
56-2-150 shall be liable for damages sustained by the individual to
whom the information relates. No individual, however, shall be
entitled to a monetary award that exceeds the actual damages
sustained by the individual as a result of a violation of Section
56-2-150.
(C) In any action brought pursuant to this section, the court may
award the cost of the action and reasonable attorney's fees to the
prevailing party.
(D) An action under this section must be brought within two years
from the date the alleged violation is or should have been discovered.
(E) The remedies provided for in this section are not the exclusive
remedies available.
Section 56-2-210. No cause of action in the nature of defamation,
invasion of privacy, or negligence shall arise against any person for
disclosing personal or privileged information in accordance with this
chapter, nor shall such a cause of action arise against any person for
furnishing personal or privileged information to an insurance
institution, agent, or insurance-support organization. However, this
section shall provide no immunity for disclosing or furnishing false
information with malice or willful intent to injure any person.
Section 56-2-220. Any person who knowingly and willfully
obtains information about an individual from an insurance institution,
agent, or insurance-support organization under false pretenses shall be
fined not more than $10,000 or punished by confinement in jail for
not more than 12 months, or both.
Section 56-2-230. The rights granted under Sections 56-2-100,
56-2-110 and 56-2-150 of this chapter shall take effect on January 1,
1997, regardless of the date of the collection or receipt of the
information that is the subject of those sections.
Section 56-2-240. No policy or contract insuring or indemnifying
against liability for injury to or the death of a person, or for injury to
or destruction of property, may be issued or delivered in this State
unless it contains in substance the following provisions or other
provisions that are at least equally favorable to the insured and to
judgment creditors:
(1) that the insolvency or bankruptcy of the insured, or the
insolvency of the insured's estate, shall not relieve the insurer of any
of its obligations under the policy or contract;
(2) that if execution on a judgment against the insured or his
personal representative is returned unsatisfied in an action brought to
recover damages for injury sustained or for loss or damage incurred
during the life of the policy or contract, then an action may be
maintained against the insurer under the terms of the policy or
contract for the amount of the judgment not exceeding the amount of
the applicable limit of coverage under the policy or contract.
Section 56-2-250. (A) Upon request of an insured, each insurer
licensed in this State issuing or delivering a policy or contract of
bodily injury or property damage liability insurance covering liability
arising from the ownership, maintenance, or use of a motor vehicle
shall provide on payment of the premium, as a minimum coverage (i)
to persons occupying the insured motor vehicle; and (ii) to the named
insured and, while resident of the named insured's household, the
spouse and relatives of the named insured while in or upon, entering
or alighting from or through being struck by a motor vehicle while
not occupying a motor vehicle, the following health care and
disability benefits for each accident:
(1) all reasonable and necessary expenses for medical,
chiropractic, hospital, dental, surgical, ambulance, prosthetic and
rehabilitation services, and funeral expenses resulting from the
accident and incurred within three years after the date of the accident,
up to two thousand dollars a person; however, if the insured does not
elect to purchase the limit the insurer and insured may agree to any
other limit; and
(2) if the person is usually engaged in a remunerative
occupation, an amount equal to the loss of income incurred after the
date of the accident resulting from injuries received in the accident up
to one hundred dollars a week during the period from the first
workday lost as a result of the accident up to the date the person is
able to return to his usual occupation. However, the period may not
extend beyond one year from the date of the accident.
(B) The insured has the option of purchasing either or both of the
coverages set forth in subsection (A)(1) and (2) of this section. Either
or both of the coverages, as well as any other medical expense or loss
of income coverage under a policy of automobile liability insurance,
is payable notwithstanding the failure or refusal of the named insured
or other person entitled to the coverage to give notice to the insurer of
an accident as soon as practicable under the terms of the policy,
except where the failure or refusal prejudices the insurer in
establishing the validity of the claim.
(C) In a policy of personal automobile insurance in which the
insured has purchased coverage under subsection (A) of this section,
every insurer providing such coverage arising from the ownership,
maintenance, or use of no more than four motor vehicles is liable to
pay up to the maximum policy limit available on every motor vehicle
insured under that coverage if the health care or disability expenses
and costs mentioned in subsection (A) of this section exceed the
limits of coverage for any one motor vehicle so insured.
Section 56-2-260. (A) No original premium notice for insurance
covering liability arising out of the ownership, maintenance, or use of
a motor vehicle may be issued or delivered unless it contains on the
front of the premium notice or unless there is enclosed with the
premium notice, in boldface type, the following statement:
IMPORTANT NOTICE
IN ADDITION TO THE MINIMUM INSURANCE REQUIRED
BY LAW, YOU MAY PURCHASE ADDITIONAL INSURANCE
COVERAGE FOR THE NAMED INSURED AND FOR HIS
RELATIVES WHO ARE MEMBERS OF HIS HOUSEHOLD
WHILE OCCUPYING A MOTOR VEHICLE, OR IF STRUCK BY
A MOTOR VEHICLE WHILE NOT OCCUPYING A MOTOR
VEHICLE, AND FOR OCCUPANTS OF THE INSURED MOTOR
VEHICLE. THE FOLLOWING HEALTH CARE AND
DISABILITY BENEFITS ARE AVAILABLE FOR EACH
ACCIDENT:
(a) PAYMENT OF UP TO TWO THOUSAND DOLLARS A
PERSON FOR ALL REASONABLE AND NECESSARY
EXPENSES FOR MEDICAL, CHIROPRACTIC, HOSPITAL,
DENTAL, SURGICAL, AMBULANCE, PROSTHETIC AND
REHABILITATION SERVICES, AND FUNERAL EXPENSES
RESULTING FROM THE ACCIDENT AND INCURRED WITHIN
THREE YEARS AFTER THE DATE OF THE ACCIDENT; AND
(B) AN AMOUNT EQUAL TO THE LOSS OF INCOME UP TO
ONE HUNDRED DOLLARS A WEEK IF THE INJURED PERSON
IS ENGAGED IN AN OCCUPATION FOR WHICH HE RECEIVES
COMPENSATION, FROM THE FIRST WORKDAY LOST AS A
RESULT OF THE ACCIDENT UP TO THE DATE THE PERSON
IS ABLE TO RETURN TO HIS USUAL OCCUPATION. THE
PAYMENTS ARE LIMITED TO A PERIOD EXTENDING ONE
YEAR FROM THE DATE OF THE ACCIDENT.
IF YOU DESIRE TO PURCHASE EITHER OR BOTH OF
THESE COVERAGES AT AN ADDITIONAL PREMIUM, YOU
MAY DO SO BY CONTACTING THE AGENT OR COMPANY
THAT ISSUED YOUR POLICY.
The insurer issuing the premium notice shall inform the insured by
any reasonable means of communication of the approximate premium
for the additional coverage.
(B) No new policy or original premium notice of insurance
covering liability arising out of the ownership, maintenance, or use of
a motor vehicle may be issued or delivered unless it contains the
following statement printed in boldface type, or unless the statement
is attached to the front of or is enclosed with the policy or premium
notice:
IMPORTANT NOTICE
IN ADDITION TO THE INSURANCE COVERAGE REQUIRED
BY LAW TO PROTECT YOU AGAINST A LOSS CAUSED BY
AN UNINSURED MOTORIST, IF YOU HAVE PURCHASED
LIABILITY INSURANCE COVERAGE THAT IS HIGHER THAN
THAT REQUIRED BY LAW TO PROTECT YOU AGAINST
LIABILITY ARISING OUT OF THE OWNERSHIP,
MAINTENANCE, OR USE OF THE MOTOR VEHICLES
COVERED BY THIS POLICY, AND YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY
PURCHASED UNINSURED MOTORIST INSURANCE
COVERAGE EQUAL TO YOUR LIABILITY INSURANCE
COVERAGE:
(1) YOUR UNINSURED AND UNDERINSURED MOTORIST
INSURANCE COVERAGE HAS INCREASED TO THE LIMITS
OF YOUR LIABILITY COVERAGE AND THIS INCREASE WILL
COST YOU AN EXTRA PREMIUM CHARGE; AND
(2) YOUR TOTAL PREMIUM CHARGE FOR YOUR MOTOR
VEHICLE INSURANCE COVERAGE WILL INCREASE IF YOU
DO NOT NOTIFY YOUR AGENT OR INSURER OF YOUR
DESIRE TO REDUCE COVERAGE WITHIN TWENTY DAYS OF
THE MAILING OF THE POLICY OR THE PREMIUM NOTICE,
AS THE CASE MAY BE;
(3) IF THIS IS A NEW POLICY AND YOU HAVE ALREADY
SIGNED A WRITTEN REJECTION OF SUCH HIGHER LIMITS
IN CONNECTION WITH IT, PARAGRAPHS (1) AND (2) OF THIS
NOTICE DO NOT APPLY.
After twenty days, the insurer is relieved of the obligation imposed
by this subsection to attach or imprint the foregoing statement to any
subsequently delivered renewal policy, extension certificate, other
written statement of coverage continuance, or to any subsequently
mailed premium notice.
Section 56-2-270. Notwithstanding any provision of a policy or
contract of bodily injury liability insurance, when the policy or
contract provides for reimbursement for a service that may be
performed legally by a person licensed in this State for the practice of
chiropractic, reimbursement under the policy may not be denied
because the service is rendered by a licensed chiropractor.
Section 56-2-280. (A) No policy or contract of bodily injury or
property damage liability insurance, covering liability arising from
the ownership, maintenance, or use of a motor vehicle, aircraft, or
private pleasure watercraft, may be issued or delivered in this State to
the owner of the vehicle, aircraft, or watercraft, or may be issued or
delivered by an insurer licensed in this State upon a motor vehicle,
aircraft, or private pleasure watercraft that is principally garaged,
docked, or used in this State, unless the policy contains a provision
insuring the named insured, and any other person using or responsible
for the use of the motor vehicle, aircraft, or private pleasure
watercraft with the expressed or implied consent of the named
insured, against liability for death or injury sustained, or loss or
damage incurred within the coverage of the policy or contract as a
result of negligence in the operation or use of the vehicle, aircraft, or
watercraft by the named insured or by any such person. Each policy
or contract of liability insurance, or endorsement to the policy or
contract, insuring private passenger automobiles, aircraft, or private
pleasure watercraft principally garaged, docked, or used in this State,
that has as the named insured an individual or husband and wife and
that includes, with respect to any liability insurance provided by the
policy, contract, or endorsement for use of a nonowned automobile,
aircraft, or private pleasure watercraft, a provision requiring
permission or consent of the owner of the automobile, aircraft, or
private pleasure watercraft for the insurance to apply, shall be
construed to include permission or consent of the custodian in the
provision requiring permission or consent of the owner.
(B) For aircraft liability insurance, the policy or contract may
contain the exclusions listed in Section 56-2-550. Notwithstanding
the provisions of this section or any other provision of law, no policy
or contract shall require pilot experience greater than that prescribed
by the Federal Aviation Administration, except for pilots operating air
taxis, or pilots operating aircraft applying chemicals, seed, or
fertilizer.
(C) No policy or contract of bodily injury or property damage
liability insurance relating to the ownership, maintenance, or use of a
motor vehicle may be issued or delivered in this State to the owner of
a vehicle or may be issued or delivered by an insurer licensed in this
State upon a motor vehicle principally garaged or used in this State
without an endorsement or provision insuring the named insured, and
any other person using or responsible for the use of the motor vehicle
with the expressed or implied consent of the named insured, against
liability for death or injury sustained, or loss or damage incurred
within the coverage of the policy or contract as a result of negligence
in the operation or use of the motor vehicle by the named insured or
by any other person. This provision applies notwithstanding the
failure or refusal of the named insured or other person to cooperate
with the insurer under the terms of the policy. If the failure or refusal
to cooperate prejudices the insurer in the defense of an action for
damages arising from the operation or use of the insured motor
vehicle, then the endorsement or provision is void. If an insurer has
actual notice of a motion for judgment or complaint having been
served on an insured, the mere failure of the insured to turn the
motion or complaint over to the insurer may not be a defense to the
insurer, nor void the endorsement or provision, nor in any way relive
the insurer of its obligations to the insured, provided the insured
otherwise cooperates and in no way prejudices the insurer.
Where the insurer has elected to provide a defense to its insured
under such circumstances and files responsive pleadings in the name
of its insured, the insured is not subject to sanctions for failure to
comply with discovery pursuant to the South Carolina Rules of Civil
Procedure unless it can be shown that the suit papers actually reached
the insured, and that the insurer has failed after exercising due
diligence to locate its insured, and as long as the insurer provides
such information in response to discovery as it can without the
assistance of the insured.
(D) Any endorsement, provision, or rider attached to or included
in any policy of insurance which purports or seeks to limit or reduce
the coverage afforded by the provisions required by this section is
void.
Section 56-2-290. (A)(1) Each policy or contract of bodily injury
or property damage liability insurance which provides insurance to a
named insured in connection with the business of selling, leasing,
repairing, servicing, storing, or parking motor vehicles, against
liability arising from the ownership, maintenance, or use of a motor
vehicle incident thereto shall contain a provision that the insurance
coverage applicable to those motor vehicles are not applicable to a
person other than the named insured and his employees in the course
of their employment if there is any other valid and collectible
insurance applicable to the same loss covering the other person under
a policy with limits at least equal to the financial responsibility
requirements specified in Section 56-2-940. The provision applies to
motor vehicles which are either for the purpose of demonstrating to
the other person as a prospective purchaser, or which are loaned or
leased to the other person as a convenience during the repairing or
servicing of a motor vehicle for the other person, or leased to the
other person for six months or more.
(2) If the other valid and collectible insurance has limits less
than the financial responsibility requirements specified in Section
56-4-940, then the coverage afforded a person other than the named
insured and his employees in the course of their employment is
applicable to the extent necessary to equal the financial responsibility
requirements specified in Section 56-4-940.
(3) If there is no other valid and collectible insurance available,
the coverage under the policy afforded a person, other than the named
insured and his employees in the course of their employment, is
applicable, but the amount recoverable in such case may not exceed
the financial responsibility requirements specified in Section
56-4-940. If there is no other valid and collectible collision or upset
insurance available and if the policy provides insurance to the named
insured for collision or upset, it shall include any other person as an
additional insured, unless in the case of a leased vehicle the other
persons receives a conspicuous written disclosure at the
commencement of the lease, warning the person that he is not an
additional insured under the owner's policy for collision or upset
coverage.
(B)(1) A policy or contract of bodily injury or property damage
liability insurance relating to the ownership, maintenance, or use of a
motor vehicle excludes coverage to persons other than (i) the named
insured, or (ii) directors, stockholders, partners, agents, or employees
of the named insured, or (iii) residents of the household of either (i) or
(ii), while those persons are employed or otherwise engaged in the
business of selling, repairing, servicing, storing, or parking motor
vehicles if there is any other valid or collectible insurance applicable
to the same loss covering the persons under a policy with limits at
least equal to the financial responsibility requirements specified in
Section 56-4-940.
(2) If the other valid and collectible insurance has limits less
than the financial responsibility requirements specified in Section
56-4-940, then the coverage afforded a person other than the named
insured while that person is employed or otherwise engaged in the
business of selling, repairing, servicing, storing, or parking motor
vehicles is applicable to the extent necessary to equal the financial
responsibility requirements specified in Section 56-4-940.
(3) If there is no other valid and collectible insurance available,
the coverage afforded a person other than the named insured while
that person is employed or otherwise engaged in the business of
selling, repairing, servicing, storing, or parking motor vehicles shall
apply, but the amount recoverable shall not exceed the financial
responsibility requirements specified in Section 56-4-940.
Section 56-2-300. (A) Each insurer issuing or delivering a
policy or contract of motor vehicle insurance that includes coverage
for bodily injury or property damage liability arising from the
ownership, maintenance, or use of a motor vehicle as provided in this
chapter, shall suspend any coverage for a motor vehicle at the request
of a named insured ordered to military duty outside this State, or his
personal representative, during any period that the motor vehicle is
impounded in a motor vehicle impound lot on a military base of the
United States Armed Forces, the Reserves of the United States Armed
Forces, or the National Guard. However, an insurer may decline to
suspend such coverage (i) unless satisfactory evidence of the
impoundment is furnished to it, or (ii) if the period for which
coverage suspension is requested is less than thirty days. The
suspended coverage must be reinstated upon request of the named
insured, or his personal representative, effective not earlier than the
receipt of the request by the insurer or any of its authorized
representatives.
(B) An insurer suspending coverage pursuant to this section shall
refund any unearned premium to the named insured, or his personal
representative, on a pro rata basis.
(C) The provisions of this section shall not alter or limit the
insured's obligations under Sections 56-4-1230, et seq.
Section 56-2-310. (A) Except as provided in subsection (J) of
this section, no policy or contract of bodily injury or property damage
liability insurance relating to the ownership, maintenance, or use of a
motor vehicle may be issued or delivered in this State to the owner of
the vehicle or issued or delivered by an insurer licensed in this State
upon a motor vehicle principally garaged or used in this State unless
it contains an endorsement or provisions undertaking to pay the
insured all sums that he is entitled legally to recover as damages from
the owner or operator of an uninsured motor vehicle, within limits not
less than the requirements of Section 56-4-10. Those limits shall
equal but not exceed the limits of the liability insurance provided by
the policy, unless the insured rejects the additional uninsured motorist
insurance coverage by notifying the insurer as provided in Section
56-2-260(B). Where the insured contracts for higher limits, the
endorsement or provisions for those limits shall obligate the insurer to
make payment for bodily injury or property damage caused by the
operation or use of an underinsured motor vehicle to the extent the
vehicle is underinsured, as defined in subsection (B) of this section.
The endorsement or provisions also shall provide for at least twenty
thousand dollars coverage for damage or destruction of the property
of the insured in any one accident but may provide an exclusion of
the first two hundred dollars of the loss or damage where the loss or
damage is a result of any one accident involving an unidentifiable
owner or operator of an uninsured motor vehicle.
(B) As used in this section, `bodily injury' includes death resulting
from bodily injury.
`Insured' as used in subsections (A), (D), (G), and (H) of this
section means the named insured and, while resident of the same
household, the spouse of the named insured, and relatives of either,
while in a motor vehicle or otherwise, and any person who uses the
motor vehicle to which the policy applies, with the expressed or
implied consent of the named insured, and a guest in the motor
vehicle to which the policy applies or the personal representative or
any of the above.
`Uninsured motor vehicle' means a motor vehicle for which (i)
there is no bodily injury liability insurance and property damage
liability insurance in the amounts specified by Section 56-4-10, (ii)
there is such insurance but the insurer writing the insurance denies
coverage for any reason whatsoever, including failure or refusal of the
insured to cooperate with the insurer, (iii) there is no bond or deposit
of money or securities in lieu of the insurance, or (iv) the owner of the
motor vehicle has not qualified as a self-insurer under the provisions
of Section 56-4-30. A motor vehicle is considered uninsured if its
owner or operator is unknown.
A motor vehicle is `underinsured' when, and to the extent that, the
total amount of bodily injury and property damage coverage
applicable to the operation or use of the motor vehicle and available
for payment for the bodily injury or property damage, including all
bonds or deposits of money or securities made pursuant to Section
56-4-570, et seq., is less than the total amount of uninsured motorist
coverage afforded a person injured as a result of the operation or use
of the vehicle. `Available for payment' means the amount of liability
insurance coverage applicable to the claim of the injured person for
bodily injury or property damage reduced by the payment of any
other claims arising out of the same occurrence.
If an injured person is entitled to underinsured motorist coverage
under more than one policy, the following order of priority of policies
applies and any amount available for payment must be credited
against the policies in the following order of priority:
(1) the policy covering a motor vehicle occupied by the injured
person at the time of the accident;
(2) the policy covering a motor vehicle not involved in the
accident under which the injured person is a named insured;
(3) the policy covering a motor vehicle not involved in the
accident under which the injured person is an insured other than a
named insured. Where there is more than one insurer providing
coverage under one of the payment priorities set forth, their liability
must be proportioned as to their respective underinsured motorist
coverages.
Recovery under the endorsement or provisions is subject to the
conditions set forth in this section.
(C) There is a rebuttable presumption that a motor vehicle is
uninsured if the Executive Director of the Department of Revenue
and Taxation certifies that, from the records of the department it
appears that:
(1) there is no bodily injury liability insurance and property
damage liability insurance in the amounts specified by Section
56-4-10 covering the owner or operator of the motor vehicle; or
(2) no bond has been given or cash or securities delivered in
lieu of the insurance; or
(3) the owner or operator of the motor vehicle has not qualified
as a self-insurer in accordance with the provisions of Section 56-4-30.
(D) If the owner or operator of a motor vehicle that causes bodily
injury or property damage to the insured is unknown, and if the
damage or injury results from an accident where there has been no
contact between that motor vehicle and the motor vehicle occupied by
the insured, or where there has been no contact with the person of the
insured if the insured was not occupying a motor vehicle, then for the
insured to recover under the endorsement required by subsection (A)
of this section,m the accident must be reported promptly to either (i)
the insurer, or (ii) a law enforcement officer having jurisdiction in the
county or city in which the accident occurred. If it is not reasonably
practicable to make the report promptly, the report must be made as
soon as reasonably practicable under the circumstances.
(E) If the owner or operator of a vehicle causing injury or
damages is unknown, an action may be instituted against the
unknown defendant as `John Doe' and service of process may be
made by delivering a copy of the motion for judgment or other
pleadings to the clerk of the court in which the action is brought.
Service upon the insurer issuing the policy must be made as
prescribed by law as though the insurer were a party defendant. The
insurer has the right to file pleadings and take other action allowable
by law in the name of John Doe.
(F) If any action is instituted against the owner or operator of an
uninsured or underinsured motor vehicle by any insured intending to
rely on the uninsured or underinsured coverage provision or
endorsement of this policy under which the insured is making a claim,
then the insured shall serve a copy of the process upon this insurer in
the manner prescribed by law, as though the insurer were a party
defendant. The insurer shall then have the right to file pleadings and
take other action allowable by law in the name of the owner or
operator of the uninsured or underinsured motor vehicle or in its own
name. Nothing in this subsection shall prevent the owner or operator
of the uninsured motor vehicle from employing counsel of his own
choice and taking any action in his own interest in connection with
the proceeding.
(G) Any insurer paying a claim under the endorsement or
provisions required by subsection (A) of this section shall be
subrogated to the rights of the insured to whom the claim was paid
against the person causing the injury, death, or damage and that
person's insurer, although it may deny coverage for any reason, to the
extent that payment was made. The bringing of an action against the
unknown owner or operator as John Doe or the conclusion of such an
action shall not bar the insured from bringing an action against the
owner or operator proceeded against as John Doe, or against the
owner's or operator's insurer denying coverage for any reason, if the
identity of the owner or operator who caused the injury or damages
becomes known. Any recovery against the owner or operator, or the
insurer of the owner or operator shall be paid to the insurer of the
injured party to the extent that the insurer paid the named insured in
the action brought against the owner or operator as John Doe.
However, the insurer shall pay its proportionate part of all reasonable
costs and expenses incurred in connection with the action, including
reasonable attorney's fees. Nothing in an endorsement or provisions
made under this subsection nor any other provision of law shall
prevent the joining in an action against John Doe of the owner or
operator of the motor vehicle causing the injury as a party defendant,
and the joinder is hereby specifically authorized.
(H) No endorsement or provisions providing the coverage
required by subsection (A) of this section shall require arbitration of
any claim arising under the endorsement or provisions, nor may
anything be required of the insured except the establishment of legal
liability, nor shall the insured be restricted or prevented in any
manner from employing legal counsel or instituting legal proceedings.
(I) The provisions of Section 56-2-280(A) and (B) and the
provisions of subsection (A) of this section shall not apply to any
policy of insurance to the extent that it covers the liability of the
employer under any workers' compensation law, or to the extent that
it covers liability to which the Federal Tort Claims Act applies. No
provision or application of this section shall limit the liability of an
insurer of motor vehicles to an employee or other insured under this
section who is injured by an uninsured motor vehicle; provided that in
the event an employee of a self-insured employer receives a workers'
compensation award for injuries resulting from an accident with an
uninsured motor vehicle, such award shall be set off against any
judgment for damages awarded pursuant to this section for personal
injuries resulting from such accident.
(J) Policies of insurance whose primary purpose is to provide
coverage in excess of other valid and collectible insurance or
qualified self-insurance may include uninsured motorist coverage as
provided in subsection (A) of this section. Insurers issuing or
providing liability policies that are of an excess or umbrella type or
which provide liability coverage incidental to a policy and not related
to a specifically insured motor vehicle, shall not be required to offer,
provide or make available to those policies uninsured or underinsured
motor vehicle coverage as defined in subsection (A) of this section.
(K) A liability insurance carrier providing coverage under a policy
issued or renewed on or after July 1, 1993, may pay the entire amount
of its available coverage without obtaining a release of a claim if the
claimant has underinsured insurance coverage in excess of the amount
so paid. Any liability insurer making a payment pursuant to this
section shall promptly give notice to its insured and to the insurer
which provides the underinsured coverage that it has paid the full
amount of its available coverage.
Section 56-2-320. No policy or contract of bodily injury or
property damage liability insurance relating to the ownership,
maintenance, or use of a motor vehicle, aircraft, or watercraft shall
exclude coverage to an employee of the insured in any controversy
arising between employees even though one employee shall be
awarded compensation as may be provided by law.
Section 56-2-330. (A) No written notice of cancellation or
refusal to renew that is mailed by an insurer to an insured in
accordance with the provisions of a motor vehicle insurance policy
shall be effective unless:
(1)(a) It is sent by registered or certified mail, or
(b) at the time of mailing the insurer obtains a written receipt
from the United States Postal Service showing the name and address
of the insured stated in the policy;
(2) the insurer retains a duplicate copy of the notice of
cancellation or refusal to renew; and
(3) at the time of mailing the insurer endorses upon the
duplicate copy of the notice a certificate showing that the duplicate is
a copy of the notice that was sent to the insured (i) by registered or
certified mail, or (ii) by regular mail for which the postal receipt was
obtained.
(B) If the terms of the policy require the notice of cancellation or
refusal to renew to be given to any lienholder, then the insurer shall
also retain a duplicate copy of the lienholder's notice endorsed in the
manner required by this section. If the notices sent to the insured and
the lienholder are part of the same form, the insurer may retain a
single duplicate copy upon which is endorsed the appropriate
certificate for both the insured and the lienholder. The registered,
certified, or regular mail postal receipt and the duplicate copy of the
notice shall be retained by the insurer for at least one year from the
date of termination.
Section 56-2-340. No policy or contract of bodily injury or
property damage liability insurance that contains any representation
by an insurer to pay all reasonable medical expenses incurred for
bodily injury caused by accident to the insured or any relative or other
person coming within the provisions of the policy, shall be issued or
delivered by any insurer licensed in this State upon any motor vehicle
then principally garaged or principally used in this State, if the insurer
retains the right of subrogation to recover amounts paid on behalf of
an injured person under the provision of the policy from any third
party.
Section 56-2-350. (A) Any application for the original issuance
of a policy of insurance covering liability arising out of the
ownership, maintenance, or use of any motor vehicle as defined in
Section 56-2-180 shall have the following statement printed on or
attached to the first page of the application form, in boldface type:
READ YOUR POLICY. THE POLICY OF INSURANCE FOR
WHICH THIS APPLICATION IS BEING MADE, IF ISSUED, MAY
BE CANCELED WITHOUT CAUSE AT THE OPTION OF THE
INSURER AT ANY TIME IN THE FIRST 60 DAYS DURING
WHICH IT IS IN EFFECT AND AT ANY TIME THEREAFTER
FOR REASONS STATED IN THE POLICY.
(B) Any application for the original issuance of a policy of
insurance covering liability arising out of the ownership,
maintenance, or use of any motor vehicle defined in Section 56-2-370
that requires the insured to disclose information as to any previous
cancellation or refusal to renew shall also permit the insured to offer
or provide a full explanation of the reason for the cancellation or
refusal to renew.
(C) The notice required by this section shall be given by the
insurer to any applicant within ten days of the application in the event
the applicant is not provided a written copy of the application and the
coverage has been bound by such insurer.
(D) This section shall not apply to the renewal of any policy of
insurance.
Section 56-2-360. No policy or contract of bodily injury or
property damage liability insurance that contains any representation
by an insurer to pay all reasonable medical expenses incurred for
bodily injury caused by accident to the insured, relative, or any other
person coming within the provisions of the policy, shall be issued or
delivered by any insurer licensed in this State upon any motor vehicle
then principally garaged or principally used in this State. If the policy
provides for credit against the medical expense coverage for any other
medical expense insurance to which the injured person may be
entitled. Nothing in this section allows the injured person to collect
more than his actual medical expenses as a result of an accident from
any one or any combination of all policies providing motor vehicle
medical payment coverage applicable to the accident.
Section 56-2-370. (A) The following definitions shall apply to
this section:
`Cancellation' or `to cancel' means a termination of a policy during
the policy period.
`Insurer' means any insurance company, association, or exchange
licensed to transact motor vehicle insurance in this State.
`Policy of motor vehicle insurance' or `policy' means a policy or
contract for bodily injury or property damage liability insurance
issued or delivered in this State covering liability arising from the
ownership, maintenance, or use of any motor vehicle, insuring as the
named insured one individual or husband and wife who are residents
of the same household, and under which the insured vehicle
designated in the policy is either:
(a) A motor vehicle of a private passenger, station wagon, or
motorcycle type that is not used commercially, rented to others, or
used as a public or livery conveyance where the terms `public or
livery conveyance' do not include car pools, or
(b) Any other four-wheel motor vehicle which is not used in
the occupation, profession, or business, other than farming, of the
insured, or as a public or livery conveyance, or rented to others. The
term `policy of motor vehicle insurance' or `policy' does not include
(i) any policy issued through the South Carolina Automobile
Insurance Plan, (ii) any policy covering the operation of a garage,
sales agency, repair shop, service station, or public parking place, (iii)
any policy providing insurance only on an excess basis, or (iv) any
other contract providing insurance to the named insured even though
the contract may incidentally provide insurance on motor vehicles.
`Renewal' or `to renew' means (i) the issuance and delivery by an
insurer of a policy superseding at the end of the policy period a policy
previously issued and delivered by the same insurer, providing types
and limits of coverage at least equal to those contained in the policy
being superseded, or (ii) the issuance and delivery of a certificate or
notice extending the term of a policy beyond its policy period or term
with types and limits of coverage at least equal to those contained in
the policy. Each renewal shall conform with the requirements of the
manual rules and rating program currently filed by the insurer with
the Department of Insurance. Except as provided in subsection (K) of
this section, any policy with a policy period or term of less than
twelve months or any policy with no fixed expiration date shall for
the purpose of this section be considered as if written for successive
policy periods or terms of six months from the original effective date.
(B) This section shall apply only to that portion of a policy of
motor vehicle insurance providing the coverage required by motor
vehicle insurance providing the coverage required by Sections
56-2-290 and 56-2-310.
(C)(1) No insurer shall refuse to renew or refuse to write a motor
vehicle insurance policy solely because of any one or more of the
following factors:
(a) age;
(b) sex;
(c) residence;
(d) race;
(e) color;
(f) creed;
(g) national origin;
(h) ancestry;
(i) marital status;
(j) lawful occupation, including the military service;
(k) lack of driving experience, or number of years driving
experience;
(l) lack of supporting business or lack of the potential for
acquiring such business;
(m) one or more accidents or violations that occurred more
than thirty-six months immediately preceding the upcoming
anniversary date;
(n) one or more claims submitted under the uninsured
motorists coverage of the policy where the uninsured motorist is
known or there is physical evidence of contact;
(o) a single claim by a single insured submitted under the
medical payments coverage or medical expense coverage due to an
accident for which the insured was neither wholly nor partially at
fault;
(p) one or more claims submitted under the comprehensive
or towing coverages. However, nothing in this section shall prohibit
an insurer from modifying or refusing to renew the comprehensive or
towing coverages at the time of renewal of the policy on the basis of
one or more claims submitted by an insured under those coverages,
provided that the insurer shall mail or deliver to the insured at the
address shown in the policy written notice of any such change in
coverage at least forty-five days before the renewal; or
(q) two or fewer motor vehicle accidents within a three-year
period unless the accident was caused either wholly or partially by the
named insured, a resident of the same household, or other customary
operator.
(3) Nothing in this section shall require any insurer to renew a
policy for an insured where the insured's occupation has changed so
as to materially increase the risk. Nothing contained in subsections
(C)(1)(n), (1)(o) and (1)(p) of this subsection shall prohibit an insurer
from refusing to renew a policy where a claim is false or fraudulent.
Nothing in this section prohibits any insurer from setting rates in
accordance with relevant actuarial data.
(D) No insurer shall cancel a policy except for one or more of the
following reasons:
(1) The named insured or any other operator who either resides
in the same household or customarily operates a motor vehicle
insured under the policy has had his driver's license suspended or
revoked during the policy period or, if the policy is a renewal, during
its policy period or the ninety days immediately preceding the last
anniversary of the effective date.
(2) The named insured fails to pay the premium for the policy
or any installment of the premium, whether payable to the insurer or
its agent either directly or indirectly under any premium finance plan
or extension of credit.
(E) No cancellation or refusal to renew by an insurer of a policy
of motor vehicle insurance shall be effective unless the insurer
delivers or mails to the named insured at the address shown in the
policy a written notice of the cancellation or refusal to renew. The
notice shall:
(1) be in a type size authorized under Section 56-2-10;
(2) state the effective date of the cancellation or refusal to
renew. The effective date of cancellation or refusal to renew shall be
at least forty-five days after mailing or delivering to the insured the
notice of cancellation or notice of refusal to renew. However, when
the policy is being canceled or not renewed for the reason set forth in
item (2) of subsection (D) of this section the effective date may be
less than forty-five days but at least fifteen days from the date of
mailing or delivery;
(3) state the specific reason of the insurer for cancellation or
refusal to renew and provide for the notification required by Sections
56-2-20, 56-2-30, and 56-2-40(B). However, those notification
requirements shall not apply when the policy is being canceled or not
renewed for the reason set forth in item (2) of subsection (D) of this
section.
(4) inform the insured of his right to request in writing within
fifteen days of the receipt of the notice that the Director of the
Department of Insurance review the action of the insurer.
The notice of cancellation or refusal to renew shall contain the
following statement to inform the insured of such right:
IMPORTANT NOTICE
Within fifteen days of receiving this notice, you or your attorney
may request in writing that the Director of the Department of
Insurance review this action to determine whether the insurer has
complied with South Carolina laws in canceling or nonrenewing your
policy. If this insurer has failed to comply with the cancellation or
nonrenewal laws, the Director of the Department of Insurance may
require that your policy be reinstated. However, the Director of the
Department of Insurance is prohibited from making underwriting
judgments. If this insurer has complied with the cancellation or
nonrenewal laws, the Director of the Department of Insurance does
not have the authority to overturn this action;
(5) inform the insured of the possible availability of other
insurance which may be obtained through his agent, through another
insurer, or through the South Carolina Automobile Insurance Plan.
(6) if sent by mail, comply with the provisions of Section
56-2-330. Nothing in this subsection prohibits any insurer or agent
from including in the notice of cancellation or refusal to renew, any
additional disclosure statements required by state or federal laws, or
any additional information relating to the availability of other
insurance.
(F) Nothing in this section shall apply:
(1) if the insurer or its agent acting on behalf of the insurer has
manifested its willingness to renew by issuing or offering to issue a
renewal policy, certificate, or other evidence of renewal, or has
manifested its willingness to renew in writing to the insured. The
written manifestation shall include the name of a proposed insurer,
the expiration date of the policy, the type of insurance coverage, and
information regarding the estimated renewal premium. The insurer
shall retain a copy of each written manifestation for a period of at
least one year from the expiration date of any policy that is not
renewed;
(2) if the named insured, or his duly constituted
attorney-in-fact, has notified in writing the insurer or its agent that he
wishes the policy to be canceled or that he does not wish the policy to
be renewed, or if before the date of expiration he fails to accept the
offer of the insurer to renew the policy; or
(3) to any motor vehicle insurance policy which has been in
effect less than sixty days when the termination notice is mailed or
delivered to the insured, unless it is a renewal policy.
(G) There shall be no liability on the part of and no cause of
action of any nature shall arise against the Director of the Department
of Insurance or his subordinates; any insurer, its authorized
representatives, its agents, or its employees; or any person furnishing
to the insurer information as to reasons for cancellation or refusal to
renew, for any statement made by any of them in complying with this
section or for providing information pertaining to the cancellation or
refusal to renew. For the purposes of this section, no insurer shall be
required to furnish a notice of cancellation or refusal to renew to
anyone other than the named insured, any person designated by the
named insured, any other person to whom such notice is required to
be given by the terms of the policy and the director.
(H) Within fifteen days of receipt of the notice of cancellation or
refusal to renew or refusal to write, any insured or his attorney shall
be entitled to request in writing to the Director of the Department of
Insurance that he review the action of the insurer in canceling or
refusing to renew the policy of the insured. Upon receipt of the
request, the Director of the Department of Insurance shall promptly
begin a review to determine whether the insurer's cancellation or
refusal to renew complies with the requirements of this section and of
Section 56-2-330 if the notice was sent by mail. The policy shall
remain in full force and effect during the pendency of the review by
the Director of the Department of Insurance except where the
cancellation or refusal to renew is for the reason set forth in item (2)
of subsection (D) of this section, in which case the policy shall
terminate as of the effective date stated in the notice. Where the
Director of the Department of Insurance finds from the review that
the cancellation or refusal to renew or write has not complied with the
requirements of this section or of Section 56-2-330, he shall
immediately notify the insurer, the insured, and any other person to
whom such notice was required to be given by the terms of the policy
that the cancellation or refusal to renew or write is not effective.
Nothing in this section authorizes the Director of the Department of
Insurance to substitute his judgment as to underwriting for that of the
insurer. Where the Director of the Department of Insurance finds in
favor of the insured, the Department of Insurance in its discretion
may award the insured reasonable attorneys' fees. In the event of
wrongful refusal to renew or write, the Director of the Department of
Insurance may, in his discretion, assess such fines as he considers
appropriate and may revoke the license of the agent responsible for
the act of a wrongful adverse underwriting decision. However, in the
event of a wrongful refusal to renew or write based on age, sex,
residence, race, color, creed, national origin, ancestry, or marital
status, the Director of the Department of Insurance shall assess fines
of not less than three times the annual premium, or, in his discretion,
five thousand dollars, and shall revoke the license of the agent
responsible for the act of a wrongful adverse underwriting decision. (I) When the Director of Insurance finds in favor of the insurance
institution in a review of an adverse underwriting decision, the
insured may appeal the decision to an Administrative Law Judge.
(J) Each insurer shall maintain for at least one year, records of
cancellation and refusal to renew and copies of every notice or
statement referred to in subsection (E) of this section that it sends to
any of its insureds.
(K) The provisions of this section shall not apply to any insurer
that limits the issuance of policies of motor vehicle liability insurance
to one class or group of persons engaged in any one particular
profession, trade, occupation, or business. Nothing in this section
requires an insurer to renew a policy of motor vehicle insurance if the
insured does not conform to the occupational or membership
requirements of an insurer who limits its writings to an occupation or
membership of an organization. No insurer is required to renew a
policy if the insured becomes a nonresident of South Carolina.
(L) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, a motor
vehicle insurance policy with a policy period or term of five months
or less may expire at its expiration date when the insurer has
manifested in writing its willingness to renew the policy for at least
thirty days and has mailed the written manifestation to the insured at
least fifteen days before the expiration date of the policy. The written
manifestation shall include the name of the proposed insurer, the
expiration date of the policy, the type of insurance coverage, and the
estimated renewal premium. The insurer shall retain a copy of the
written manifestation for at least one year from the expiration date of
any policy that is not renewed.
Section 56-2-380. Upon the verified petition of an insurer, where
the petitioning insurer proposes to replace all or substantially all of its
policies in another insurer, the Department of Insurance may relieve
the insurer of the requirements of subsection (E) of Section 56-2-370
and of the mailing requirements of Section 56-2-330, provided the
insurer demonstrates to the satisfaction of the Department that (i) the
replacement policy is underwritten by an affiliate insurer under
common control with the petitioning insurer; (ii) the replacement
policy is substantially similar to the existing policy with the
petitioning insurer; (iii) the premium charged for the replacement
policy is no greater than that charged by the petitioning insurer for the
existing policy; and (iv) the replacement insurer is duly licensed to
transact the business of insurance in the State of South Carolina. The
replacement insurer shall retain a copy of any offer of replacement for
a period of one year from the expiration of any existing policy that is
not replaced. The Department of Insurance may further condition any
such relief to protect the best interests of the policyholder.
Section 56-2-390. No insurer or agent shall refuse to issue a
motor vehicle insurance policy as defined in Section 56-2-370 solely
because of any one or more of the following factors: the age, sex,
residence, race, color, creed, national origin, ancestry, marital status,
or lawful occupation, including the military service, of the person
seeking the coverage. Nothing in this section prohibits any insurer
from limiting the issuance of motor vehicle insurance policies to
those who are residents of this State nor does this section prohibit any
insurer from limiting the issuance of motor vehicle insurance policies
only to persons engaging in or who have engaged in a particular
profession or occupation, or who are members of a particular
religious sect. Nothing in this section prohibits any insurer from
setting rates in accordance with relevant actuarial data.
Section 56-2-400. Any insurer issuing motor vehicle insurance
policies as defined in Section 56-2-370, including those policies
assigned to any insurer by the South Carolina Automobile Insurance
Plan, shall provide the named insured with a statement defining his
rate classifications. This statement shall be provided at the time of
issuance or at the time of renewal if there has been a change in the
named insured's rate classification. The statement shall not be
considered a part of the policy and shall not be considered a warranty
or representation by the insurer to the insured.
The Department of Insurance shall approve the form of the
statement before its use.
Section 56-2-410. No insurer or agent shall refuse to issue or fail
to renew a policy of motor vehicle liability insurance solely because
of the age of the motor vehicle to be insured, provided the motor
vehicle is licensed.
Section 56-2-420. No policy or contract of bodily injury liability
insurance which contains any representation by an insurer to pay
medical expenses incurred for bodily injuries caused by an accident to
the insured or any relative or any other person coming under the
provisions of the policy, shall be issued or delivered by any insurer
licensed in this State upon any motor vehicle then principally garaged
or principally used in this State if the policy contains any provision
reducing the amount of damages covered under the liability of
uninsured motorist coverages of the policy by the amount of
payments made by the insurer under the medical expense or other
medical payments coverage of the policy.
Section 56-2-430. (A) Any schedule of rates, rate classifications,
or rating plans for motor vehicle insurance as defined in Section
56-2-370 filed with the Department of Insurance shall provide for an
appropriate reduction in premium charges for those insured persons
who are fifty-five years of age and older and who qualify as provided
in this subsection. Only those insured persons who have successfully
completed a motor vehicle accident prevention course approved by
the Department of Transportation shall qualify for a three-year period
after the completion of the course for the reduction in rates. No
reduction in premiums shall be allowed for a self-instructed course or
for any course that does not provide actual classroom instruction for a
minimum number of hours as determined by the Department of
Transportation.
(B) The Director of Insurance and the Department of
Transportation may promulgate regulations which will assist them in
carrying out the provisions of this section.
(C) All insurers writing motor vehicle insurance in South Carolina
as defined in Section 56-4-370 shall allow an appropriate reduction in
premium charges to all eligible persons subject to the provisions of
this section.
(D) Upon successfully completing the approved course, the
course's sponsor shall issue to each participant a certificate approved
by the Department of Transforation which shall be evidence of
qualification for the reduction in premium charges.
(E) Each participant shall take an approved course every three
years in order to continue to be eligible for the reduction in premium
charges.
(F) Nothing in this section prevents an insurer from offering
appropriately reduced rates based solely on age to an insured person
over the age of fifty-five years.
Section 56-2-450. The Department of Insurance shall prepare a
standard form whenever it believes that any form of policy or any
form of rider, endorsement, or other supplemental agreement or
provision, for use in connection with any contract of motor vehicle
insurance to be issued or delivered upon any motor vehicle
principally garaged or principally used in this State, is so extensively
used that a standard form is desirable. The Department of Insurance
shall file a copy of the standard form in its office and shall provide by
order that, at least thirty days after the order, the form shall become a
standard form for use by all insurers unless objection to the proposed
form is filed with the Department of Insurance within twenty days
after the entry of the order. The Department of Insurance shall mail a
copy of its order to all insurers licensed to transact the class of
insurance to which the form is applicable, and to all rate service and
advisory organizations representing those insurers.
Section 56-2-460. If any insurer or rate service organization
affected by an order entered pursuant to Section 56-2-450 files
objections to a proposed standard form within the time prescribed in
the Department of Insurance's order, the Department of Insurance
shall rescind the order and shall notify all insurers and rate service
organizations affected by the order that on a day specified in the
notice, which shall be at least thirty days from the date on which the
objections are received, it will hold a public hearing on the adoption
of the proposed form, and that at the hearing the Department of
Insurance may by order confirm or amend the proposed form and set
a day, at least thirty days after the entry of the order, when the
approved form shall become a standard form for use by all insurers.
The Department of Insurance may by like order refuse to adopt the
proposed form.
Section 56-2-470. Except as provided in Section 56-2-490, after
any standard form is adopted by the Department of Insurance, no
insurer shall use any form covering substantially the same provisions
contained in the standard form unless it is in the precise language of
the form filed and adopted by the Department of Insurance.
Section 56-2-480. The Department of Insurance may amend the
provisions of any standard form in the manner provided in this
chapter for the adoption of a new standard form.
Section 56-2-490. Whenever the Department of Insurance
believes there is no further necessity for requiring the use of any
standard form adopted under the provisions of this chapter, it may, by
order entered of record, withdraw the form, and thereafter its use shall
not be required.
Section 56-2-500. For the word `company' appearing in any
standard form, there may be substituted a more accurate descriptive
term for the type of insurer. Additional provisions, other than those
in the standard form, or coverages more favorable than those in the
standard form, may be used with a standard form by any insurer with
the approval of the Department of Insurance. However, the
Department of Insurance shall first determine that the more favorable
coverage or the additional provisions are not in conflict or
inconsistent with the standard form, the laws of this State or any
regulations adopted by the Department of Insurance. The approval
and determination by the Department of Insurance shall be evidenced
by an order entered of record.
Section 56-2-510. The Department of Insurance may establish
guidelines for the filing of simplified and readable motor vehicle
insurance policy forms that are acceptable for issuance.
Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 56-2-450 through
56-2-500, an insurer may issue a motor vehicle insurance policy that
deviates in language, but not in substance or coverage, from the
standard policy form provided for in Sections 56-2-450 through
56-2-500, if the deviating policy form is (i) in no respect less
favorable to the insured than the standard form, and (ii) approved by
the Department of Insurance before issuance.
Section 56-2-520. A copy of each order entered by the
Department of Insurance in accordance with the provisions of this
chapter shall be sent to every insurer and rate service organization
affected by the order.
Section 56-2-530. Whenever any insurer on a policy of liability
insurance discovers a breach of the terms or conditions of the
insurance contract by the insured and the insurer intends to rely on the
breach in defense of liability for any claim within the terms of the
policy, the insurer shall notify the claimant or the claimant's counsel
of record of its intention to rely on the breach as a defense.
Notification shall be given within twenty days after discovery by the
insurer or any of its agents of the breach or of the claim, whichever is
later. Whenever a nonwaiver of rights or similar agreement is
executed by the insurer and the insured, notice of the nonwaiver of
rights shall be given to the claimant or the claimant's counsel of
record within ten days after that agreement is executed. Failure to
serve the notice within ten days will result in a waiver of the defense
to the extent of the claim by operation of law.
Section 56-2-540. No insurance policy issued or delivered in this
State covering loss, expense, or liability arising out of the loss,
maintenance, or use of an aircraft shall act to exclude or deny
coverage because the aircraft is operated in violation of federal or
civil regulations or any state or local ordinance. This section does not
prohibit the use of specific exclusions or conditions in any policy that
relates to any of the following:
(1) certification of an aircraft in a stated category by the Federal
Aviation Administration;
(2) certification of a pilot in a stated category by the Federal
Aviation Administration;
(3) establishing requirements for pilot experience; or
(4) restricting the use of the aircraft to the purposes stated in the
policy.
Section 56-2-550. The Uninsured Motorists Fund, referred to in
this chapter as the fund, shall be under the supervision and control of
the Department of Insurance. Payments from the fund shall be made
on warrants of the Comptroller General issued on vouchers signed by
a person designated by the Department of Insurance. The purpose of
the fund is to reduce the cost of the insurance required by subsection
(A) of Section 56-2-310.
Section 56-2-560. The Department of Insurance shall distribute
monies annually from the Fund among the several insurers writing
motor vehicle bodily injury and property damage liability insurance
on motor vehicles registered in this State. Monies shall be distributed
in the proportion that each insurer's premium income for the basic
uninsured motorists limits coverage bears to the total premium
income for basic uninsured motorists limits coverage written in this
State during the preceding year. Premium income shall be gross
premiums less cancellation and return premiums for coverage
required by subsection (A) of Section 56-2-310. Only insurers that
maintain records satisfactory to the Department of Insurance shall
receive any payment from the Fund. Records is considered
satisfactory if they adequately disclose the loss experience for the
coverage."
SECTION 2. Title 56 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
"CHAPTER 4
Motor Vehicles;
Titling, Registration, and Licensure
Section 56-4-10. The following words and phrases when used in
this title shall, for the purpose of this title, have the meanings
respectively ascribed to them in this section except in those instances
where the context clearly indicates a different meaning:
`Antique motor vehicle' means every motor vehicle, as defined in
this section, which was actually manufactured or designated by the
manufacturer as a model manufactured in a calendar year not less
than twenty-five years before to January 1 of each calendar year and
is owned solely as a collector's item.
`Automobile or watercraft transporters' means any tractor truck,
lowboy, vehicle, or combination, including vehicles or combinations
which transport motor vehicles or watercraft on their power unit,
designed and used exclusively for the transportation of motor vehicles
or watercraft.
`Bicycle' means a device propelled solely by human power, having
pedals, two or more wheels, and a seat height of more than
twenty-five inches from the ground when adjusted to its maximum
height. A bicycle shall be a vehicle while operated on the highway.
`Business district' means the territory contiguous to a highway
where seventy-five percent or more of the property contiguous to a
highway, on either side of the highway, for a distance of three
hundred feet or more along the highway, is occupied by land and
buildings actually in use for business purposes.
`Camping trailer' means every vehicle which has collapsible sides
and contains sleeping quarters but may or may not contain bathing
and cooking facilities and is designed to be drawn by a motor vehicle.
`Cancel' or `cancellation' means that the document or privilege
canceled has been annulled or terminated because of some error,
defect, or ineligibility, but the cancellation is without prejudice and
reapplication may be made at any time after cancellation.
`Chauffeur' means every person employed for the principal purpose
of driving a motor vehicle and every person who drives a motor
vehicle while in use as a public or common carrier of persons or
property.
`Crosswalk' means that part of a roadway at an intersection
included within the connections of the lateral lines of the sidewalks
on opposite sides of the highway measured from the curbs or, in the
absence of curbs, from the edges of the traversable roadway; or any
portion of a roadway at an intersection or elsewhere distinctly
indicated for pedestrian crossing by lines or other markings on the
surface.
`Decal' means a device to be attached to a license plate that
validates the license plate for a predetermined registration period.
`Department' means the Department of Highways and Public
Transportation.
`Director' means the Executive Director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation.
`Driver's license' means a license, including a commercial driver's
license as defined in the Commercial Driver's License Act, issued
under the laws of the State authorizing the operation of a motor
vehicle.
`Essential parts' means all integral parts and body parts, the
removal, alteration, or substitution of which will tend to conceal the
identity of a vehicle.
'Executive Director' means the Executive Director of the
Department of Revenue.
`Farm tractor' means every motor vehicle designed and used as a
farm, agricultural, or horticultural implement for drawing plows,
mowing machines, and other farm, agricultural, or horticultural
machinery and implements including self-propelled mowers designed
and used for mowing lawns.
`Federal safety requirements' means applicable provisions of the
National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1966, as amended
(15 U.S.C. Section 1381 et seq.) and all administrative regulations
and policies adopted pursuant thereto.
`Financial responsibility' means the ability to respond in damages
for liability thereafter incurred arising out of the ownership,
maintenance, use, or operation of a motor vehicle, in the amounts
provided for in Section 56-4-940.
`Foreign market vehicle' means a motor vehicle originally
manufactured outside the United States, which was not manufactured
in accordance with the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act
as amended (15 U.S.C. Section 1381 et seq.) and the policies and
regulations adopted pursuant to that act, and for which a South
Carolina title or registration is sought.
`Foreign vehicle' means every motor vehicle, trailer, or semitrailer
which is brought into the State otherwise than in the ordinary course
of business by or through a manufacturer or dealer and which has not
been registered in the State.
`Golf Cart' means a self-propelled vehicle which is designed to
transport persons playing golf and their equipment on a golf course.
`Gross weight' means the aggregate weight of a vehicle or
combination of vehicles and the load thereon.
`Highway' means the entire width between the boundary lines of
every way or place open to the use of the public for purposes of
vehicular travel in the State, including the streets and alleys, and, for
law enforcement purposes, the entire width between the boundary
lines of all private roads or private streets which have been designated
specifically `highways' by an ordinance adopted by the governing
body of the county, city, or town in which the private roads or streets
are located.
`Intersection' means (i) the area embraced within the
prolongation or connection of the lateral curblines or, if none, then
the lateral boundary lines of the roadways of two highways which
join one another at, or approximately at, right angles, or the area
within which vehicles traveling on different highways joining at any
other angle may come in conflict; or (ii) where a highway includes
two roadways thirty feet or more apart, then every crossing of each
roadway of the divided highway by an intersecting highway must be
regarded as a separate intersection, in the event such intersecting
highway also includes two roadways thirty feet or more apart, then
every crossing of two roadways of the highways must be regarded as
a separate intersection; or (iii) for purposes only of authorizing
installation of traffic-control devices, every crossing of a highway or
street at grade by a pedestrian crosswalk.
`Law enforcement officer' means any officer authorized to direct or
regulate traffic or to make arrests for violations of this title or local
ordinances authorized by law.
`License plate' means a device containing letters, numerals, or a
combination of both, attached to a motor vehicle, trailer, or
semitrailer to indicate that the vehicle is properly registered with the
Division of Motor Vehicles of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation.
`Light' means a device for producing illumination or the
illumination produced by the device.
`Mobile home' means a structure, transportable in one or more
sections, which in the traveling mode is eight body feet or more in
width or forty body feet or more in length, or, when erected on site, is
three hundred twenty or more square feet, and which is built on a
permanent chassis and designed to be used as a dwelling with or
without a permanent foundation when connected to the required
utilities, and includes the plumbing, heating, air conditioning, and
electrical systems contained therein.
`Moped' means a bicycle-like device with pedals and a helper
motor which is rated at no more than two brake horsepower and
which produces speeds up to a maximum of thirty miles per hour. A
moped shall be a vehicle while operated on a highway.
`Motor home' means every private motor vehicle with a normal
seating capacity of not more than ten persons, including the driver,
designed primarily for use as living quarters for human beings.
`Motor vehicle' means every vehicle as defined in this section
which is self-propelled or designed for self-propulsion except as
otherwise provided in this title. Any structure designed, used, or
maintained primarily to be loaded on or affixed to a motor vehicle to
provide a mobile dwelling, sleeping place, office, or commercial
space is considered a part of a motor vehicle. For the purposes of this
title, any device herein defined as a bicycle or a moped is considered
not to be a motor vehicle.
`Motorcycle' means every motor vehicle designed to travel on not
more than three wheels in contact with the ground, except any vehicle
included within the term `farm tractor' or `moped' as defined in this
section.
`Nonresident' means every person who is not domiciled in the
State, except: (i) any foreign corporation which is authorized to do
business in the State by the Department of Insurance shall be a
resident of the State for the purpose of this title; in the case of
corporations incorporated in the State but doing business outside the
State, only such principal place of business or branches located within
the State shall be dealt with as residents of the State; (ii) a person who
becomes engaged in a gainful occupation in the State for a period
exceeding sixty days shall be a resident for the purposes of this title;
(iii) a person, other than a nonresident student as defined in this
section, who has actually resided in the State for a period of six
months, whether employed or not, or who has registered a motor
vehicle, listing an address in the State in the application for
registration is considered a resident for the purposes of this title,
except for the purposes of the Commercial Driver's License Act.
`Nonresident student' means every nonresident person who is
enrolled as a full-time student in an accredited institution of learning
in the State and who is not gainfully employed.
`Operation or use for rent or for hire, for the transportation of
passengers, or as a property carrier for compensation', and `business
of transporting persons or property' mean any owner or operator of
any motor vehicle, trailer, or semitrailer operating over the highways
in the State who accepts or receives compensation for the service,
directly or indirectly; but these terms do not mean a `truck lessor' as
defined in this section.
`Operator' or `driver' means every person who either (i) drives or
(ii) is exercising control over or steering a vehicle being towed by a
motor vehicle.
`Owner' means a person who holds the legal title to a vehicle or, if
a vehicle is the subject of an agreement for its conditional sale or
lease with the right of purchase on performance of the conditions
stated in the agreement and with an immediate right of possession
vested in the conditional vendee or lessee or, if a mortgagor of a
vehicle is entitled to possession, then the conditional vendee or lessee
or mortgagor shall be the owner for the purpose of this title; except
that in all such instances when the rent paid by the lessee includes
charges for services of any nature or when the lease does not provide
that title shall pass to the lessee on payment of the rent stipulated, the
lessor shall be regarded as the owner of the vehicle, and the vehicle
shall be subject to such requirements of compensation. A `truck
lessor' as defined in this section shall be regarded as the owner, and
his vehicles shall be subject to such requirements of this title as are
applicable to vehicles of private carriers.
`Passenger car' means every motor vehicle other than a motorcycle
designed and used primarily for the transportation of no more than ten
persons including the driver.
`Pickup or panel truck' means every motor vehicle designed for the
transportation of property and having a registered gross weight of
seven thousand five hundred pounds or less.
`Private road or driveway' means every way in private ownership
and used for vehicular travel by the owner and those having express
or implied permission from the owner, but not by other persons.
`Reconstructed vehicle' means every vehicle of a type required to
be registered under this title materially altered from its original
construction by the removal, addition, or substitution of new or used
essential parts.
`Residence district' means the territory contiguous to a highway,
not comprising a business district, where seventy-five percent or more
of the property contiguous to such highway, on either side of the
highway, for a distance of three hundred feet or more along the
highway is occupied by dwellings and land improved for dwelling
purposes, or by dwellings, land improved for dwelling purposes, and
land or buildings in use for business purposes.
`Revoke' or `revocation' means that the document or privilege
revoked is not subject to renewal or restoration except through
reapplication after the expiration of the period of revocation.
`Roadway' means that portion of a highway improved, designed, or
ordinarily used for vehicular travel, exclusive of the shoulder. A
highway may include two or more roadways if divided by a physical
barrier or barriers or an unpaved area.
`Safety zone' means the area officially set apart within a roadway
for the exclusive use of pedestrians and which is protected or is so
marked or indicated by plainly visible signs.
`School bus' means any motor vehicle, other than a station wagon,
automobile, truck, or commercial bus, which is: (i) designed and used
primarily for the transportation of pupils to and from public, private,
or parochial schools, or used for the transportation of the mentally or
physically handicapped to and from a sheltered workshop; and (ii)
painted yellow and bears the words `School Bus' in black letters of a
specified size on front and rear; and (iii) is equipped with warning
devices as prescribed by law.
`Semitrailer' means every vehicle of the trailer type so designed
and used in conjunction with a motor vehicle that some part of its
own weight and that of its own load rests on or is carried by another
vehicle.
`Shoulder' means that part of a highway between the portion
regularly travelled by vehicular traffic and the lateral curbline or
ditch.
`Snowmobile' means a self-propelled vehicle designed to travel on
snow or ice, steered by skis or runners, and supported in whole or in
part by one or more skis, belts, or cleats.
`Specially constructed vehicle' means any vehicle which was not
originally constructed under a distinctive name, make, model, or type
by a generally recognized manufacturer of vehicles and not a
reconstructed vehicle as herein defined.
`Stinger-steered automobile or watercraft transporter' means an
automobile or watercraft transporter configured as a semitrailer
combination wherein the fifty wheel is located on a drop frame
behind and below the rearmost axle of the power unit.
`Superintendent' means the division head of the State Highway
Patrol of the Department of Public Safety.
`Suspend' or `suspension' means that the document or privilege
suspended has been temporarily withdrawn, but may be reinstated
following the period of suspension unless it has expired before the
end of the period of suspension.
`Towing and recovery operator' means a person engaged in the
business of (i) removing disabled vehicles, parts of vehicles, their
cargoes, and other objects to facilities for repair or safekeeping, and
(ii) restoring to the highway or other location where they either can be
operated or removed to other locations for repair or safekeeping
vehicles which have come to rest in places where they cannot be
operated.
`Tractor truck' means every motor vehicle designed and used
primarily for drawing other vehicles and not so constructed as to carry
a load other than a part of the load and weight of the vehicle attached
thereto.
`Traffic infraction' means a violation of law punishable as provided
in Section 56-6-20, which is neither a felony nor a misdemeanor.
`Traffic lane' or `land' means that portion of a roadway designed or
designated to accommodate the forward movement of a single line of
vehicles.
`Trailer' means every vehicle without motive power designed for
carrying property or passengers wholly on its own structure and for
being drawn by a motor vehicle, including mobile homes.
`Truck' means every motor vehicle designed to transport property
on its own structure independent of any other vehicle and having a
registered gross weight in excess of seven thousand five hundred
pounds.
`Truck lessor' means a person who holds the legal title to any motor
vehicle, trailer, or semitrailer which is the subject of a bona fide
written lease for a term of one year or more to another person,
provided that: (i) neither the lessor nor the lessee is a common carrier
by motor vehicle or restricted common carrier by motor vehicle or
contract carrier by motor vehicle; (ii) the leased motor vehicle, trailer,
or semitrailer is used exclusively for the transportation of property of
the lessee; (iii) the lessor is not employed in any capacity by the
lessee; (iv) the operator of the leased motor vehicle is a bona fide
employee of the lessee and is not employed in any capacity by the
lessor; and (v) a true copy of the lease, verified by affidavit of the
lessor, is filed with the executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation.
`Vehicle' means every device in, on, or by which any person or
property is or may be transported or drawn on a highway, except
devices moved by human power or used exclusively on stationary
rails or tracks. Bicycles and mopeds shall be vehicles while operated
on a highway.
`Wheel chair or wheel chair conveyance' means a chair or seat
equipped with wheels, typically used to provide mobility for persons
who, by reason of physical disability, are otherwise unable to move
about as pedestrians. The term includes both three-wheeled and
four-wheeled devices. A self-propelled wheel chair or self-propelled
wheel chair conveyance shall not be considered a motor vehicle.
Section 56-4-20. It shall be unlawful for any person to violate any
of the provisions of this title or any regulation adopted pursuant to
this title. Unless otherwise stated, these violations shall constitute
traffic infractions punishable by a fine of not more than one hundred
dollars.
Section 56-4-30. (A) This chapter shall not apply to any person
who has registered in his name in the State more than twenty motor
vehicles, nor to any person operating more than twenty vehicles
whether as owner or as lessee, if the person seeking exemption under
this section obtains from the executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation a certificate of self-insurance as provided in
subsection (B) of this section.
(B) The executive director of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation may, in his discretion and on the application of such a
person, issue a certificate of self-insurance when he is reasonably
satisfied (i) that the person has and will continue to have financial
ability to respond to a judgment as provided in this chapter, obtained
against the person, arising out of the ownership, maintenance, use, or
operation of his motor vehicles and (ii) that the certificate provides
for protection against the uninsured motorist to the extent required by
Section 56-2-120. However, protection against the uninsured
motorist required under this section shall not exceed the financial
requirements of Section 56-4-940 and shall be secondary coverage to
any other valid and collectible insurance providing the same
protection which is available to any person otherwise entitled to assert
a claim to such protection by virtue of this section.
(C) On due notice and hearing, the executive director of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation may, in his discretion and on
reasonable grounds, cancel a certificate of self-insurance.
Section 56-4-40. The driver of any vehicle involved in any
accident resulting in injury to or death of any person, or some person
acting for him, shall immediately give notice of the accident to a law
enforcement officer. A willful failure to make the report required in
this section shall constitute a misdemeanor.
Section 56-4-50. Every Circuit Court or the clerk thereof shall
keep a full record of every case in which:
(1) A person is charged with (i) a violation of any law of the State
pertaining to the operator or operation of a motor vehicle; (ii) a
violation of any ordinance of any county, city, or town pertaining to
the operator or operation of any motor vehicle except parking
regulations; (iii) any theft of a motor vehicle or unauthorized use
thereof or theft of any part attached to it;
(2) A person is charged with manslaughter or any other felony in
the Department of Insurance of which a motor vehicle was used;
(3) There is rendered a judgment for damages, the rendering and
nonpayment of which under the terms of this title require the
executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation to
suspend the driver's license and registration in the name of the
judgement debtor.
Section 56-4-60. For the purpose of enforcing the Commercial
Driver's License Act, in any case in which a person is charged with a
violation of any law of the State or of any ordinance of any county,
city, or town pertaining to the operator or operation of a motor
vehicle, except parking violations, and the warrant or summons
indicates that the motor vehicle so operated was a commercial motor
vehicle as defined in the Commercial Driver's License Act, or that it
was a commercial motor vehicle carrying hazardous materials as
defined by the Commercial Driver's License Act, the court hearing
such case shall make a finding, which shall be noted on the record, as
to whether such vehicle was in fact a commercial motor vehicle and,
if applicable, whether such vehicle was carrying hazardous materials.
If the offense charged is one in which operation of a commercial
motor vehicle is an element of the offense, the conviction of the
offense shall constitute the court's finding that the vehicle was a
commercial motor vehicle, but a separate finding shall be made as to
whether such vehicle was carrying hazardous materials, if applicable.
If the offense charged is one in which operation of a commercial
motor vehicle is not an element of the offense, then the court, after
convicting the person charged, shall make a separate finding as to
whether the vehicle was a commercial motor vehicle and, if
applicable, whether it was carrying hazardous materials. The separate
findings required by this section shall be noted on the conviction
record, and the following procedures shall apply to such separate
findings:
(1) If the person charged prepays fines and costs pursuant to the
law of this State, he is considered to have admitted that such motor
vehicle was a commercial motor vehicle and, if applicable, that it
carried hazardous materials at the time of the violation, as indicated
on the warrant or summons, and such admission or admissions shall
be noted on the conviction record as the court's finding.
(2) In all other cases, the State shall have the burden of proving
by a preponderance of the evidence that the vehicle was a commercial
motor vehicle and, if applicable, that it carried hazardous materials.
Section 56-4-70. (A) In the event (i) a person is convicted of a
charge described in item (1) or (2) of Sections 56-4-50 or 56-4-60 or
(ii) a person fails or refuses to pay any fine, costs, forfeiture,
restitution, or penalty, or any installment thereof, imposed in any
traffic case, or (iii) a person forfeits bail or collateral or other deposit
to secure the defendant's appearance on the charges, unless the
conviction has been set aside or the forfeiture vacated, or (iv) a court
assigns a defendant to a driver education program or alcohol
treatment or rehabilitation program, or both such programs, as
provided by the laws of this State, or (v) compliance with the court's
probation order is accepted by the court in lieu of a conviction under
the laws of this State or the requirements specified by the laws of this
State as provided, or (vi) there is rendered a judgement for damages
against a person as described in Section 56-4-50, every clerk of a
Circuit Court shall forward an abstract of the record to the executive
director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation within fifteen
days, or in the case of civil judgments, on the request of the judgment
creditor or his attorney, thirty days after the conviction, forfeiture,
assignment, acceptance, or judgment has become final without appeal
or has become final by affirmance on appeal.
(B) Abstract data of conviction may be furnished to the executive
director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation by electronic
means provided that the content of the abstract and the certification
complies with the requirements of Section 56-4-100. In cases where
the abstract data is furnished by electronic means, the paper abstract
shall not be required to be forwarded to the executive director of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation. The executive director of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation shall develop a method to
ensure that all data is received accurately. The executive director of
the Department of Revenue and Taxation, with the approval of the
Governor, may destroy the record of any conviction, forfeiture,
assignment, acceptance, or judgment, when three years has elapsed
from the date thereof, except records of conviction or forfeiture on
charges of reckless driving and speeding, which records may be
destroyed when five years has elapsed from the date thereof, and
further excepting those records that alone, or in connection with other
records, will require suspension or revocation or disqualification of a
license or registration under any applicable provisions of this title.
Section 56-4-80. Every law enforcement officer who has arrested
any person for (i) driving while under the influence of intoxicants or
drugs in violation of the laws of this State or a parallel local
ordinance, (ii) the state statutory provisions against reckless driving
or a parallel local ordinance, (iii) the state statutory provisions against
failure to stop at the scene of an accident or a parallel local ordinance
or (iv) the state statutory provisions against driving without a license
or while his license has been suspended or revoked or a parallel local
ordinance or while he is disqualified in violation of the Commercial
Vehicle Driver's License Act, shall request from the department an
abstract or transcript of the person's drivers conviction record on file
at the Division of Motor Vehicles of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation shall furnish the abstract or transcript to the solicitor for the
circuit in which the case will be heard, to be held available for the
court in which the person is to be tried for the violation or charge.
However, the failure of the solicitor to receive the abstract or
transcript in any case does not constitute grounds for the granting of a
continuance of the case.
Section 56-4-90. If requested by the judge trying the case,
solicitors for the State and all county, city, and town attorneys whose
general duties include the prosecution of offenses which are
reportable by the courts to the Division of Motor Vehicles of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation under Section 56-4-70, shall
appear on behalf of the State or the locality in any contested criminal
case wherein a resulting conviction is required to be reported to the
Division of Motor Vehicles of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation under Section 56-4-70.
The failure of the solicitor or the attorney to appear, in no case,
affects the validity of a conviction.
Section 56-4-100. Abstracts required by Section 56-4-70 must be
made on forms prepared by or approved by the Division of Motor
Vehicles of the Department of Revenue and Taxation. They shall
include all information as to the parties to the case. In the event the
abstract relates to a person convicted or found not innocent of a
charge described in item (1) or (2) of Section 56-4-50, it shall include
the nature and date of the offense, the date of conviction or finding of
not innocent, the plea, the judgment, the penalty or forfeiture as the
case may be, and the driver's license number, if any, the month, day,
and year of birth, the sex, and the residence address or whereabouts of
the defendant. Every such abstract must be certified by the general
district court or juvenile and domestic relations district court judge or
clerk of the general district court or juvenile and domestic relations
district court or clerk of a circuit court as a true abstract of the records
of the court as it relates to the charge, judgment, and penalty.
Abstracts transmitted to the department by electronic means may
be certified by machine imprint of the name of the circuit court or
family court judge or the clerk's name of the court that furnished the
record as a true abstract of the records of the court as it relates to the
charge, judgment, and penalty.
Section 56-4-110. The executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation shall forthwith revoke, and not thereafter
reissue for one year, except as provided in the laws of this State, the
driver's license, registration card, and license plates of a resident or
nonresident on receiving a record of his conviction or a record of his
having been found guilty in the case of a juvenile of any of the
following crimes, committed in violation of either a state law or a
valid county, city, or town ordinance paralleling and substantially
conforming to a like state law and to all changes and amendments of
it:
(1) voluntary or involuntary manslaughter resulting from the
driving of a motor vehicle;
(2) driving a motor vehicle after suspension or revocation of
driver's license, or violation of a valid local ordinance paralleling and
substantially conforming to the state statutory law prohibiting the
driving of a motor vehicle after suspension or revocation of driver's
license, or violation of the state statutory law prohibiting the driving
of a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol or drugs;
(3) perjury or the making of a false affidavit to the Division of
Motor Vehicles of the Department of Revenue and Taxation under
this chapter or any other law of the State requiring the registration of
motor vehicles or regulating their operation on the highways;
(4) the making of a false statement to the Division of Motor
Vehicles of the Department of Revenue and Taxation on any
application for a driver's license;
(5) any crime punishable as a felony under the motor vehicle laws
of the State or any other felony in the Department of Insurance of
which a motor vehicle is used; or
(6) failure to stop and disclose his identity at the scene of the
accident, on the part of a driver of a motor vehicle involved in an
accident resulting in the death of or injury to another person.
Section 56-4-120. When a person is convicted, or found not
innocent in the case of a juvenile, of any theft of a motor vehicle or its
unauthorized use, or the theft of any of its parts, whether the motor
vehicle is used in the Department of Insurance of a theft or not, then
in addition to any penalties provided by law, the driver's license of the
person must be suspended by the court for not less than sixty days nor
more than six months. In case of conviction the court shall order the
surrender of the license to the court where it must be disposed of in
accordance with Section 56-4-200. If the conviction is a second or
subsequent offense, the license must be suspended at least sixty days
and not more than one year, and the court shall transmit the license to
the Division of Motor Vehicles of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation as provided by law. If the person has not obtained a license
as required by this article, or is a nonresident, the court shall direct in
the judgment of conviction that the person shall not drive a motor
vehicle in the State for a period to coincide with the judgment of the
court. This section shall not apply in the event that the theft is one in
which the revocation of the license of a person is required under the
provisions of Section 56-4-110(5). Section 56-4-330 shall not apply
to any person whose license is suspended under this section.
Section 56-4-130. (A) The executive director of the Department
of Revenue and Taxation shall forthwith revoke and not thereafter
reissue for three years the driver's license of a person on receiving a
record of the conviction of a person who is adjudged to be a second
offender in violation of the provisions of law pertaining to driving a
commercial motor vehicle under the influence of drugs or intoxicants,
provided by the laws of this State pertaining to driving under the
influence of drugs or intoxicants or of the provisions of law pertaining
to driving while the driver's license has been forfeited for a conviction
provided by the laws of this State, or on receiving a record of
conviction as a second offender for a violation of a federal law or a
law of any other state or a valid ordinance of a county, city, or town
of the State or of any other state similar to this State's statutory
provisions pertaining to driving a commercial motor vehicle under the
influence of drugs or intoxicants, or of the laws provided by this
State, if the subsequent violation adjudication as a second offender is
within ten years from the prior violation. However, if the executive
director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation has received a
copy of a court order as provided by the laws of this State, he shall
proceed as provided in the order of the court.
(B) The executive director of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation shall forthwith revoke and not thereafter reissue the driver's
license of a person after receiving a record of the conviction of a
person adjudged to be a third offender within a period of ten years in
violation of the provisions of law pertaining to driving a commercial
motor vehicle under the influence of drugs or intoxicants, or as
provided for in the laws of this State pertaining to driving under the
influence of drugs or intoxicants or after receiving a record of
conviction as a third offender within a period of ten years for a
violation of federal law or a law of any other state or a valid
ordinance of a county, city, or town of the State or of any other state
similar to this State's statutory provisions pertaining to driving a
commercial motor vehicle under the influence of drugs or intoxicants,
or as provided for in the laws of this State. At the expiration of ten
years from the date of the revocation hereunder, the person may
petition the Circuit Court in the county or city in which he resides,
and for good cause shown, his license may in the discretion of the
court be restored on such conditions as the court may prescribe.
(C) A person who has had his driver's license revoked in
accordance with subsection (B) of this section, after the expiration of
five years from the date of the last conviction, may petition the circuit
court of his residence for restoration of his privilege to drive a motor
vehicle in the State. On such petition, and for good cause shown, the
court, in its discretion, may restore to the person the privilege to drive
a motor vehicle in the State on whatever conditions the court may
prescribe, subject to the provisions of law relating to issuance of
driver's licenses, if the court is satisfied from the evidence presented
that: (i) at the time of his previous convictions, the petitioner was
addicted to or psychologically dependent on the use of alcohol or
other drugs; (ii) at the time of the hearing on the petition, he is no
longer addicted to or psychologically dependent on the use of alcohol
or other drugs; and (iii) the defendant does not constitute a threat to
the safety and welfare of himself or others with regard to the driving
of a motor vehicle.
Section 56-4-140. In addition to the penalties for reckless driving
prescribed by law, any court may suspend a license issued to a
convicted person provided under the laws of this State of this chapter
for not less than ten days nor more than six months and the court shall
require the convicted person to surrender his license so suspended to
the court where it will be disposed of in accordance with Section
56-4-200.
If a person convicted has not obtained the license required by this
article, or is a nonresident, the court may direct in the judgment of
conviction that he shall not, for a period of not less than ten days or
more than six months as may be prescribed in the judgment, drive a
motor vehicle in the State. The court or the clerk of court shall
transmit the license to the executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation along with the report of the conviction
required to be sent to the Division of Motor Vehicles of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation.
Section 56-4-150. When a person is convicted of reckless driving
under the laws of this State, in addition to penalties provided by law,
the driver's license of the person may be suspended by the court for
not less than sixty days nor more than six months. In case of
conviction the court shall order the surrender of the license to the
court where it must be disposed of in accordance with the provisions
of Section 56-4-200. Where the conviction is a second conviction
which would require revocation under the provisions of Section
56-4-110, the court shall suspend the driver's license of the person
and transmit it to the Division of Motor Vehicles of the Department
of Revenue and Taxation as provided by law. If the person convicted
has not obtained a license required by this chapter or is a nonresident,
the court shall direct in the judgment of conviction that the person
may not drive a motor vehicle in the State for a period of not less than
sixty days nor more than six months.
Section 56-4-160. If a person is convicted of a fourth offense as
provided in laws of this State, or a similar ordinance of a county, city,
or town in South Carolina, the court in which the conviction is held
shall revoke his driver's license for five years.
Section 56-4-170. (A) A person, whether licensed by South
Carolina or not, who drives a motor vehicle on the highways in the
State, shall thereby, as a condition of the driving, consent to pay all
lawful fines, court costs, forfeitures, restitution, and penalties
assessed against him for violations of the motor vehicle laws of the
State, or of a county, city, or town. For the purpose of this section,
the fines and costs is considered to include any fee assessed by the
court under the provisions of the laws of this State for entry by a
person convicted of a violation of the laws of this State into an
alcohol safety action program.
(B) In addition to any penalty provided by law, when a person is
convicted of a violation of this title, or any other law of the State
pertaining to the driver or driving of a motor vehicle or of a valid
local ordinance adopted pursuant to the laws of this State, and fails or
refuses to provide for immediate payment in full of a fine, costs,
forfeitures, restitution, or penalty lawfully assessed against him, or
fails to make deferred payments or installment payments as ordered
by the court, the executive director of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation or the court in accordance with procedures established by
the department, after receipt of a record of the failure, shall forthwith
suspend the person's privilege to drive a motor vehicle on the
highways of the State. The driver's license of the person continues
suspended until the fine, costs, forfeiture, restitution, or penalty has
been paid in full. If the person has not obtained a license as required
by this chapter, or is a nonresident, the court may direct in the
judgment of conviction that the person shall not drive a motor vehicle
in this State for a period to coincide with the nonpayment of the
amounts due.
(C) Before transmitting to the executive director of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation a record of the person's failure
or refusal to pay a fine, costs, forfeiture, restitution, or penalty or a
failure to comply with an order issued pursuant to the laws of this
State, the clerk of the court that convicted the person shall send or
provide the person written notice that his license or privilege to drove
a motor vehicle in South Carolina will be suspended if the fine and
costs are not paid within ten days. A record of the person's failure or
refusal must be sent to the executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation if the fine, costs, forfeiture, restitution, or
penalty remains unpaid at the termination of the ten-day period
specified in the notice or on the failure to make a scheduled payment.
(D) If the person pays the amounts assessed against him
subsequent to the time the license has been transmitted to the
department, and his license is not under suspension or revocation for
any other lawful reason, except pursuant to this section, then the
executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation shall
return the license to the person on presentation of the official report of
the court evidencing the payment of the fine, costs, forfeiture,
restitution, or penalty.
(E) if the court has suspended or revoked the driver's license for
any lawful reason other than this section, or the conviction is one for
which revocation or suspension is required under any provision of
this title, except for this section, then the suspension permitted under
this section is in addition to, and run consecutively with, the
revocation or suspension. The period of suspension is calculated
from the date of the assessment of the fine, costs, forfeiture,
restitution, or penalty until the date it has been paid.
Section 56-4-180. When a person is convicted of reckless driving
as provided under the laws of this State and the reckless driving was
the cause of the death of a person, then in addition to any other
penalties provided by law, the driver's license of the person may be
suspended by the court for not more than twelve months. In case of
conviction the court may order the surrender of the license to the
court where it must be disposed of in accordance with the provisions
of Section 56-4-200. If the person convicted has not obtained a
license required by this chapter or is a nonresident, the court may
direct in the judgment of conviction that the person may not drive a
motor vehicle in the State for a period not to exceed twelve months.
The fact of the suspension is not admissible as evidence in any related
civil proceeding.
Section 56-4-190. When the driver of a motor vehicle is
convicted of a violation provided by the laws of this State, or of any
of the applicable speed limits prescribed in the laws of this State and
the violation was committed while driving a motor vehicle, tractor
truck, trailer, or semitrailer, transporting explosives or any
inflammable gas or liquid, in addition to any penalty imposed, the
court may suspend the driver's license of the convicted person for
ninety days from the date of conviction.
Section 56-4-200. In any case in which the accused is convicted
of an offense, on the conviction of which the law requires or permits
revocation or suspension of the driver's license of the person
convicted, the court shall order the surrender of the license, which
remains in the custody of the court during the period of revocation or
suspension if the period does not exceed thirty days, or (i) if the
period exceeds thirty days, until the time allowed by law for appeal
has elapsed, when it must be forwarded to the executive director of
the Department of Revenue and Taxation, or (ii) until an appeal is
effected and proper bond posted, at which time it must be returned to
the accused.
However, when the time of suspension or revocation coincides or
approximately coincides with the appeal time, the court may retain
the license and return it to the accused on the expiration of the
suspension or revocation.
Sections 56-4-210. The Division of Motor Vehicles of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation shall revoke a driver's license
whenever the person to whom the license has been issued makes or
permits to be made an unlawful use of it or permits the use of it by a
person not entitled to it or fails or refuses to pay within the time
prescribed by law, any lawful taxes due the State.
Section 56-4-220. The executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation on receipt of notice that a person has been
legally adjudged to be incompetent, or that a person discharged from
an institution operated or licensed by the Department of Mental
Health or Department of Mental Retardation, in the opinion of the
authorities of the institution, is not competent because of mental
illness, mental retardation, inebriety, or drug addiction to drive a
motor vehicle with safety to persons or property, shall forthwith
suspend his license; but he shall not suspend the license if the person
has been adjudged competent by judicial order or decree.
In any case in which the person's license has been suspended
before his discharge it may not be returned to him unless the
executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation is
satisfied, after an examination, that the person is competent to drive a
motor vehicle with safety to persons and property.
The clerk of the court in which the adjudication is made shall
forthwith send a certified copy or abstract of the adjudication to the
executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation.
Section 56-4-230. Whenever practicable, at least ten days before
the time when a patient is to be discharged from an institution
operated or licensed by the Department of Mental Health or
Department of Mental Retardation, if the mental condition of the
patient is, because of mental illness, mental retardation, inebriety, or
drug addiction, in the judgment of the director or chief medical
officer of the institution such as to prevent him from being competent
to drive a motor vehicle with safety to persons and property, the
Executive Director or chief medical officer shall forthwith report to
the executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation, in
sufficient detail for accurate identification, the date of discharge of
the patient, together with a statement concerning his ability to drive a
motor vehicle.
Section 56-4-240. (A) The executive director of the Department
of Revenue and Taxation, after due hearing, after giving not less than
five days' written notice by registered letter to the address given by
the driver when applying for his license, may suspend or revoke for
not more than one year and not thereafter reissue during the period of
suspension or revocation the South Carolina driver's license issued to
a person whenever it is satisfactorily proved at the hearing conducted
by the executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation
or other personnel of the Division of Motor Vehicles of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation designated by him, that the
licensee under charges:
(1) by reckless or unlawful operation of a motor vehicle, has
caused or contributed to an accident resulting in death or injury to any
other person or in serious property damage;
(2) is incompetent to drive a motor vehicle;
(3) suffers from mental or physical infirmities or disabilities
rendering it unsafe for him to drive a motor vehicle on the highways;
(4) is habitually a reckless or negligent driver of a motor
vehicle; or
(5) has committed a serious violation of the motor vehicle laws
of this State.
(B) The executive director of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation, in determining the propriety of suspending or revoking a
license as provided in this section, may take into consideration facts
and conditions antedating the issuance of the current license.
Section 56-4-250. (A) The notice of a hearing when mailed to a
person, as provided in Section 56-4-240, shall contain:
(1) a specific statement of the alleged offense or offenses or
other grounds for suspension or revocation of the license, including
the date, time, and place when applicable;
(2) the date, time, and place of the hearing;
(3) the names and addresses of all known witnesses whose
testimony is proposed to be taken at the hearing;
(4) as to any record of conviction of any offense which is to be
offered as evidence, the date of the conviction and the court in which
the same was had.
(B) If these requirements are complied with it is sufficient
regardless of whether the licensee appeared and regardless of whether
the notice was ever received.
Section 56-4-260. The hearing must be in the county or city
where the licensee resides or in the county or city in which the
licensee works or, with the consent of the licensee in any other county
or city to which the county or city of his residence is contiguous. The
hearing must be before the executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation or any of the personnel of the Division of
Motor Vehicles of the Department of Revenue and Taxation
designated by him.
Section 56-4-270. (A) In any such hearing all relevant and
material evidence must be received, except that: (i) the rules relating
to privileged communications and privileged topics must be observed;
(ii) hearsay evidence must be received only; and (iii) secondary
evidence of the contents of a document must be received only if the
original is not readily available.
(B) All reports of inspectors and subordinates of the Division of
Motor Vehicles of the Department of Revenue and Taxation and other
records and documents in the possession of the Division of Motor
Vehicles of the Department of Revenue and Taxation bearing on the
case subject to the provisions of subsection (A) of this section must
be introduced at the hearing. A certified copy of any conviction
forwarded to the executive director of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation under the provisions of Section 56-4-70 is prima facie
evidence of the conviction and may be introduced in evidence.
(C) Subject to the provisions of subsection (A) of this section,
every party has the right to cross-examine adverse witnesses and any
inspector or subordinate of the Division of Motor Vehicles of the
Department of Revenue whose report is in evidence and to submit
rebuttal evidence.
(D) The decision must be based only on evidence received a the
hearing and matters of which a court of record could take judicial
notice.
Section 56-4-280. The executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation may appoint one or more persons to conduct
the hearings provided for in this title. The hearing officers are
authorized to administer oaths, take acknowledgments and affidavits,
take testimony and depositions, and perform other duties which are
incidental to conducting the hearings.
Section 56-4-290. A decision or order of the executive director
of the Department of Revenue and Taxation to be valid must be
reduced to writing and contain the explicit findings of fact and
conclusions of law upon which the decision or order of the executive
director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation is based.
Certified copies of the decision or order must be delivered to any
party affected by it.
Section 56-4-300. On any reasonable grounds appearing in the
records of the Division of Motor Vehicles of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation, the executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation, when he considers it necessary for the safety
of the public on the highways in the State and after notice as provided
in Section 56-4-250 and hearing as provided in Sections 56-4-260,
56-4-270, 56-4-280, and 56-4-290, may suspend or revoke for no
more than five years, and not reissued during the period of suspension
or revocation, the driver's license of a person who is a violator of any
of the provisions of this title punishable as felonies, misdemeanors, or
traffic infractions and he may suspend or revoke for a like period, and
not reissue during the period of suspension or revocation, any or all of
his registration cards and license plates for a motor vehicle.
Section 56-4-310. In any administrative hearing conducted by
the executive
director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation or his designee
pursuant to this article, an abstract showing a conviction of the
violation of any of the provisions of this title, submitted as provided
by Section 56-4-70 by the court in which the conviction was had, is
prima facie evidence that the person named in the abstract was
convicted of the violation, and the burden is on any person
challenging the propriety of the conviction to show that the
conviction was improper.
Section 56-4-320. A person aggrieved by an order or act of the
executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation
requiring suspension or revocation of a license or registration under
the provisions of this chapter is entitled to judicial review in
accordance with the provisions of the Administrative Procedures Act.
No appeal shall lie in any case in which the suspension or revocation
of the license or registration was mandatory except to determine the
identity of the person concerned when the question of identity is in
dispute.
From the final decision of the Circuit Court, either the person who
petitioned the court for an appeal or the executive director of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation shall have an appeal as of right
to the court of appeals.
Section 56-4-330. The executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation may refuse, after a hearing if demanded to
issue to a person whose license has been suspended or revoked, any
new or renewal license, or to register a motor vehicle in the name of
the person, whenever he considers or in case of a hearing finds it
necessary for the safety of the public on the highways in the State.
Before granting or restoring a license or registration to a person
whose driver's license or other privilege to drive motor vehicles has
been revoked or suspended pursuant to Sections 56-4-110, 56-4-130,
and 56-4-390, the executive director of the Department of Revenue
and Taxation shall require proof of financial responsibility in the
future as provided by Sections 56-4-570, et seq., but no person may
be licensed who may not be licensed under the provisions of Sections
56-4-110 through 56-4-530.
Whenever the driver's license or registration cards, license plates,
or other privilege to drive or to register motor vehicles for a resident
or nonresident person is suspended or revoked by the executive
director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation or by a Circuit
Court pursuant to the provisions of this title, or any valid local
ordinance, the order of suspension or revocation shall remain in effect
and the driver's license, registration cards, license plates, or other
privilege to drive or register motor vehicles may not be reinstated and
no new driver's license, registration cards, license plates, or other
privilege to drive or register motor vehicles may be issued or granted
unless the person, in addition to complying with all other provisions
of law, pays to the Executive Director a fee of thirty dollars. When
three years has elapsed from the termination date of the order of
suspension or revocation and the person has complied with all other
provisions of law, the executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation may relieve him of paying the reinstatement
fee.
No reinstatement fee is required when the suspension or revocation
of license results from the person's suffering from mental or physical
infirmities or disabilities from natural causes not related to the use of
self-administered intoxicants or drugs. No reinstatement fee may be
collected from a person whose license is suspended by a court of
competent jurisdiction for any reason, other than a cause for
mandatory suspension as provided in this title, provided the court
ordering the suspension is not required by Section 56-6-200 to
forward the license to the Division of Motor Vehicles of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation during the suspended period.
Reinstatement fees collected under the provisions of this section
must be paid by the executive director of the Department of Revenue
and Taxation into the state treasury and must be set aside as a special
fund to be used to meet the expenses of the Division of Motor
Vehicles of the Department of Revenue and Taxation.
Section 56-4-340. Every suspension or revocation remains in
effect and the Department of Revenue may not issue a new or renewal
license or register in his name a motor vehicle, until permitted under
the provisions of this chapter. When three years has elapsed from the
date of the termination of the revocation provided by Section
56-4-110 or Section 56-4-130, or in the case of a suspension pursuant
to the provisions of Section 56-4-390, when three years has elapsed
from the date of satisfaction of the judgment or judgments, the person
may be relieved of giving proof of his financial responsibility in the
future, provided he is not required to furnish or maintain proof of
financial responsibility under any other provision of this chapter. The
requirement of this section for giving and maintaining proof of
financial responsibility does not apply in the case of a person whose
license has been suspended under Section 56-4-220.
Section 56-4-350. Reversal on appeal of a conviction because of
which conviction a license or registration has been suspended or
revoked pursuant to the provisions of this chapter shall entitle the
holder to the restoration of his license or registration forthwith
without proof of financial responsibility.
Section 56-4-360. Wherever it is provided in this title that the
driver's license, registration cards, or license plates of a person be
suspended or revoked for a period of time on conviction of certain
offenses, or after a hearing before the executive director of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation as provided by law, the period
must be counted from one hundred eighty days after the conviction
becomes final or after the order of the executive director of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation, as a result of the hearing,
becomes final, or must be counted from the date on which the license,
cards, or plates are surrendered to the executive director of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation or his agent, or to the court or
clerk thereof, regardless of whether the record of conviction has been
received by the executive director of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation or his agent, whichever period shall first commence.
However, the provisions of this section do not apply in any case
where the person whose license is subject to suspension or revocation
gives a false name or otherwise conceals his identity.
Section 56-4-370. When a person is found guilty of a violation of
a traffic regulation by a United States magistrate or a judge of a
district court of the United States, which violation occurred on a
federal reservation and, for which, if the violation had occurred on the
highways in the State, a revocation or suspension of the person's
driver's license would be mandatory or discretionary with a court of
the State, the magistrate or judge is authorized to revoke or suspend
the person's driver's license, provided it is forwarded to the executive
director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation as is provided by
law as to courts of the State.
Section 56-4-380. Whenever it is provided in this title that a
driver's license may or must be suspended or revoked either by the
executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation or by a
court, notice of the suspension or revocation or a certified copy of the
decision or order of the executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation may be sent by the Division of Motor Vehicles
of the Department of Revenue and Taxation by certified mail, return
receipt requested, to the driver at the last known address supplied by
the driver and on file at the Division of Motor Vehicles of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation. If the certificate of the
executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation or
someone designated by him for that purpose shows that the notice or
copy has been sent and received by the driver, it is considered prima
facie evidence that the notice or copy has been sent and delivered to
the driver for all purposes involving the application of the provisions
of this title. To be effective, notice by mail must be signed for by the
driver. If notice by mail is not received and signed for by the driver,
then service may be made as provided in the laws of this State, which
service on the driver must be made by delivery in writing to the driver
in person by a sheriff or deputy sheriff in the county or city in which
the address is located, who shall, as directed by the executive director
of the Department of Revenue and Taxation, take possession of any
suspended or revoked license, registration card, or set of license
plates or decals and return them to the office of the executive director
of the Department of Revenue and Taxation. No such service may be
made if, before service, the driver has complied with the requirement
which caused the issuance of the decision or order. In any such case,
return must be made to the executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation, and a rebuttable presumption that service as
made shall arise. At the request of the driver or his attorney, the
Division of Motor Vehicles of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation shall provide a certified copy of evidence of delivery of the
notice.
In lieu of making a direct payment to sheriffs as a fee for delivery
of the department's processes, the Division of Motor Vehicles of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation's processes, the executive
director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation shall effect a
transfer of funds, on a monthly basis, to the Compensation Board to
be used to provide additional support to sheriffs' departments. The
amount of funds so transferred must be as provided in the general
appropriations act.
Section 56-4-390. (A) Upon the application of any judgment
creditor, the executive director of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation shall suspend the driver's license of any person who has
failed for thirty days to satisfy any judgment in an amount on a cause
of action as hereinafter stated in this subsection, immediately upon
receiving an authenticated judgment order or abstract thereof in an
action for damages in a motor vehicle accident, if (i) the order or
abstract is received by the executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation within ten years of the date of judgment or (ii)
the judgment has been revived. However, if judgment is marked
satisfied on the court records on or before the executive director's
issuance of suspension, the order of suspension shall be invalid.
(B) The executive director of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation shall not, however, suspend the license of an owner or driver
if the insurance carried by him was in a company which was
authorized to transact business in this State and which subsequent to
an accident involving the owner or driver and before settlement of the
claim therefor went into liquidation, so that the owner or driver is
thereby unable to satisfy the judgment arising out of the accident.
(C) The executive director of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation shall not suspend the driver's license or driving privilege
under this section or Section 56-4-400, if the executive director of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation finds that an insurer authorized
to do business in the State was obligated to pay the judgment upon
which suspension is based, or that a policy of the insurer covers the
person subject to the suspension, if the insurer's obligation or the
limits of the policy are in an amount sufficient to meet the minimum
amounts required by Section 56-4-940, even though the insurer has
not paid the judgment for any reason. A finding by the executive
director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation that an insurer is
obligated to pay a judgment, or that a policy of an insurer covers the
person, shall not be binding upon the insurer and shall have no legal
effect whatever except for the purpose of administering this chapter.
Whenever in any judicial proceeding it is determined by any final
judgment, decree, or order that an insurer is not obligated to pay the
judgment, the executive director of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation, notwithstanding any contrary finding made by him,
forthwith shall suspend the driver's license or driving privilege, or any
registration care, license plates or decals of any person against whom
the judgment was rendered, as provided in subsection (A) of this
section.
Section 56-4-400. The executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation shall take action as required in Section
56-4-390 on receiving proper evidence that the person has failed for a
period of thirty days to satisfy any judgment, in an amount and on a
cause of action as stated in the laws provides by this State, rendered
by a court of competent jurisdiction of the state, any other state of the
United States, the United States, Canada, or its provinces.
Section 56-4-410. (A) Every judgment for damages in any
motor vehicle accident referred to in this chapter shall, for the
purpose of this chapter, be satisfied when:
(1) paid in full or when fifteen thousand dollars has been
credited upon any judgment or judgments rendered in excess of that
amount because of bodily injury to or death of one person as the
result of any one accident;
(2) subject to the limit of fifteen thousand dollars because of
bodily injury to or death of one person, the judgment has been paid in
full or when the sum of thirty thousand dollars has been credited upon
any judgment or judgments rendered in excess of that amount because
of bodily injury to or death of two or more persons as the result of any
one accident;
(3) the judgment has been paid in full or when five thousand
dollars has been credited upon any judgment or judgments rendered
in excess of that amount because of injury to or destruction of
property of others as a result of any one accident; or
(4) the judgment has been discharged in bankruptcy.
(B) Payments made in settlement of any claims because of bodily
injury, death or property damage arising from a motor vehicle
accident shall be credited in reduction of the amount provided in this
section.
Section 56-4-420. A judgment debtor, on five days' notice to the
judgment creditor, may apply to the court in which the judgment was
obtained for the privilege of paying it in installments. The court,
without prejudice to other legal remedies which the judgment creditor
may have, may so order, fixing the amounts and times of payment of
the installments.
Section 56-4-430. The executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation shall not suspend a license or registration of a
motor vehicle and shall restore any license or registration suspended
following nonpayment of a judgment, if the judgment debtor obtains
an order from the court in which the judgment was rendered
permitting payment of the judgment in installments and if the
judgment debtor gives proof of his financial responsibility in the
future as provided in this article.
Section 56-4-440. If the judgment debtor fails to pay any
installment as permitted by the order of the court, then on notice of
default, the executive director of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation shall forthwith suspend the driver's license, registration
cards, and license plates of the judgment debtor until the judgment is
satisfied as provided in this chapter. The judgment debtor may apply,
after due notice to the judgment creditor, to the court which allowed
installment payment of the judgment, within thirty days after the
default, for resumption of the privilege of paying the judgment in
installments, if past-due installments are first paid.
Section 56-4-450. If the judgment creditor consents in writing, in
whatever form the executive director of the Department of Revenue
and Taxation prescribes, that the judgment debtor be allowed a
driver's license and motor vehicle registration, the executive director
of the Department of Revenue and Taxation may allow the same,
notwithstanding default in the payment of the judgment or any
installment thereof, for six months from the date of consent and
thereafter until it is revoked in writing, if the judgment debtor
furnishes proof of his financial responsibility in the future as provided
in this article.
Section 56-4-460. On receipt of the certificate of insurance, the
insurance carrier or surety company named in the certificate of
insurance shall determine whether the policy or bond was applicable
to liability, if any, as to the named insured. Thereupon and not later
than thirty days following receipt of the certificate of insurance, the
insurance company or surety company shall cause to be filed with the
Executive Director a written notice if the policy or bond was not
applicable to liability, if any, as to the named insured resulting from
the accident. The executive director of the Department of Revenue
and Taxation shall prescribe the manner in which the written notice
shall be made.
When the insurance company or surety company notifies the
executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation that
the policy or bond named in the certificate of insurance was not
applicable to liability resulting from the accident, the Division of
Motor Vehicles of the Department of Revenue and Taxation shall
determine, under Section 56-4-1260, whether suspension of the
driver's license, registration cards, and license plates issued to the
owner of the motor vehicle involved in the accident is required. If
the records of the Division of Motor Vehicles of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation reasonably indicate that any insurance carrier
or surety company does not cause to be filed the notice herein
required, the executive director of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation shall report every such omission to the Secretary of State.
The Secretary of State shall investigate every such report of
omission. If he finds that any insurance carrier or surety company
licensed to transact business in the state, has failed, without good
reason, to cause to be filed the notice required hereunder, the
Secretary of State may assess the carrier or company fifty dollars for
each omission.
Section 56-4-470. In case a driver or owner has not a driver's
license issued by the Division of Motor Vehicles of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation or no motor vehicle registered in his name in
the State, he shall not be allowed a driver's license or motor vehicle
registration until he has complied with this chapter to the same extent
as would be necessary if he had held a driver's license or a motor
vehicle registration at the time of the accident in which he was
involved or at the time of the commission of the offense resulting in a
conviction as is mentioned in Sections 56-4-110 and 56-4-130.
Section 56-4-480. Cash or securities furnished in compliance
with the requirements of this chapter shall be placed by the executive
director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation in the custody of
the State Treasurer and shall be applicable only to the payment of any
judgment against the depositor for damages arising out of the accident
in question in an action at law in a court in the State begun not later
than one year after the date of the accident. The cash or securities
may be assigned by the depositor for the benefit of the person or
persons damaged or injured in the accident as the result of which the
cash or securities were filed or deposited without the damaged or
injured person being required to institute legal proceedings. The
executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation shall
accept the assignment if, in his opinion, the rights of any other person
or persons shall not be prejudiced thereby.
Section 56-4-490. The suspension required by the provisions of
Section 56-4-390 shall continue except as otherwise provided by
Sections 56-4-430 and 56-4-450 until the person satisfies the
judgment or judgments as prescribed in Section 56-4-410 and gives
proof of his financial responsibility in the future.
The motor vehicle involved in the accident on which the
suspension under Section 56-4-390 is based shall not be registered in
the name of any other person when the executive director of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation has reasonable grounds to
believe that the registration of the vehicle will have the effect of
defeating the purpose of the chapter and not other motor vehicle shall
be registered, and no driver's license or learner's permit shall be
issued in the name of the person suspended, except as prescribed in
Section 56-4-590 until the suspension is terminated.
This section shall not relieve any person from giving or
maintaining proof of his financial responsibility when he is required
so to do form some reason rather than having been involved in a
motor vehicle accident.
Section 56-4-500. The State shall be responsible for the
safekeeping of all bonds, cash, and securities deposited with the State
Treasurer under the provisions of this article, and if the deposit or any
part of the deposit is lost, destroyed, or misappropriated the State
shall make good the loss to any person entitled thereto.
Section 56-4-510. Bonds, cash, or securities deposited with the
State treasurer pursuant to this chapter shall only be released by the
State Treasurer upon consent of the executive director of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation given in conformity with this
article.
Section 56-4-520. Whenever by the laws of the State the
executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation may
suspend or revoke: (i) the license of a resident driver, or (ii) the
registration cards and license plates of a resident owner, he may:
(1) suspend or revoke the privilege of operating a motor vehicle
in the State by a nonresident driver, and
(2) suspend the privilege of driving a vehicle owned by a
nonresident regardless of whether the vehicle is registered in the
State.
Section 56-4-530. Every provision of this chapter applies to any
person who is not a resident of the State under the same
circumstances as it would apply to a resident. No nonresident may
drive any motor vehicle in the State and no motor vehicle owned by
him may be driven in the State, unless the nonresident has complied
with the requirements of this chapter with respect to giving proof of
financial responsibility in the future.
Section 56-4-540. The failure of a nonresident to report an
accident as required in this title, shall constitute sufficient ground for
suspension or revocation of his privileges of driving a motor vehicle
in the state and of driving within the state of any motor vehicle owned
by him.
Section 56-4-550. On conviction of a nonresident or in case any
unsatisfied judgment results in suspension of a nonresident's driving
privileges in the State and the prohibition of driving within the State
of any motor vehicle, or on suspension of a nonresident's driving
privileges in the State pursuant to any other provision of this article,
the executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation
shall transmit a certified copy of the record of the conviction or the
unsatisfied judgment, or any other action pursuant to this chapter
resulting in suspension of a nonresident's driving privileges of any
motor vehicle owned by such nonresident, to the motor vehicle
executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation or
officer performing the functions of an executive director of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation in the state of the United States,
or possession under the exclusive control of the United States, or
Canada or its provinces in which the nonresident resides.
Section 56-4-560. The executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation shall suspend or revoke the license and
registration certificate and plates of any resident of the State upon
receiving notice of his conviction, in a court of competent jurisdiction
of the State, any other state of the United States, the United States,
Canada, or its provinces or any territorial subdivision of such state or
country, of an offense therein which, if committed in the State, would
be ground for the suspension or revocation under this subsection shall
continue for a longer period in the State than in the jurisdiction in
which the offenses occurred, provided the person gives proof of his
financial responsibility in the future for the period provided in Section
56-4-340.
The executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation
shall take like action upon receipt of notice that a resident of the State
has failed, for a period of thirty days, to satisfy any final judgment in
amount and upon a cause of action as stated herein, rendered against
him in a court of competent jurisdiction of any other state of the
United States, the United States, Canada, or its provinces, or any
territorial subdivision of such state or country.
Section 56-4-570. Proof of financial responsibility in the amounts
required by this chapter shall be furnished for each motor vehicle
registered by the person required to furnish such proof.
Section 56-4-580. Proof of financial responsibility when required
under this chapter may be given by proof that a:
(1) policy or policies of motor vehicle liability insurance have
been obtained and are in full force;
(2) bond has been duly executed;
(3) deposit has been made of money or securities; or
(4) self-insurance certificate has been filed, all as provided in this
chapter.
Section 56-4-590. When the executive director of the Department
of Revenue and Taxation finds that any person required to give proof
of financial responsibility under this title is or later becomes a driver,
however designated, or a member of the immediate family or
household, in the employe or home of an owner of a motor vehicle,
the executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation
shall accept proof of financial responsibility given by the owner in
lieu of proof of financial responsibility by such person to permit him
to operate a motor vehicle for which the owner has given proof of
financial responsibility as provided in this chapter. The executive
director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation shall designate
the restrictions imposed by this section on the fact of the person's
driver's license.
Section 56-4-600. If the owner of a motor vehicle is one whose
vehicles are operated under a permit or a certificate of convenience
and necessity issued by the Secretary of State, proof by the owner on
behalf of another as provided by this chapter may be made if there is
filed with the executive director of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation satisfactory evidence that the owner has complied with the
law with respect to his liability for damage caused by the operation of
his vehicles by providing the required insurance or other security or
has qualified as a self-insurer as described in Section 56-4-30.
Section 56-4-610. Proof of financial responsibility, when
requested, shall be made by filing with the executive director of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation the written certificate of any
insurance carrier authorized to do business in the State, certifying that
there is in effect a motor vehicle liability policy for the benefit of the
person required to furnish proof of financial responsibility. This
certificate shall give its effective date and the effective date of the
policy.
Section 56-4-620. A nonresident owner of a vehicle not
registered in South Carolina may give proof of financial responsibility
by filing with the executive director of the Department of Revenue
and Taxation a written certificate or certificates of an insurance
carrier not authorized to transact business in the State but authorized
to transact business in any other state, any territory or possession of
the United States and under its exclusive control, Canada or its
provinces, or the territorial subdivisions of such states or countries, in
which any motor vehicle described in the certificate and all
replacement vehicles of similar classification are registered or, if the
nonresident does not own a motor vehicle, then in the like jurisdiction
in which the insured resides and otherwise conforming to the
provisions of this chapter. The executive director of the Department
of Revenue and Taxation shall accept the same if the insurance
carrier, in addition to having complied with all other provisions of
this chapter as requisite, shall:
(1) execute a power of attorney authorizing the executive director
of the Department of Revenue and Taxation to accept service on its
behalf of notice or process in any action arising out of a motor vehicle
accident in the State;
(2) duly adopt a resolution, which shall be binding upon it,
declaring that its policies are to be considered to be modified to
comply with the law of the State and the terms of this chapter relating
to the terms of motor vehicle liability policies issued herein;
(3) agree to accept as final and binding the judgment of any court
of competent jurisdiction in the State from which judgment no appeal
is or can be taken, duly rendered in any action arising out of a motor
vehicle accident;
(4) deposit with the State Treasurer cash or securities as are
mentioned in Section 56-6-750 or the surety bond of a company
authorized to do business in South Carolina equal in value to sixty
thousand dollars for each insurance policy filed as proof of financial
responsibility.
Section 56-4-630. If a nonresident required to file a certificate of
insurance under this chapter files the certificate of insurance of a
company authorized to do business in the State the provisions of
Section 56-4-620 shall not apply.
Section 56-4-640. If any insurance carrier not authorized to do
business in the State which is qualified to furnish proof of financial
responsibility defaults in any of its undertakings or agreements, the
executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation shall
not thereafter accept any certificate of that carrier so long as the
default continues and shall revoke licenses previously granted on the
basis of its policies unless the default is immediately repaired.
Section 56-4-650. This chapter does not apply to:
(1) policies of automobile insurance against liability which may
now or hereafter be required by any other law of the State and such
policies if endorsed to the requirements of this chapter shall be
accepted as proof of financial responsibility when required under this
article; or
(2) policies insuring solely the insured named in the policy
against liability resulting from the maintenance, use, or operation by
persons in the insured's employ or in his behalf of motor vehicles not
owned by the insured.
Section 56-4-660. The bond mentioned in item (2) of Section
56-4-580 shall be duly executed by the person giving proof and by a
surety company duly authorized to transact business in the State or by
the person giving proof and by one or more individual sureties
owning real estate within the State and having an equity therein in at
least the amount of the bond and the real estate shall be scheduled in
the bond. But the executive director of the Department of Revenue
and Taxation may not accept any real estate bond unless it is first
approved by the Circuit Court of the jurisdiction wherein the real
estate is located.
Section 56-4-670. The executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation shall not accept any bond unless it is
conditioned for payments in amounts and under the same
circumstances as would be required in a motor vehicle liability policy
furnished by the person giving proof.
Section 56-4-680. No bond shall be canceled unless twenty days'
before written notice of cancellation is given the executive director of
the Department of Revenue and Taxation, but cancellation of the
bond shall not prevent recovery thereon with respect to any right or
cause of action arising before the date of the cancellation.
Section 56-4-690. A bond with individual sureties shall constitute
a lien in favor of the State on the real estate of any individual surety.
The lien shall exist in favor of any holder of any final judgment
against the principal on account of damage to property or injury to or
death of any person or persons resulting from the ownership,
maintenance, sue, or operation of his, or any other, motor vehicle,
upon the recording of the bond in the office of the clerk of the court
where deeds are admitted to record of the city or county where the
real estate is located.
Section 56-4-700. Notice of cancellation is to be signed by the
executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation or by
someone designated by him and the seal of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation placed thereon. Notwithstanding any other
provision of law, the clerk shall record the notice in the books kept
for the recording of deeds and shall index the same in the indices
thereto for grantors and grantees, under the respective names of the
individual sureties in the column for grantors, and the State of South
Carolina in the column for grantees, for which he shall receive two
dollars and fifty cents to be paid by the principal in full payment of all
services in connection with the recordation and release of the bond.
The clerk shall place on the notice a statement showing the time of
recording and the book and page of recording and return the notice to
the executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation.
Section 56-4-710. When a bond with individual sureties filed
with the executive director of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation is no longer required under this chapter, the executive
director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation shall, on request,
cancel it as to liability for damage to property or injury to or death of
any person or persons thereafter caused and when a bond has been
canceled by the executive director of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation or otherwise he shall, on request, furnish a certificate of the
cancellation signed by him or by someone designated by him and
bearing the seal of the Department of Revenue and Taxation. The
certificate, notwithstanding any other provision of law, may be
recorded in the office of the clerk of court in which the bond was
admitted to record.
Section 56-4-720. On satisfactory proof that the bond filed with
the executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation as
provided for in this chapter has been canceled and that there are no
claims or judgments against the principal in the bond on account of
damage to property or injury to or death of any person or persons
resulting from the ownership, maintenance, use, or operation of a
motor vehicle of the principal caused while the bond was in effect, the
court in which the bond was admitted to record may enter an order
discharging the lien of the bond on the real estate of the sureties
thereon, upon their petition and at their proper cost.
Section 56-4-730. If a final judgment rendered against the
principal on the bond filed with the executive director of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation as provided in this chapter is
not satisfied within fifteen days after its rendition, the judgment
creditor may, for his own use and benefit and at his sole expense,
bring an action on the bond in the name of the State against the
company or persons executing the bond.
Section 56-4-740. When the sureties on the bond filed with the
executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation as
provided in this chapter are individuals the judgment creditor may
proceed against any or all parties to the bond at law for a judgment or
in equity for a decree and foreclosure of the lien on the real estate of
the sureties. The proceeding whether at law or in equity may be
against one, all, or any intermediate number of the parties to the bond
and when less than all are joined other or others may be impleaded in
the same proceeding and after final judgment or decree other
proceedings may be instituted until full satisfaction is obtained.
Section 56-4-750. A person may give proof of financial
responsibility by delivering to the executive director of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation cash or securities equal to the
sum of the liability coverage required for bodily injury or death of
two or more persons in any one accident and injury to or destruction
of property of others in any one accident as prescribed by Section
56-4-940. Securities so deposited shall be such as public bodies may
invest in according to the laws of this State.
Section 56-4-760. All monies or securities delivered to the
executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation
pursuant to this chapter shall be placed by him in the custody of the
State Treasurer and shall be subject to executive order to satisfy any
judgment within the limits on amounts required by this chapter for
motor vehicle liability insurance policies. The State Treasurer shall
certify the value of such moneys or securities to the executive director
of the Department of Revenue and Taxation as soon as practicable
after their deliver to him.
Section 56-4-770. For the purpose of defraying the expense of
the safekeeping and handling of the cash or securities deposited with
him under the provisions of this title, in December of each year the
State Treasurer shall levy against each person having cash or
securities deposited with him an assessment of not more than
one-tenth of one percent of the cash or of the par value of the
securities deposited to his account, and shall collect the assessment in
January of each year. These funds shall be deposited to the general
fund of the State Treasury. If any assessment is not paid by January
31 of each year, the State Treasurer shall so notify the executive
director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation in writing,
attaching thereto a dated copy of the original assessment.
Section 56-4-780. Whenever the monies or securities are
subjected to attachment, garnishment, execution, or other legal
process or are otherwise depleted or threatened with depletion or
impairment in amount or value the depositor must immediately
furnish additional monies or securities, free from lien, claim, or threat
of impairment, in sufficient amount or value fully to comply with the
requirements of this chapter.
The State Treasurer shall notify the executive director of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation promptly of any depletion,
impairment, or decrease or of any legal threat of depletion,
impairment, or decrease in the value of the securities or in the monies
on deposit with him under the provisions of this chapter.
Section 56-4-790. The executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation may cancel any bond or return any certificate
of insurance and on the substitution and acceptance by him of other
adequate proof of financial responsibility pursuant to this chapter, and
on his direction to such effect the State Treasurer shall return any
money or securities on deposit with him to the person entitled to it.
Section 56-4-800. The executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation and the State Treasurer, or either, may proceed
in equity by bill of interpleader for the determination of any dispute
as to ownership of or rights in any deposit held by the State Treasurer
pursuant to this chapter and may have recourse to any other
appropriate proceeding for determination of any question that arises
as to their rights or liabilities or as to the rights or liabilities of the
State under this chapter.
Section 56-4-810. Whenever any proof of financial responsibility
filed by any person under this chapter no longer fulfills the purpose
for which required, the executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation shall require other proof of financial
responsibility as required by this chapter and shall suspend the
person's driver's license, registration cards and license plates pending
the furnishing of proof as required.
Nonpayment of the assessment provided for in Section 56-4-770
shall also be reason for suspension of the driver's license, registration
cards, and license plates of a person offering cash or securities as
proof of financial responsibility under this chapter. The suspension
shall be promptly initiated by the executive director of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation on receipt of written notice of
nonpayment of the assessment from the State Treasurer and shall take
effect ten days from the date of a written notice sent by the executive
director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation to the person by
first-class mail, the notice to notify the person of the forthcoming
suspension if payment is not received within the ten-day period.
Section 56-4-820. The executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation, on request and subject to the provisions of
Section 56-4-830, shall consent to the cancellation of any bond or
insurance policy or to the return to the person entitled thereto of any
money or securities deposited pursuant to this chapter as proof of
financial responsibility or he shall not require proof of financial
responsibility in the event:
(1) of the death of the person on whose behalf the proof was filed;
(2) of his permanent incapacity to operate a motor vehicle;
(3) that the person who has given proof of financial responsibility
surrenders his driver's license and all of his registration cards and
license plates to the executive director of the Department of Revenue
and Taxation.
Section 56-4-830. (A) Notwithstanding the provisions of
Section 56-4-820, the executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation shall not release the proof in the event:
(1) any action for damages upon a liability included in this
chapter is then pending;
(2) any judgment on any liability is then outstanding and
unsatisfied; or
(3) the executive director of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation has received notice that the person involved has within the
period of twelve months immediately preceding been involved as a
driver in any motor vehicle accident.
(B) An affidavit of the applicant of the nonexistence of these facts
shall be sufficient evidence thereof in the absence of evidence in the
records of the Division of Motor Vehicles of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation tending to indicate the contrary.
Section 56-4-840. Whenever any person to whom proof has been
surrendered as provided in Section 56-4-820 applies for a driver's
license or the registration of a motor vehicle, the application shall be
refused unless the applicant reestablishes proof as required by this
chapter.
Section 56-4-850. Any person who forges or without authority
signs any evidence of ability to respond in damages or knowingly
attempts to employ or use any evidence of ability to respond in
damages, as required by the executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation in the administration of this chapter, shall be
guilty of a misdemeanor.
Section 56-4-860. Every person who has been unable to obtain a
motor vehicle liability policy shall have the right to apply to Director
of the Department of Insurance to have his risk assigned to an
insurance carrier licensed to write and writing motor vehicle liability
insurance in the State and the insurance carrier, whether a stock or
mutual company, reciprocal, or interinsurance exchange, or other type
or form of insurance organization, as provided in this chapter shall
issue a motor vehicle liability policy which will meet at least the
minimum requirements for establishing financial responsibility as
provided in this chapter, and in addition shall provide, at the option of
the insured, reasonable motor vehicle physical damage and medical
payments coverages, (both as defined in Chapter 77, Title 38) in the
same policy.
Every person who has otherwise obtained a motor vehicle liability
insurance policy, or who has been afforded motor vehicle liability
insurance under the laws of this State, but who was not afforded
motor vehicle medical payments insurance or motor vehicle physical
damage insurance in the same policy, or who was not afforded such
coverages under the provisions of that section, shall have the right to
apply to the executive director of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation to have his risk assigned to an insurance carrier, as provided
above, licensed to write and writing either or both coverages, and the
insurance carrier shall issue a policy providing the coverage or
coverages applied for.
Section 56-4-870. Once an assigned risk policy has been issued
to an insured, every insurer licensed in the State issuing or delivering
any policy or contract of bodily injury liability insurance, or of
property damage liability insurance, coverage liability arising from
the ownership, maintenance, or use of any motor vehicle shall provide
on request of the insured, on payment of premium established by law
for the coverage (i) to the named insured and, while resident of the
named insured's household, the spouse and relatives of the named
insured while occupying a motor vehicle or if struck by a motor
vehicle while not occupying a motor vehicle; and (ii) to persons
occupying the insured motor vehicle, the following health care and
disability benefit for each accident:
(1) medical and chiropractic payments coverages incurred within
two years after the date of the accident, up to two thousand dollars per
person;
(2) if the person is usually engaged in a remunerative occupation,
an amount equal to the loss of income incurred within one year after
the date of the accident resulting from injuries received in the
accident up to one hundred dollars per week during the period from
the first work day lost as a result of the accident up to the date on
which the person is able to return to his usual occupation and for a
period not to exceed fifty-two weeks or any part thereof; and
(3) the insured has the option of purchasing either or both of the
coverages set forth in items (1) and (2) of this section.
Section 56-4-880. The executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation may make reasonable regulations for the
assignment of risks to insurance carriers.
It shall establish rate classifications, rating schedules, rates, and
regulations to be used by insurance carriers issuing assigned risk,
policies of motor vehicle liability, physical damage, and medical
payments insurance in accordance with this chapter as appear to it to
be proper.
In the establishment of rate classifications, rating schedules, rates,
and regulations, it shall be guided by the principles and practices
which have been established under its statutory authority to regulate
motor vehicle liability, physical damage, and medical payments
insurance rates and it may act in conformity with its statutory
discretionary authority in such matters.
Section 56-4-890. The Department of Insurance may in its
discretion, after reviewing all information pertaining to the applicant
or policyholder available from its records, the records of the Division
of Motor Vehicles of the Department of Revenue and Taxation, or
from other sources:
(1) refuse to assign an application;
(2) approve the rejection of an application by an insurance
carrier;
(3) approve the cancellation of a policy of motor vehicle liability,
physical damage, and medical payments insurance by an insurance
carrier; or
(4) refuse to approve the renewal or the reassignment of an
expiring policy.
Section 56-4-900. Any information filed with the Department of
Insurance by an insurance carrier in connection with an assigned risk
shall be confidential and solely for the information of the Department
of Insurance and its staff and shall not be disclosed to any person,
including an applicant, policyholder, and any other insurance carrier.
Section 56-4-910. (A) The Department of Insurance shall not be
required to disclose to any person, including the applicant or
policyholder, its reasons for:
(1) refusing to assign an application;
(2) approving the rejection of an application by an insurance
carrier;
(3) approving the cancellation of a policy of motor vehicle
liability, physical damage, and medical payments insurance by an
insurance carrier; or
(4) refusing to approve the renewal or the reassignment of an
expiring policy.
(B) The Department of Insurance or anyone acting for it shall not
be held liable for any act or omission in connection with the
administration of the duties imposed upon it by the provisions of this
chapter, except upon proof of actual malfeasance.
Section 56-4-920. The provisions of this chapter relevant to
assignment of risks shall be available to nonresidents who are unable
to obtain a policy of motor vehicle liability, physical damage, and
medical payments insurance with respect only to motor vehicles
registered and used in the State.
Section 56-4-930. Notwithstanding any other provision of law,
the provisions of this chapter relating to assignment of risks shall be
available to carriers by motor vehicle who are required by law to
carry public liability and property damage insurance for the protection
of the public.
Section 56-4-940. Every motor vehicle owner's policy shall:
(1) designate by explicit description or by appropriate reference,
all motor vehicles with respect to which coverage is intended to be
granted.
(2) insure as insured the person named and any other person using
or responsible for the use of the motor vehicle or motor vehicles with
the permission of the named insured.
(3) Insure the insured or other person against loss from any
liability imposed by law for damages, including damages for care and
loss of services, because of bodily injury to or death of any person,
and injury to or destruction of property caused by accident and arising
out of the ownership, use, or operation of such motor vehicle or motor
vehicles within the State, any other state in the United States, or
Canada, subject to a limit exclusive of interest and costs, with respect
to each motor vehicle, of fifteen thousand dollars because of bodily
injury to or death of one person in any one accident and, subject to
the limit for one person, to a limit of thirty thousand dollars because
of bodily injury to or death of two or more persons in any one
accident, and to a limit of ten thousand dollars because of injury to or
destruction of property of others in any one accident.
Section 56-4-950. Every driver's policy shall insure the person
named therein as insured against loss from the liability imposed upon
him by law for damages, including damages for care and loss of
services, because of bodily injury to or death of any person, and
injury to or destruction of property arising out of the use by him of
any motor vehicle not owned by him, within the territorial limits and
subject to the limits of liability set forth with respect to a motor
vehicle owner's policy.
Section 56-4-960. Every policy of insurance subject to the
provisions of this chapter:
(1) shall contain an agreement that the insurance is provided in
accordance with the coverage defined in this chapter as respects
bodily injury, death, property damage, and destruction and that it is
subject to all the provisions of this chapter and of the laws of the State
relating to this kind of insurance; and
(2) may grant any lawful coverage in excess of or in addition to
the coverage herein specified and this excess or additional coverage
shall not be subject to the provisions of this chapter but shall be
subject to other applicable laws of the State.
Section 56-4-970. No policy required under this chapter shall be
issued or delivered in the State unless it complies with Sections
56-2-260 through 56-2-330, with all other applicable and not
inconsistent laws of the State, and with the terms and conditions of
this article.
Section 56-4-980. Policies issued under this chapter shall not
insure any liability of the employer on account of bodily injury to, or
death of, an employee of the insured for which benefits are payable
under any workers' compensation law.
Section 56-4-990. This chapter shall not apply to any policy of
insurance except as to liability thereunder incurred after certification
thereof as proof of financial responsibility.
Section 56-4-1000. Several policies of one or more insurance
carriers which together meet the requirements of this chapter is
considered a motor vehicle liability policy within the meaning of this
article.
Section 56-4-1010. Every policy shall be subject to the following
provisions which need not be contained therein:
(1) the liability of any insurance carrier to the insured under a
policy becomes absolute when loss or damage covered by the policy
occurs and the satisfaction by the insured of a judgment for the loss or
damage shall not be a condition precedent to the right or duty of the
carrier to make payment on account of the loss or damage;
(2) no policy shall be canceled or annulled, as respects any loss or
damage, by any agreement between the carrier and the insured after
the insured has become responsible for the loss or damage and any
attempted cancellation or annulment shall be void;
(3) if the death of the insured occurs after the insured has become
liable, during the policy period, for loss or damage covered by the
policy, the policy shall not be terminated by the death with respect to
the liability and the insurance carrier shall be liable hereunder as
though death had not occurred;
(4) on the recovery of a judgment against any person for loss or
damage, if the person or the decedent he represents was at the accrual
of the cause of action insured against the liability under the policy,
the judgment creditor shall be entitled to have the insurance money
applied to the satisfaction of the judgment;
(5) if the death, insolvency, or bankruptcy of the insured occurs
within the policy period, the policy during the unexpired portion of
the period shall cover the legal representatives of the insured; and
(6) no statement made by the insured or on his behalf and no
violation of the terms of the policy shall operate to defeat or avoid the
policy so as to bar recovery within the limits provided in this article.
Section 56-4-1020. Any policy may provide:
(1) that the insured, or any other person covered by the policy,
shall reimburse the insurance carrier for payments made on account of
any accident, claim, or suit involving a breach of the terms,
provisions, or conditions of the policy; or
(2) for proration of the insurance with other applicable valid and
collectible insurance.
Section 56-4-1030. Insurance carriers authorized to issue policies
as provided in this chapter may, pending the issuance of the policy,
execute an agreement to be known as a binder, which shall not be
valid beyond sixty days from the date it becomes effective, or may, in
lieu of a policy, issue an endorsement to an existing policy, each of
which shall be construed to provide indemnity or protection in like
manner and to the same extent as a formal policy. The provisions of
this chapter apply to these binders and endorsements.
Section 56-4-1040. When any insurance policy certified under this
chapter is canceled or terminated, the insurer shall report the fact to
the Executive Director within fifteen days after the cancellation on a
form prescribed by the executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation.
Section 56-4-1050. The Driver License Compact is hereby enacted
into law and entered into with all other jurisdictions legally joining
therein in the form substantially as follows:
THE DRIVER LICENSE COMPACT
Article I
Findings and Declaration of Policy
(A) The party states find that:
(1) the safety of their streets and highways is materially
affected by the degree of compliance with state and local ordinances
relating to the operation of motor vehicles;
(2) violation of such a law or ordinance is evidence that the
violator engages in conduct which is likely to endanger the safety of
persons and property;
(3) the continuance in force of a license to drive is predicated
upon compliance with laws and ordinances relating to the operation
of motor vehicles, in whichever jurisdiction the vehicle is operated.
(B) It is the policy of each of the party states to:
(1) promote compliance with the laws, ordinances, and
administrative rules and regulations relating to the operation of motor
vehicles by their operators in each of the jurisdictions where such
operators drive motor vehicles;
(2) make the reciprocal recognition of licenses to drive and
eligibility therefor more just and equitable by considering the overall
compliance with motor vehicle laws, ordinances and administrative
rules and regulations as a condition precedent to the continuance or
issuance of any license by reason of which the licensee is authorized
or permitted to operate a motor vehicle in any of the party states.
Article II
Definitions
As used in this compact:
(1) `State' means a state, territory, or possession of the United
States, the District of Columbia, or the Commonwealth of Puerto
Rico.
(2) `Home state' means the state which has issued and has the
power to suspend or revoke the use of the license or permit to operate
a motor vehicle.
(3) `Conviction' means a conviction of any offense related to the
use or operation of a motor vehicle which is prohibited by state law,
municipal ordinance or administrative rule or regulation, or a
forfeiture of bail, bond, or other security deposited to secure
appearance by a person charged with having committed any such
offense, and which conviction or forfeiture is required to be reported
to the licensing authority.
Article III
Reports of Conviction
The licensing authority of a party state shall report each conviction
of a person from another party state occurring within its jurisdiction
to the licensing authority of the home state of the licensee. Such
report shall clearly identify the person convicted; describe the
violation specifying the section of the statute, code, or ordinance
violated; identify the court in which action was taken; indicate
whether a plea of guilty or not guilty was entered, or the conviction
was a result of the forfeiture of bail, bond, or other security; and shall
include any special findings made in connection therewith.
Article IV
Effect of Conviction
(A) The licensing authority in the home state, for the purposes of
suspension, revocation, or limitation of the license to operate a motor
vehicle, shall give the same effect to the conduct reported, pursuant to
chapter III of this compact, as it would if such conduct had occurred
in the home state, in the case of convictions for:
(1) manslaughter or negligent homicide resulting from the
operation of a motor vehicle;
(2) driving a motor vehicle while under the influence of
intoxicating liquor or a narcotic drug, or under the influence of any
other drug to a degree which renders the driver incapable of safely
driving a motor vehicle;
(3) any felony in the Department of Insurance of which a motor
vehicle is used;
(4) failure to stop and render aid in the event of a motor vehicle
accident resulting in the death or personal injury of another.
(B) As to other convictions, reported pursuant to Chapter III, the
licensing authority in the home state shall give such effect to the
conduct as is provided by the laws of the home state.
(C) If the laws of a party state do not provide for offenses or
violations denominated or described in precisely the words employed
in subsection (A) of this article, such party state shall construe the
denominations and descriptions appearing in subsection (A) hereof as
being applicable to and identifying those offenses or violations of a
substantially similar nature and the laws of such party state shall
contain such provisions as may be necessary to ensure that full force
and effect is given to this article.
Article V
Applications for New Licenses
Upon application for a license to drive, the licensing authority in a
party state shall ascertain whether the applicant has ever held, or is
the holder of a license to drive issued by any other party state. The
licensing authority in the state where application is made shall not
issue a license to drive to the applicant if:
(1) the applicant has held such a license, but the same has been
suspended by reason, in whole or in part, of a violation and if such
suspension period has not terminated;
(2) the applicant has held such a license, but the same has been
revoked by reason, in whole or in part, of a violation and if such
revocation has not terminated, except that after the expiration of one
year from the date the license was revoked, such person may make
application for a new license if permitted by law. The licensing
authority may refuse to issue a license to any such applicant if, after
investigation, the licensing authority determines that it will not be
safe to grant to such person the privilege of driving a motor vehicle
on the public highways;
(3) the applicant is the holder of a license to drive issued by
another party state and currently in force unless the applicant
surrenders such license.
Article VI
Applicability of Other Laws
Except as expressly required by provisions of this compact, nothing
contained herein shall be construed to affect the right of any party
state to apply any of its other laws relating to licenses to drive to any
person or circumstance, nor to invalidate or prevent any driver license
agreement or other cooperative arrangement between a party state and
a nonparty state.
Article VII
Compact Administrator and Interchange of
Information
(A) The head of the licensing authority of each party state shall be
the administrator of this compact for his state. The administrators,
acting jointly, shall have the power to formulate all necessary and
proper procedures for the exchange of information under this
compact.
(B) The administrator of each party state shall furnish to the
administrator of each other party state any information or documents
reasonably necessary to facilitate the administration of this compact.
Article VIII
Entry Into Force and Withdrawal
(A) This compact shall enter into force and become effective as to
any state when it has enacted the same into law.
(B) Any party state may withdraw from this compact by enacting
a statute repealing the same, but no such withdrawal shall take effect
until six months after the Executive head of the withdrawing state has
given notice of the withdrawal to the executive heads of all other
party states. No withdrawal shall affect the validity or applicability
by the licensing authorities of states remaining party to the compact
of any report of conviction occurring before the withdrawal.
Article IX
Construction and Severability
This compact shall be liberally construed so as to effectuate the
purposes thereof. The provisions of this compact shall be severable
and if any phrase, clause, sentence, or provision of this compact is
declared to be contrary to the constitution of any party state or of the
United States or the applicability thereof to any government, agency,
person, or circumstance is held invalid, the validity of the remainder
of this compact and the applicability thereof to any government,
agency, person, or circumstance shall not be affected thereby. If this
compact shall be held contrary to the constitution of any state party
thereto, the compact shall remain in full force and effect as tot he
remaining states and in full force and effect as to the state affected as
to all severable matters.
Section 56-4-1060. As used in the compact, the term `licensing
authority' with reference to this State means the Division of Motor
Vehicles of the Department of Revenue and Taxation. The Division
of Motor Vehicles of the Department of Revenue and Taxation shall
furnish to the appropriate authorities of any other party state any
information or documents reasonably necessary to facilitate the
administration of Articles III, IV, and V of the compact.
Section 56-4-1070. The compact administrator provided for in
chapter VII of the compact shall not be entitled to any additional
compensation on account of his service as such administrator but
shall be entitled to expenses incurred in connection with his duties
and responsibilities as such administrator, in the same manner as for
expenses incurred in connection with any other duties or
responsibilities of his office or employment.
Section 56-4-1080. As used in the compact, with reference to the
State, the term `executive head' shall mean the Governor.
Section 56-4-1100. For the purpose of enforcing item (3) of
Article V of this compact, the Division of Motor Vehicles of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation shall include as part of the form
for application for a driver's license a question whether the applicant
is so licensed, require the surrender of such license before the
granting of such application in accordance with the provisions of this
chapter.
Section 56-4-1110. The executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation shall promulgate regulations which he
considers necessary to carry out the provisions of this chapter.
A person receiving an order of the executive director of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation to suspend or revoke his
driver's license or licensing privilege or to require attendance at a
driver improvement clinic or placing him on probation may, within
thirty days from the date of the order, file a petition of appeal in
accordance with Section 56-4-320.
Section 56-4-1120. The executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation shall, in his discretion, designate persons to act
for the Division of Motor Vehicles of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation as driver improvement analysts to examine and evaluate the
driving records of the problem drivers and to conduct group
interviews, personal interviews, and driver improvement clinics.
Section 56-4-1130. (A) The executive director of the Department
of Revenue and Taxation shall suspend the driver's license or other
privilege to operate a motor vehicle of any person who fails to attend
a scheduled group interview, personal interview, or driver
improvement clinic. This suspension shall remain in effect until such
person applies to the Division of Motor Vehicles of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation in writing for permission to attend a scheduled
group interview, personal interview, or driver improvement clinic,
whichever is applicable, and thereafter until he is rescheduled and
satisfactorily completes the assignment, except as hereinafter
provided.
(B) The executive director of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation may, for good cause shown, cancel or terminate the
suspension or reinstatement requirement, provided the person applies
to the Division of Motor Vehicles of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation in writing for permission to attend a scheduled group
interview, personal interview, or driver improvement clinic,
whichever is applicable. In the event he does not satisfactorily
complete the assignment, the executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation shall forthwith suspend the person's driver's
license or other privilege to operate a motor vehicle as required by
subsection (A) of this section.
Section 56-4-1140. The Division of Motor Vehicles of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation may revoke the registration of a
motor vehicle, trailer, or semitrailer and may revoke the registration
card, license plates, or decals whenever the person to whom the
registration card, license plates, or decals have been issued makes or
permits to be made an unlawful use of any of them or permits their
use by a person not entitled to them, or fails or refuses to pay, within
the time prescribed by law, any fuel taxes or other taxes or fees
required to be collected or authorized to be collected by the Division
of Motor Vehicles of the Department of Revenue and Taxation
regardless of whether the fee applies to that particular vehicle.
Section 56-4-1150. (A) Every registration under this title, unless
otherwise provided, shall expire on the last day of the twelfth month
next succeeding the date of registration. Every registration, unless
otherwise provided, shall be renewed annually on application by the
owner and by payment of the fees required by law, the renewal to
take effect on the first day of the month succeeding the date of
expiration.
(B) All motor vehicles, trailers, and semitrailers registered in the
State shall, at the discretion of the Division of Motor Vehicles of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation, be placed in a system of
registration on a monthly basis to distribute the work of registering
motor vehicles as uniformly as practicable throughout the twelve
months of the year. All such motor vehicles, trailers, and semitrailers,
unless otherwise provided, shall be registered for twelve months. The
registration shall be extended, at the discretion of the executive
director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation, on receipt of
appropriate prorated fees, as required by law, for not less than one
month nor more than eleven months as is necessary to distribute the
registrations as equally as practicable on a monthly basis. The
executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation shall,
on request, assign to any owner or owners of two or more motor
vehicles, trailers, or semitrailers the same registration period. The
expiration date shall be the last day of the twelfth month or the last
day of the designated month. Except for motor vehicles, trailers, and
semitrailers registered for more than one year under subsection (C) of
this section, every registration shall be renewed annually on
application by the owner and by payment of fees required by law, the
renewal to take effect on the first day of the succeeding month.
(C) The executive director of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation may offer, at his discretion, an optional multi-year
registration for all motor vehicles, trailers, and semitrailers except for:
(1) those registered under the International Registration Plan;
and
(2) those registered as uninsured motor vehicles.
When this option is offered and chosen by the registrant, all annual
and twelve-month fees due at the time of registration shall be
multiplied by the number of years or fraction thereof that the vehicle
will be registered.
Section 56-4-1160. All fees collected by the Division of Motor
Vehicles of the Department of Revenue and Taxation shall be paid
into the State Treasury and set aside as a special fund to be used to
meet the expenses of the Division of Motor Vehicles of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation.
Section 56-4-1170. An amount equal to an amount equal to twenty
percent of the fees collected, after refunds, from the registration of
motor vehicles, trailers, and semitrailers pursuant to this chapter,
calculated at the rates in effect on July 1, 1997, shall be transferred
from the special fund established by the provisions of the laws of this
State to a special fund in the State Treasury to be used to meet the
expenses of the Division of Motor Vehicles of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation.
Section 56-4-1180. A person who operates or permits the
operation over any highway in the State of any motor vehicle, trailer,
or semitrailer for the transportation of passengers without first having
paid to the executive director of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation the fee prescribed by the laws of this State shall be guilty of
a misdemeanor.
Section 56-4-1190. A person holding a registration card and
license plate or license plates with decal who disposes of, elects not to
use the vehicle for which it was issued on the highways in the State,
or transfers another valid license plate to the vehicle may surrender,
before the beginning of the registration period, the license plates or
license plates with decals and registration card or provide other
evidence of registration of the vehicle to the executive director of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation with a statement that the
vehicle for which the license plate or license plate with decal was
issued has been disposed of, election has been made not to use the
vehicle on the highways in the State, or another valid license plate has
been transferred to the vehicle and request a refund of the fee paid.
The executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation
shall retain five dollars of the fee to cover the costs incurred in issuing
the plates and processing the refund.
The executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation
shall refund to the applicant a proration, in six-month increments, of
the total cost of the registration and license plates or license plates
with decals if application for the refund is made when there are six or
more months remaining in the registration period. No charge or
deduction shall be assessed for any refund made under this
subsection.
Section 56-4-1200. Upon application on a form prescribed by the
executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation, any
person registering any vehicle whose fees are set under Section
56-4-1220 shall be refunded that portion of the registration fee for a
gross weight in excess of that set forth by the laws of this State.
Section 56-4-1210. Notwithstanding any other provision of law,
the owner of any motor vehicle which is required to be licensed under
Section 56-4-1220 as a for-hire vehicle, may apply for a refund of that
portion of the license fee paid in excess of the fee required if it were
licensed not for-hire, subject to the conditions and limitations set
forth in this section.
If the motor vehicle, while licensed as a for-hire vehicle, is used
exclusively in seasonal operation for the transportation of agricultural,
horticultural, or forest products and seed and fertilizer therefor to and
from the land of the producer, for compensation, the owner may
surrender the for-hire license plates issued at any times before the
expiration of an accumulated total of not more than ninety days. A
refund may be obtained for seventy-five percent of that portion of the
fee paid in excess of the license fee required for private carrier license
plates. The executive director of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation shall refund this surcharge on application on forms
prescribed by him and submitted to the Division of Motor Vehicles of
the Department of Revenue and Taxation within thirty days of the
registration expiration date of the license plates.
Section 56-4-1220. (A) Except as otherwise provided in this
section, the fee for registration of all motor vehicles not designed and
used for the transportation of passengers shall be thirteen dollars plus
an amount determined by the gross weight of the vehicle or
combination of vehicles of which it is a part, when loaded to the
maximum capacity for which it is registered and licensed, according
to the schedule of fees set forth in this section. For each one thousand
pounds of gross weight, or major fraction thereof, for which any such
vehicle is registered, there shall be paid to the executive director of
the Department of Revenue and Taxation the fee indicated in the
following schedule immediately opposite the weight group and under
the classification established by the provisions of the laws of this
State into which such vehicle, or any combination of vehicles of
which it is a part, falls when loaded to the maximum capacity for
which it is registered and licensed. The fee for a pickup or panel
truck shall be twenty-three dollars if its gross weight is four thousand
pounds or less, and twenty-eight dollars if its gross weight is four
thousand one pounds through six thousand, five hundred pounds. The
fee shall be twenty-nine dollars for any motor vehicle with a gross
weight of six thousand, five hundred one pounds through ten
thousand pounds.
Fee Per Thousand Pounds Weight of Gross
Gross Weight Private For Rent or
Groups (pounds) Carriers For Hire
Carriers
10,001 -- 11,000 $2.60 $4.75
11,001 -- 12,000 2.80 4.90
12,001 -- 13,000 3.00 5.15
13,000 -- 14,000 3.20 5.40
14,001 -- 15,000 3.40 5.65
15,001 -- 16,000 3.60 5.90
16,001 -- 17,000 4.00 6.15
17,001 -- 18,000 4.40 6.40
18,001 -- 19,000 4.80 7.50
19,001 -- 20,000 5.20 7.70
20,001 -- 21,000 5.60 7.90
21,001 -- 22,000 6.00 8.10
22,001 -- 23,000 6.40 8.30
23,001 -- 24,000 6.80 8.50
24,001 -- 25,000 6.90 8.70
25,001 -- 26,000 6.95 8.90
26,001 -- 27,000 7.00 9.10
27,001 -- 28,000 7.05 9.30
28,001 -- 29,000 7.10 9.50
29,001 -- 40,000 7.20 9.70
40,001 -- 45,000 7.30 9.90
45,001 -- 50,000 7.50 10.00
50,001 -- 55,000 8.00 12.00
55,001 -- 76,000 10.00 14.00
76,001 -- 80,000 12.00 15.00
For all such motor vehicles exceeding a gross weight of six
thousand, five hundred pounds, an additional fee of five dollars shall
be imposed.
(B) In lieu of registering any motor vehicle referred to in this
section for an entire licensing year, the owner may elect to register the
vehicle only for one or more quarters of a licensing year, and in such
case, the fee shall be twenty-five percent of the annual fee plus five
dollars for each quarter that the vehicle is registered.
(C) When an owner elects to register and license a motor vehicle
under subsection (B) of this section, the provisions of Sections
56-4-1150 and 56-4-1190 shall not apply.
(D) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no vehicle
designed, equipped, and used to tow disabled or inoperable motor
vehicles shall be required to register in accordance with any gross
weight other than the gross weight of the towing vehicle itself,
exclusive of any vehicle being towed.
(E) All registrations and licenses issued for less than a full year
shall expire on the date shown on the license and registration.
Section 56-4-1230. For purposes of this chapter, the following
terms shall have the meanings respectively ascribed to them in this
section:
(1) `Motor vehicle' means a vehicle capable of self-propulsion
which is either:
(a) required to be titled and licensed and for which a license
fee is required to be paid by its owner, or
(b) owned by or assigned to a motor vehicle manufacturer,
distributor, or dealer licensed in the State.
(2) `Insured motor vehicle' means a motor vehicle as to which
there is bodily injury liability insurance and property damage liability
insurance, both in the amounts specified in Section 56-4-940, issued
by an insurance carrier authorized to do business in the State, or as to
which a bond has been given or cash or securities delivered in lieu of
the insurance; or as to which the owner has qualified as a self-insurer
in accordance with the provisions of Section 56-4-30.
(3) `Uninsured motor vehicle' means a motor vehicle as to which
there is no such bodily injury liability insurance and property damage
liability insurance, or no such bond has been given or cash or
securities delivered in lieu thereof, or the owner of which has not so
qualified as a self-insurer.
Section 56-4-1240. In addition to any other fees prescribed by law,
every person registering an uninsured motor vehicle, as defined in
Section 56-4-1230, at the time of registering or re-registering the
uninsured vehicle, shall pay a fee of five hundred dollars; however, if
the uninsured motor vehicle is a is being registered or re-registered
for a period of less than a full year, the uninsured motor vehicle fee
shall be prorated to conform to the registration period. If the vehicle
is a motor vehicle being registered or re-registered as provided in
subsection (B) of Section 56-4-1220, the fee shall be one-fourth of the
annual uninsured motor vehicle fee for each quarter for which the
vehicle is registered. Every person applying for registration of a
motor vehicle and declaring it to be an insured motor vehicle shall,
under the penalties set forth in Section 56-4-1250, execute and furnish
to the executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation
his certificate that the motor vehicle is an insured motor vehicle as
defined in Section 56-4-1240, or that the executive director of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation has issued to its owner, in
accordance with Section 56-4-30, a certificate of self-insurance
applicable to the vehicle sought to be registered. The executive
director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation, or his duly
authorized agent, may verify that the motor vehicle is properly
insured by comparing owner and vehicle identification information on
file at the Division of Motor Vehicles of the Department of Revenue
and Taxation with liability insurance information on the owner and
vehicle transmitted to the Division of Motor Vehicles of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation by any insurance company
licensed to do business in the state as provided in Section
56-4-1230(1). If no record of liability insurance is found, the
Division of Motor Vehicles of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation may require the motor vehicle owner to verify insurance in a
method prescribed by the executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation. The refusal or neglect of any owner within
thirty days to submit the liability insurance information when required
by the executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation
or his duly authorized agent or the electronic notification by the
insurance company or surety company that the policy or bond named
in the certificate of insurance is not in effect, shall require the
Director to suspend any driver's license and all registration certificates
and license plates issued to the owner of the motor vehicle until the
person:
(1) has paid to the executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation a reinstatement fee of two hundred dollars for
the first reinstatement, and three hundred dollars for each subsequent
reinstatement; and
(2) furnishes proof of financial responsibility for the future in the
manner prescribed in Section 56-4-570 et seq. of this chapter. No
order of suspension required by this section shall become effective
until the executive director of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation has offered the person an opportunity for an administrative
hearing to show cause why the order should not be enforced. Notice
of the opportunity for an administrative hearing may be included in
the order of suspension. When three years have elapsed from the
effective date of the suspension required in this section, the executive
director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation may relieve the
person of the requirement of furnishing proof of future financial
responsibility.
The executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation
shall suspend the driver's license and all registration certificates and
license plates of any person on receiving a record of his conviction of
a violation of any provisions of Section 56-4-1250, but the executive
director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation shall dispense
with the suspension when the person is convicted for a violation of
Section 56-4-1250 and the Division of Motor Vehicles of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation's records show conclusively
that the motor vehicle was insured or that the fee applicable to the
registration of an uninsured motor vehicle has been paid by the owner
before the date and time of the alleged offense.
Section 56-4-1250. A person who owns an uninsured motor
vehicle:
(1) licensed in the State;
(2) subject to registration in the State; or
(3) displaying temporary license plates provided for in Section
56-4-1320 who operates or permits the operation of that motor
vehicle without first having paid to the executive director of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation the uninsured motor vehicle fee
required by Section 56-4-1240, to be disposed of as provided by
Section 56-4-1280, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.
A person who is the operator of such an uninsured motor vehicle
and not the titled owner, who knows that the required fee has not been
paid to the executive director of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.
The executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation
or his duly authorized agent, having reason to believe that a motor
vehicle is being operated or has been operated on any specified date,
may require the owner of such motor vehicle to verify insurance in a
method prescribed by the Director as provided for by Section
56-4-1240. The refusal or neglect of the owner who has not, before
the date of operation, paid the uninsured motor vehicle fee required
by Section 56-4-1240 as to such motor vehicle, to provide verification
shall be prima facie evidence that the motor vehicle was an uninsured
motor vehicle at the time of such operation.
A person who falsely verifies insurance to the executive director of
the Department of Revenue and Taxation or gives false evidence that
a motor vehicle sought to be registered is an insured motor vehicle,
shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.
However, the foregoing portions of this section shall not be
applicable if it is established that the owner had good cause to believe
and did believe that such motor vehicle was an insured motor vehicle,
in which event the provisions of Section 56-4-1140 shall be
applicable.
A person who owns an uninsured motor vehicle (i) licensed in
South Carolina, (ii) subject to registration in South Carolina, (iii)
displaying temporary license plates provided for in Section 56-4-1330
and who has not paid the uninsured motor vehicle fee required by
Section 56-4-40 shall immediately surrender the vehicle's
license plates to the Department; a person who fails to do so shall be
guilty of a misdemeanor.
Abstracts of records of conviction, as defined in this title, of any
violation of any of the provisions of this section shall be forwarded to
the executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation as
prescribed by Section 56-4-70.
The executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation
shall suspend the driver's license and all registration certificates and
license plates of any titled owner of an uninsured motor vehicle upon
receiving a record of his conviction of a violation of any provisions of
this section, and he shall not thereafter reissue the driver's license and
the registration certificates and license plates issued in the name of
such person until such person pays the fee applicable to the
registration of an uninsured motor vehicle as prescribed in Section
56-4-1240 and furnishes proof of future financial responsibility as
prescribed by Section 56-4-570 et seq. of this chapter. However,
when three years have elapsed from the date of the suspension herein
required, the Director may relieve such person of the requirement of
furnishing proof of future financial responsibility. When such
suspension results from a conviction for presenting or causing to be
presented to the executive director of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation a false certificate as to whether a motor vehicle is an insured
motor vehicle or false evidence that any motor vehicle sought to be
registered is insured, then the executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation shall not thereafter reissue the driver's license
and the registration certificates and license plates issued in the name
of such person so convicted for a period of one hundred eighty days
from the date of such order of suspension, and only then when all
other provisions of law have been complied with by such person. The
executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation shall
suspend the driver's license of any person who is the operator but not
the titled owner of a motor vehicle upon receiving a record of his
conviction of a violation of any provisions of this section and he shall
not thereafter reissue the driver's license until thirty days from the
date of such order of suspension.
Section 56-4-1260. For the purposes of this chapter, unless a
different meaning is clearly required by the context:
`Conviction' means conviction on a plea of guilty or the
determination of guilt by a jury or by a court though no sentence has
been imposed or, if imposed, has been suspended and includes a
forfeiture of bail or collateral deposited to secure appearance in court
of the defendant unless the forfeiture has been vacated, in any case of
a charge, the conviction of which requires or authorizes the Director
to suspend or revoke the license of the defendant;
`Insured' means the person in whose name a motor vehicle liability
policy has been issued, as defined in this section, and any other
person insured under its terms;
`Judgment' means any judgment for $200 or more arising out of a
motor vehicle accident because of injury to or destruction of property,
including loss of its use, or any judgment for damages, including
damages for care and loss of services, because of bodily injury to or
death of any person arising out of the ownership, use or operation of
any motor vehicle, including any judgment for contribution between
joint tort-feasors arising out of any motor vehicle accident which
occurred within the State, except a judgment rendered against the
State, which has become final by expiration without appeal in the
time within which an appeal might be perfected or by final affirmance
on appeal rendered by a court of competent jurisdiction of the state or
any other state or court of the United States or Canada or its
provinces;
`Motor vehicle' means every vehicle which is self-propelled or
designed for self-propulsion and every vehicle drawn by or designed
to be drawn by a motor vehicle and includes every device in, on or by
which any person or property is or can be transported or drawn on a
highway, except devices moved by human or animal power and
devices used exclusively on rails or tracks, and vehicles used in the
State but not required to be licensed by the State;
`Motor vehicle liability policy' means an owner's or a driver's
policy of liability insurance certified, as provided in this chapter, by
an insurance carrier licensed to do business in the State or by an
insurance carrier not licensed to do business in the State on
compliance with the provisions of this chapter, as proof of financial
responsibility.
Section 56-4-1270. When it appears to the executive director of
the Department of Revenue and Taxation from the records of his
office that an uninsured motor vehicle as defined in Section
56-4-1230, subject to registration in the State, is involved in a
reportable accident in the State resulting in death, injury, or property
damage with respect to which motor vehicle the owner thereof has not
paid the uninsured motor vehicle fee as prescribed in Section
56-4-1240, the executive director of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation shall, in addition to enforcing the applicable provisions of
Section 56-4-390 et seq. of this chapter, suspend such owner's driver's
license and all of his license plates and registration certificates until
such person has complied with those provisions of law and has paid
to the executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation
a reinstatement fee as provided by the laws of this State, to be
disposed of as provided by Section 56-4-1280, with respect to the
motor vehicle involved in the accident and furnishes proof of future
financial responsibility in the manner prescribed in Section 56-4-570
et seq. of this chapter. However, no order of suspension required by
this section shall become effective until the executive director of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation has offered the person an
opportunity for an administrative hearing to show cause why the
order should not be enforced. Notice of the opportunity for an
administrative hearing may be included in the order of suspension.
However, when three years have elapsed from the effective date of
the suspension herein required, the executive director of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation may relieve such person of the
requirement of furnishing proof of future financial responsibility.
The presentation by a person subject to the provisions of this section
of a certificate of insurance, executed by an agent or representative of
an insurance company qualified to do business in this State, showing
that on the date and at the time of the accident the vehicle was an
insured motor vehicle as herein defined, or, presentation by such
person of evidence that the additional fee applicable to the
registration of an uninsured motor vehicle had been paid to the
Division of Motor Vehicles of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation before the date and time of the accident, shall be sufficient
bar to the suspension provided for in this section.
Section 56-4-1280. Whenever any proof of financial responsibility
filed by any person as required by this chapter no longer fulfills the
purpose for which required, the executive director of the Department
of Revenue and Taxation shall require other proof of financial
responsibility as required by this chapter and shall suspend such
person's driver's license, registration, certificates, and license plates
and decals pending the furnishing of proof as required.
A person whose driver's license or registration certificates, or
license plates and decals have been suspended as provided in this
chapter and have not been reinstated shall immediately return every
such license, registration certificate, and set of license plates and
decals held by him to the executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation. A person failing to comply with this
requirement shall be guilty of a traffic infraction and, upon
conviction, shall be punished as provided in Section 56-4-20.
The executive director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation
is authorized to take possession of any license, registration certificate,
or set of license plates and decals on their suspension under the
provisions of this chapter or to direct any police officer to take
possession of and return them to the office of the executive director of
the Department of Revenue and Taxation.
Section 56-4-1290. All funds collected by the executive director of
the Department of Revenue and Taxation under the provisions of this
chapter shall be paid into the State Treasury and held in a special fund
to be known as the `Uninsured Motorists Fund' to be disbursed as
provided by law. The executive director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation may expend monies from such funds, for the
administration of this chapter, in accordance with the General
Appropriations Act.
Section 56-4-1300. Ordinances enacted by local authorities
pursuant to this chapter may incorporate appropriate provisions of this
title into such ordinance by reference. Nothing contained in this title
shall require the reenactment of ordinances heretofore validly
adopted.
Section 56-4-1310. All dealer records regarding employees, lists
of vehicles in inventory for sale, resale, or on consignment, vehicle
purchases, sales, trades, and transfers of ownership; collections of
taxes, titling, uninsured motor vehicle, and registration fees, odometer
disclosure statements, records of permanent dealer registration plates
assigned to the dealer and temporary transport plates and temporary
certificates of ownership, and other records required by the Division
of Motor Vehicles of the Department of Revenue and Taxation shall
be maintained on the premises of the licensed location. The executive
director of the Department of Revenue and Taxation may, on written
request by a dealer, permit his records to be maintained at a location
other than the premises of the licensed location for good cause shown.
All dealer records shall be preserved in original form for five years in
a manner that permits systematic retrieval. Certain records may be
maintained on a computerized record-keeping system with the prior
approval of the executive director of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation.
Section 56-4-1320. (A) Every motor vehicle dealer shall
complete, in duplicate, a buyer's order for each sale or exchange of a
motor vehicle. A copy of the buyer's order form shall be made
available to a prospective buyer during the negotiating phase of a sale
and before any sales agreement. The completed original shall be
retained for four years in accordance with Section 56-4-1300, and a
duplicate copy shall be delivered to the purchaser at the time of sale
or exchange. A buyer's order shall include:
(1) the name and address of the person to whom the vehicle
was sold or traded;
(2) the date of the sale or trade;
(3) the name and address of the motor vehicle dealer selling or
trading the vehicle;
(4) the make, model year, vehicle identification number, and
body style of the vehicle;
(5) the sale price of the vehicle;
(6) the amount of any cash deposit made by the buyer;
(7) a description of any vehicle used as a trade-in and the
amount credited the buyer for the trade-in. The description of the
trade-in shall be the same as outlined in item (4) of this subsection;
(8) the amount of any sales and use tax, title fee, uninsured
motor vehicle fee, registration fee, or other fee required by law for
which the buyer is responsible and the dealer has collected. Each tax
and fee shall be individually listed and identified;
(9) the net balance due at settlement;
(10) any item designated as `processing fee', and the amount
charged by the dealer, if any, for processing the transaction. As used
in this section processing includes obtaining title and license plates
for the purchaser;
(11) any item designated as `dealer's business license tax', and
the amount charged by the dealer, if any.
If the transaction does not include a policy of motor vehicle
liability insurance, the seller shall stamp or mark on the face of the
bill of sale in boldface letters no smaller than eighteen point type the
following words: `No Liability Insurance Included'.
A completed buyer's order when signed by both buyer and seller
may constitute a bill of sale.
(B) The executive director of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation shall approve a buyer's order form and each dealer shall file
with each license application, or renewal, its buyer's order form, on
which the processing fee amount is stated.
(C) If a processing fee is charged, that fact and the amount of the
processing fee shall be disclosed by the dealer. Disclosure shall be by
placing a clear and conspicuous sign in the public sales area of the
dealership. The sign shall be no smaller than eight and one-half
inches by eleven inches and the print shall be no smaller than one-half
inch, and in a form as approved by the executive director of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation.
Section 56-4-1330. The Division of Motor Vehicles of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation may, subject to the limitation
and conditions set forth in this chapter, deliver temporary license
plates designed by the Division of Motor Vehicles of the Department
of Revenue and Taxation to any dealer licensed under this chapter
who applies for at least ten sets of plates and who encloses with his
application a fee of one dollar for each set applied for. The
application shall be made on a form prescribed and furnished by the
Division of Motor Vehicles of the Department of Revenue and
Taxation. Dealers, subject to the limitations and conditions set forth
in this chapter, may issue temporary license plates to owners of
vehicles. The owners shall comply with the provisions of this chapter
and Sections 56-4-1230, 56-4-1240, and 56-4-1250. Dealers issuing
temporary license plates may do so free of charge, but if they charge a
fee for issuing temporary plates, the fee shall be no more than the fee
charged the dealer by the Division of Motor Vehicles of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation under this section.
Section 56-4-1340. The Executive Director of the Department of
Revenue and Taxation shall make an annual report to the General
Assembly on the status of the uninsured motorist population, and on
its Insurance Monitoring Program activities including information on
the effectiveness of South Carolina's motor vehicle insurance laws,
educational efforts to inform and enhance the public's understanding
of insurance requirements and the limitations of the uninsured
motorist fee, and efforts to reduce the number of uninsured motorists
on South Carolina roadways.
SECTION 3. Title 56 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
"Chapter 8
Regulation of Rates Generally
Section 56-8-10. (A) This chapter shall be liberally construed to
achieve the purposes stated in subsection (B) of this section.
(B) The purposes of this chapter are to:
(1) protect policyholders and the public against the adverse
effects of excessive, inadequate or unfairly discriminatory rates;
(2) encourage independent action by insurers and reasonable
price competition among insurers as the most effective way to
produce rates that conform to the standards of item (1);
(3) provide formal regulatory controls for use if independent
action and price competition fail;
(4) authorize cooperative action among insurers in the rate
making process, and regulate such cooperation in order to prevent
practices that tend to create monopoly or to lessen or destroy
competition;
(5) provide rates that are responsive to competitive market
conditions and improve the availability of insurance in this State; and
(6) regulate the business of insurance in a manner that will
preclude application of federal antitrust laws.
Section 56-8-20. As used in this chapter:
`Classification system' or `classification' means the plan, system, or
arrangement for grouping risks with similar characteristics or a
specified class of risk by recognizing differences in exposure to
hazards.
`Experience rating' means a statistical procedure utilizing past risk
experience to produce a prospective premium credit, debit, or unity
modification.
`Market segment' means any line or class of insurance or, if it is
described in general terms, any subdivision of insurance or any class
or risks or combination of classes.
`Prospective loss costs' means historical aggregate losses and loss
adjustment expenses projected through development of their ultimate
value and through trending to a future point in time. Prospective loss
costs do not include provisions for profit or expenses other than loss
adjustment expenses.
`Rate service organization' means any entity, including its affiliates
or subsidiaries, which either has two or more member insurers, other
than a joint underwriting association under Section 56-8-200, which
assists insurers in ratemaking or filing by (i) collecting, compiling,
and furnishing loss statistics: (ii) recommending, making, or filing
prospective loss costs or supplementary rate information; or (iii)
advising about rate questions, except as an attorney giving legal
advice. Two or more insurers having a common ownership or
operating in this State under common management or control
constitute a single insurer for purposes of this definition.
`Statistical plan' means the plan, system, or arrangement used in
collecting data for rate making or other purposes.
`Supplementary rate information' includes any manual or plan of
rates, experience rating plan, statistical plan, classification, rating
schedule, minimum premium, or minimum premium rule, policy fee,
rating rule, rate-related underwriting rule, and any other information
not otherwise inconsistent with the purposes of this chapter required
by the Department of Insurance.
`Supporting data' includes:
(1) the experience and judgment of the filer and, to the extent the
filer wishes or the Department of Insurance requires, the experience
and judgment of other insurers or rate service organizations;
(2) the filer's interpretation of any statistical data relied upon;
(3) descriptions of the actuarial and statistical methods employed
in setting the rates; and
(4) any other relevant information required by the Department of
Insurance.
Section 56-8-30. (A) Except as provided in subsection (B) of this
section, this chapter applies to the classes of insurance defined in the
laws of this State.
(B) This chapter does not apply to:
(1) insurance written through the South Carolina Workers'
Compensation Plan;
(2) insurance on a specific risk as provided in Section
56-12-280;
(3) reinsurance, other than joint reinsurance, to the extent
stated in Section 56-8-200;
(4) life insurance as defined by the laws of this State;
(5) annuities as defined by the laws of this State;
(6) accident and sickness insurance as defined by the laws of
this State;
(7) title insurance as defined by the laws of this State;
(8) insurance of vessels or craft used primarily in a trade or
business, their cargoes, marine builders' risks and marine protection
and indemnity;
(9) insurance against loss of or damage to hulls of aircraft,
including their accessories and equipment, or against liability, other
than workers' compensation and employers' liability, arising out of the
ownership, maintenance or use of aircraft;
(10) automobile bodily injury and property damage liability
insurance issued to: (i) any motor carrier of property who is required
to file such insurance with the Division of Motor Vehicles of the
Department of Revenue and Taxation pursuant to the laws of this
State or any amendment to that section; or (ii) any motor carrier of
property required by the laws of this State;
(11) uninsured motorist coverage required by Section
56-2-310(A);
(12) insurance written through the South Carolina Automobile
Insurance Plan. However, Section 56-12-60 shall apply to insurance
written through the Plan;
(13) this chapter shall not apply to any class of insurance written
(i) by any mutual assessment property and casualty insurance
company organized and operating under the laws of this State and
doing business only in this State, or (ii) by any mutual insurance
company or association organized under the laws of this State,
conducting business only in this State, and issuing only policies
providing for perpetual insurance.
Section 56-8-40. The Department of Insurance may by rule
exempt any person, class of persons, or market segment from any or
all of the provisions of this chapter to the extent that it finds their
application unnecessary to achieve the purposes of this chapter.
Section 56-8-50. (A) Rates for the classes of insurance to which
this chapter applies shall not be excessive, inadequate or unfairly
discriminatory. All rates and all changes and amendments to rates to
which this chapter applies for use in this State shall consider loss
experience and other factors within South Carolina if relevant and
actuarially sound; provided, other data, including countrywide,
regional or other state data, may be considered where such data is
relevant and where a sound actuarial basis exists for considering data
other than South Carolina-specific data.
(1) No rate shall be held to be excessive unless it is
unreasonably high for the insurance provided and a reasonable degree
of competition does not exist in the area with respect to the
classification to which the rate applies.
(2) No rate shall be held inadequate unless it is unreasonably
low for the insurance provided and (i) continued use of it would
endanger solvency of the insurer, or (ii) the rate is unreasonably low
for the insurance provided and use of the rate by the insurer has or, if
continued, will have the effect of destroying competition or creating a
monopoly.
(3) No rate shall be unfairly discriminatory if a different rate is
charged for the same coverage and (i) the rate differential is based on
sound actuarial principles or (ii) is related to actual or reasonably
anticipated experience.
(B)(1) In determining whether rates comply with the standards of
subsection (A) of this section, separate consideration shall be given to
(i) past and prospective loss experience within and outside this State,
(ii) conflagration or catastrophe hazards,(iii) a reasonable margin for
underwriting profit and contingencies, (iv) dividends, savings or
unabsorbed premium deposits allowed or returned by insurers to their
policyholders, members or subscribers, (v) past and prospective
expenses both countrywide and those standards and procedures
utilized by the insurer, (vii) investment income earned or realized by
insurers from their unearned premium and loss reserve and the
Department of Insurance may give separate consideration to
investment income earned on surplus funds, and (viii) all other
relevant factors within and outside this State. When actual experience
or data does not exist, the Department of Insurance may consider
estimates.
(2) In the case of fire insurance rates, consideration shall be
given to the experience of the fire insurance business during a period
of not less than the most recent five-year period for which such
experience is available.
(C) For the classes of insurance to which this chapter applies,
including insurance against contingent, consequential and indirect
losses as defined in previous law (i) the systems of expense
provisions included in the rates for use by any insurer or group of
insurers may differ from those of other insurers or groups of insurers
to reflect the requirements of the operating methods of any such
insurer or group for any class of insurance, or with respect to any
subdivision or combination of insurance for which separate expense
provisions are applicable, and (ii) risks may be grouped by
classifications for establishment of rates and minimum premiums.
Classification rates may be modified to produce rates for individual
risks in accordance with rating plans that establish standards for
measuring variations in hazards, expense provisions, or both. The
standards may measure any difference between risks that can be
demonstrated to have a probable effect upon losses or expenses.
Notwithstanding any other provision of this subsection, except as
permitted by Section 56-8-120, each member of a rate service
organization shall use the uniform classification system, uniform
experience rating plan, and uniform statistical plan of its designated
rate service organization in the provision of insurance defined as law.
(D) No insurer shall use any information pertaining to any motor
vehicle conviction or accident to produce increased or surcharged
rates above their filed manual rates for individual risks for a period
longer than thirty-six months. This period shall begin no later than
twelve months after the date of the conviction or accident.
(E) Each authorized insurer subject to the provisions of this
chapter may file with the Department of Insurance an expense
reduction plan that permits variations in expense provisions. Such
filing may contain provisions permitting agents to reduce their
commission resulting in an appropriate reduction in premium.
Nothing in this section shall be construed to require an agent to
reduce a commission, nor may an insurer unreasonably refuse to
reduce a premium due to a commission reduction as permitted by its
filed expense reduction plan.
Section 56-8-60. (A) No insurer may increase its insured's
premium or may charge points under a safe driver insurance plan to
its insured as a result of a motor vehicle accident unless the accident
was caused either wholly or partially by the named insured, a resident
of the same household, or other customary operator. No insurer may
increase its insured's premium or may charge points to its insured
where the operator causing the accident is a principal operator insured
under a separate policy. Any insurer increasing a premium or
charging points as a result of a motor vehicle accident shall notify the
named insured in writing and in the same notification shall inform the
named insured that he may appeal the decision of the insurer to the
Director of Insurance if he feels his premium has increased or he has
been charged points as a result of a motor vehicle accident without
just cause.
(B) An appeal of a premium increase or of a point charge by the
named insured shall be requested in writing within sixty days of
receipt of the notice of any premium adjustment or of any point
charge resulting from a motor vehicle accident. Upon receipt of the
request, the Director of Insurance shall promptly initiate a review to
determine whether the premium increase or the point charge is
justified. The premium increase or the point charge shall remain in
full force and effect until the Director of Insurance rules that the
premium be adjusted or the point charge be removed because it is not
justified, or because the point charge was not assigned in accord with
the insurer's filed rating plan, and so notifies the insurer and the
insured. Upon receipt of the ruling, the insurer shall promptly refund
any premiums paid as a direct result of the premium increase or the
point charge, and shall adjust future billings to reflect the Director of
Insurance's ruling.
(C) On and after January 1, 1998, no insurer shall assign points
under a safe-driver insurance policy to any vehicle other than the
vehicle customarily driven by the operator responsible for incurring
points.
(D) If an insured is a law enforcement officer, as defined by the
laws of this State, no insurer may increase such insured's personal
insurance premium or may charge points under a safe driver insurance
plan to such insured as a result of an accident which occurred in the
course of the insured's employment as a law enforcement officer
while the insured was driving a motor vehicle provided by the
employing law enforcement agency and was engaged in a law
enforcement activity at the time of such accident.
Section 56-8-70. (A) The Department of Insurance shall submit a
report or reports to the General Assembly, at least biennially,
concerning the lines and subclassifications of insurance defined by
the laws of this State, including those lines and subclassifications
containing as a part thereof insurance coverage as defined in those
sections,insuring a commercial entity. The report or reports shall
indicate (i) the level of competition among insurers in South Carolina
for those lines or subclassifications, (ii) the availability of those lines
or subclassifications of insurance and (iii) the affordability of those
lines or subclassifications of insurance.
(B) The Department of Insurance's report or reports to the General
Assembly shall also designate all insurance lines or subclassification
defined by the laws of this State, including those lines or
subclassifications of insurance containing as a part thereof insurance
coverage defined in those sections, to believe that competition may
not be an effective regulator of rates.
(C) The report or reports to the General assembly pursuant to this
section shall be made no later than December 31 of the second year of
any biennium.
(D) A copy of each report made pursuant to this section shall be
sent by the Department of Insurance to the Department of Consumer
Affairs. Each report shall be a matter of public record.
(E) Those lines and subclassifications designated pursuant to
subsection (B) of this section shall be reviewed by the Department of
Insurance for the purpose of determining whether competition is an
effective regulator of rates for each such hearings for that purpose no
later than September 30 of the year immediately following the year
the report or reports are submitted to the General Assembly pursuant
to subsection (C) of this section at which it shall hear evidence
offered by any interested party. In determining whether competition
is an effective regulator of rates for each designated line or
subclassification, the Department of Insurance may consider such
factors as it considers relevant to such determination including the
following factors:
(1) the number of insurers actually writing insurance within the
line or subclassification.
(2) the extent and nature of rate differentials among insurers
within the line or subclassification.
(3) the respective market share of insurers actually writing
insurance within the line or subclassification, and changes in market
share compared with previous years.
(4) the ease of entry into the line or subclassification by
insurers not currently writing such line or subclassification.
(5) the degree to which rates within the line or subclassification
are affected by the filings of rate service organizations.
(6) the extent to which insurers licensed to write the line or
subclassification have sought to write or obtain new business within
the line or subclassification within the past year.
(7) whether a pattern of unreasonably high rates exists within
the line or subclassification in relation to losses, expenses and
investment income.
(8) such other factors as the Department of Insurance considers
relevant to the determination of whether competition is an effective
regulator of rates within the line or subclassification.
(F) Notwithstanding any designation made by the Department of
Insurance pursuant to subsection (B) of this section, the Department
of Insurance may, upon petition of any interested party, hold a
hearing to determine whether, under the factors set forth in subsection
(E) of this section, competition is not an effective regulator of rates
for lines or subclassifications not so designated.
(G) `Commercial entity' as used in this section shall mean any (i)
sole proprietorship, partnership or corporation, (ii) unincorporated
association or (iii) the State, a county, city, town, or an authority,
board, commission, sanitation, soil and water, planning or other
district, public service corporation owned, operated or controlled by
the State, a locality or other local governmental authority.
(H) The Department of Insurance shall adopt such rules and
regulations including provision for identification from time to time of
subclassifications of insurance necessary to implement the provisions
of this section.
Section 56-8-80. (A) All insurers licensed to write the classes of
insurance defined by the laws of this State, or to write policies of
insurance that include as a part thereof the classes of insurance
defined in the laws of this State, shall file a report showing their
direct experience in the State attributable to all lines or
subclassification of liability insurance designated by the Department
of Insurance in accordance with of Section 56-8-70(B); provided, any
such insurer that did not actually write any such designated line or
subclassification of insurance in the State during the reporting period
shall be required only to report that it wrote no such insurance. Such
reports may be filed on an individual insurer basis by a licensed rate
service organization designated by the insurer, provided that such
filing shall include all of the information otherwise required from the
insurer. Failure to file a substantially complete report shall constitute
a failure to file the report.
(B) Each supplemental report shall be made pursuant to the rules
and regulations established by the Department of Insurance and shall,
unless otherwise provided by the Department of Insurance, be in a
machine-readable format prescribed by the Department of Insurance.
Each report shall include, to the extent directed by the Department of
Insurance, the following information:
(1) number of exposures;
(2) direct premiums written;
(3) direct premiums earned;
(4) direct losses paid identified by such period as the
Department of Insurance may require;
(5) number of claims paid;
(6) direct losses incurred during the year, direct losses incurred
during the year which occurred and were paid during the year, and
direct losses incurred during the year which were reported during the
year but were not yet paid;
(7) any loss development factor used and supporting data
thereon;
(8) number of claims unpaid; and
(9) such other relevant information as may be required by the
Department of Insurance.
The term `number of exposures' as used in this subsection shall
mean the unit of measure of risk which is used by the insurer for the
designated line or subclassification. Each insurer shall indicate in its
report the unit of measure, e.g., number of individuals insured,
number of entities insured, payroll, square fee, etc., used by such
insurer for each line and subclassification. Such insurer shall use
such unit consistently in all reports required by this section.
In completing the supplemental report, the methods by which an
insurer assigns or allocates premiums, losses, expenses, investment
income, and any other components of its insurance business to lines
or subclassifications in South Carolina shall be in accordance with the
appropriate annual statement instructions and the accounting practices
and procedures manuals adopted by the National Association of
Insurance Commissioners (NAIC). Such assignment and allocation
methods used by an insurer in completing the supplemental report
shall be in accordance with the NAIC Examiners' Handbook and shall
be the same methods used by the insurer in preparing the annual
statement and insurance expense exhibit as required by the laws of
this State. The Department of Insurance may prescribe, but is not
limited to prescribing, assignment and allocation methods addressed
in the NAIC Examiner's Handbook, the annual statement instructions,
or the accounting practices and procedures manuals adopted by the
NAIC.
(C) Upon designating any line or subclassification pursuant to
Section 56-8-70(B), the Department of Insurance shall establish the
date by which such supplemental report shall be filed with the
Department of Insurance.
(D) The requirements of this section shall not relieve any insurer
of any reporting requirement to which it is otherwise subject in the
absence of this section.
Section 56-8-90. (A) Each authorized insurer subject of the
provisions of this chapter shall file with the Department of Insurance
all rates and supplementary rate information and all changes and
amendments to the rates and supplementary rate information made by
it for use in this State. Each rate service organization licensed under
Section 56-8-180 that has been designated by an insurer for the filing
of prospective loss costs or supplementary rate information under
Section 56-8-120 shall file with the Department of Insurance all
prospective loss costs or supplementary rate information and all
changes and amendments to the prospective loss costs or
supplementary rate information made by it for use in this State.
Prospective loss costs and supplementary rate information for
insurance as defined by the laws of this State must comply with the
provisions of Section 56-8-170 before being used by an insurer in a
filing establishing or changing its rates. Both insurer and rate service
organization shall file as follows:
(1) in cases where the Department of Insurance has made a
determination under the provisions of Section 56-8-70(E) that
competition is an effective regulator of rates within the lines or
subclassifications designated by the Department of Insurance, or in
the case of all other lines or subclassifications subject of this chapter
and not designated under Section 56-8-70(B), such rates,
supplementary rate information, changes and amendments to rates
and supplementary rate information shall be filed with the
Department of Insurance on or before the date they become effective.
(2) where the Department of Insurance has made a
determination pursuant to Section 56-8-70(E) or (F) that competition
is not an effective regulator of rates for a line or subclassification of
insurance, such rates, supplementary rate information, changes and
amendments to rates and supplementary information for that line or
subclassification shall be filed in accordance with and shall be subject
to the provisions of Section 56-8-160.
(3) for any line or subclassification that has been designated
pursuant to Section 56-8-70(B), insurers shall continue to file their
rates in the same manner then applicable to the line or
subclassification until a final determination is made by the
Department of Insurance pursuant to Section 56-8-70(E) as to
whether competition is an effective regulator rates.
(B) Each insurer whose rate filings are subject to item (2) of
subsection (A) of this section shall submit with each rate filing, as
considered appropriate by, and to the extent directed by the
Department of Insurance, the following information relating to
experience in South Carolina and countrywide;
(1) number of exposures;
(2) direct premiums written;
(3) direct premiums earned;
(4) direct losses paid identified by such period as the
Department of Insurance may require;
(5) number of claims paid;
(6) direct losses incurred during the year, direct losses incurred
during the year which occurred and were paid during the year, and
direct losses incurred during the year which were reported during the
year but were not yet paid;
(7) any loss development factor used and supporting data
thereon;
(8) number of claims unpaid;
(9) loss adjustment expenses paid identified by such period as
the Department of Insurance may require;
(10) loss adjustment expenses incurred during the year, loss
adjustment expenses incurred during the year for losses which
occurred and were paid during the year, and loss adjustment expenses
incurred during the year for losses which were reported during the
year but were not paid;
(11) other expenses incurred, separately by category of expense,
excluding loss adjustment expenses;
(12) investment income on assets related to reserve and
allocated surplus accounts;
(13) total return on allocated surplus;
(14) any loss trend factor used and supporting data thereon;
(15) any expense trend factor used and supporting data thereon;
(16) such premium, loss, and expense data reported on a net
basis as the Department of Insurance considers necessary for its
consideration of a rate filing where coverage to which the rate filing
applies is reinsured by another company (i) under common
management, (ii) under common controlling ownership, or (iii) under
other common effective legal control as defined by the laws of this
State; and
(17) such other information as may be required by rule of the
Department of Insurance, including statewide rate information
presented separately for South Carolina and each state wherein the
insurer writes the line, subline or rating classification for which the
rate filing is made and which the Department of Insurance considers
necessary for its consideration.
(C) Where actual experience does not exist or is not credible, the
Department of Insurance may allow the use of estimates for the
information required by items 1 through 15 of subsection (B) of this
section and may require the insurer to submit such information as the
Department of Insurance considers necessary to support such
estimates.
(D) Prospective loss costs filings and supplementary rate
information filed by rate service organizations shall not contain final
rates, minimum premiums, or minimum premium rules.
(E) No insurer shall make or issue an insurance contract or policy
of a class to which this chapter applies, except in accordance with the
rate and supplementary rate information filings that are in effect for
the insurer.
(F) The Department of Insurance shall develop a uniform
statement or format for requesting the information specified in
subsection (B) of this section. Such statement or format shall be
utilized by all insurers for all rate filings.
(G) For insurance as defined by the laws of this State any
authorized insurer that does not rely on prospective loss costs or
supplementary rate information filed by a rate service organization
shall comply with the filing provision of Section 56-8-150 as if
competition was not an effective regulator of rates.
Section 56-8-100. Notwithstanding any other provision of this
chapter, if an insurer or its agent provides a written quotation for
insurance to an insured or applicant for insurance and the rate filing in
effect for the insurer results in a premium increase of ten percent or
more over the quoted premium, the insured or applicant may, within
fifteen days of written notification of the increase by the insurer or its
agent, request cancellation of the contract or policy. The insurer
shall, upon receipt of such request, cancel the contract or policy
calculating the earned premium pro rata using the premium originally
quoted by the insurer or its agent. Nothing in this section shall apply
to any increase in premium which is the result of incorrect
information furnished by the insured, or applicant or information
omitted by the insured or applicant.
Section 56-8-110. Each filing and all supplementary rate
information filed under this chapter shall be open to public
inspection. Copies may be obtained by any person on request and
upon payment of a reasonable charge for the copies. Where feasible,
the Department of Insurance shall compile and make available to the
public the lists of rates charged by insurers for or in connection with
the insurance contracts or policies to which this chapter applies so as
to inform the public of price competition among insurers.
Section 56-8-120. (A) An insurer shall establish rates and
supplementary rate information for any market segment based on the
factors in Section 56-8-50. A rate service organization shall establish
prospective loss costs and supplementary rate information for any
market segment based on the factors in Section 56-8-50. An insurer
may use supplementary rate information prepared by a rate service
organization and may use prospective loss costs determined by the
rate service organization with modification for its own expense and
profit. The insurer may modify the prospective loss costs based on its
own loss experience as the credibility of that loss experience allows.
(B) An insurer may discharge its obligation to file supplementary
rate information under Section 56-8-90(A) by giving notice to the
Department of Insurance that it uses supplementary rate information
prepared and filed with the Department of Insurance by a designated
rate service organization of which it is a member, subscriber, or
service purchaser. The Department of Insurance may by order require
an insurer to provide information in addition to that filed by the rate
service organization. The insurer's supplementary rate information
shall be that filed from time to time by the rate service organization,
including any amendments to the supplementary rate information,
subject to modifications filed by the insurer.
(C) Every insurer shall adhere to the uniform classification
system, uniform experience rating plan, and uniform statistical plan
approved by the Department of Insurance in the provision of
insurance defined by the laws of this State. An insurer my develop
subclassifications of the uniform classification system upon which
rates for insurance defined by the laws of this State may be made;
however, such subclassification must first be filed with and approved
by the Department of Insurance. An insurer filing such
subclassifications must certify to the Department of Insurance that the
data it produces can be reported in a manner consistent with the
uniform statistical plan and uniform classification system of its
designated rate service organization.
Section 56-8-130. The Department of Insurance may investigate
and determine, (i) upon its own motion, (ii) at the request of any
citizen or any interested party in this State, or (iii) at the request of
any insurer subject to this chapter, whether rates in this State for the
classes of insurance to which this chapter applies are excessive,
inadequate or unfairly discriminatory or whether loss experience and
other factors within the State are being properly used to determine the
rates. In any such investigation and determination the Department of
Insurance shall give separate consideration to those factors in the
manner specified in Section 56-8-50.
Section 56-8-140. (A) If the Department of Insurance finds,
after providing notice and opportunity to be heard, that a rate is not in
compliance with Section 56-8-50, or is in violation of Section
56-8-200, the Department of Insurance shall order that the use of the
rate be discontinued for any policy issued or renewed after a date
specified in the order. The order may provide for rate modifications.
The order may also provide for refund of the excessive portion of
premiums collected (i) during a period not exceeding one year before
the date of any request or motion for review made pursuant to Section
56-8-130 and (ii) during all periods subsequent to any such request or
motion until the date of the order. If a refund is ordered, the order
may provide for the payment of interest thereon at a rate set by the
Department of Insurance. Except as provided in subsection (B) of
this section, the order shall be issued within thirty days after the close
of the hearing or within another reasonable time extension fixed by
the Department of Insurance.
(B) Pending a hearing, the Department of Insurance may order the
suspension prospectively of a rate filed by an insurer and reimpose
the last previous rate in effect if the Department of Insurance has
reasonable cause to believe that: (i) a reasonable degree of
competition does not exist in the area with respect to the classification
to which the rate applies, (ii) the filed rate will have the effect of
destroying competition or creating a monopoly, (iii) use of the rate
will endanger the solvency of the insurer, or (iv) South Carolina loss
experience and other factors specifically applicable to the State have
not been properly used to determine the rates. If the Department of
Insurance suspends a rate under this provision, it shall hold a hearing
within fifteen business days after issuing the order suspending the rate
unless the right to a hearing is waived by the insurer. In addition, the
Department of Insurance shall make its determination and issue its
order as to whether the rate shall be disapproved within fifteen
business days after the close of the hearing.
(C) At any hearing held under the provisions of subsection (A) or
(B) of this section, the insurer shall have the burden of justifying the
rate in question. All determinations of the Department of Insurance
shall be on the basis of findings of fact and conclusions of law. If the
Department disapproves a rate, the disapproval shall take effect not
less than fifteen days after its order and the last previous rate in effect
for the insurer shall be reimposed for a period of one year unless the
Department of Insurance approves a substitute or interim rate under
the provisions of subsection (D) or (E) of this section.
(D) For one year after the effective date of a disapproval order, no
rate promulgated to replace a rate disapproved under the order may be
used until it has been filed with the Department of Insurance and not
disapproved within sixty days after filing.
(E) Whenever an insurer has no legally effective rates as a result
of the Department of Insurance's disapproval of rates or other act, the
Department of Insurance shall, on the insurer's request, specify
interim rates for the insurer that are high enough to protect the
interests of all parties. The Department of Insurance may order that a
specified portion of the premiums be placed in an escrow account
approved by it. When new rates become legally effective, the
Department of Insurance shall order the escrowed funds or any
overcharge in the interim rates to be distributed appropriately, except
that refunds to policyholders that are de minimis shall not be required.
Section 56-8-150. (A) The Department of Insurance may by
order require that a particular insurer file any or all of its rates and
supplementary rate information thirty days before their effective date,
if the Department of Insurance finds, after providing notice and
opportunity to be heard, that the protection of the interests of the
insurer's policyholders and the public in this State requires closer
supervision of the insurer's rates because of the insurer's financial
condition or repetitive filing of rates that are not in compliance with
Section 56-8-50. The Department of Insurance may extend the
waiting period of any filing for thirty additional days by written
notice to the insurer before the first thirty-day period expires.
(B) The filing shall be approved or disapproved during the
waiting period or during its extension. If the filing is not disapproved
before the expiration of the waiting period or of its extension, the
filing is considered to meet the requirements of this chapter, subject
to the possibility of subsequent disapproval under Section 56-8-140.
(C) Any insurer affected by an order entered under subsection (A)
of this section may request a rehearing by the Department of
Insurance after the expiration of twelve months from the date of the
Department of Insurance's former order.
Section 56-8-160. (A) If the Department of Insurance finds in
any class, line, or subdivision of insurance, or in any rating class or
rating territory or for insurance as defined by the laws of this State
that (i) competition is not an effective regulator of the rates charged,
(ii) South Carolina loss experience and other factors specifically
applicable to the State have not been properly used to determine the
rate, (iii) a substantial number of insurers are competing irresponsibly
through the rates charged, or (iv) there are widespread violations of
this chapter, it shall promulgate a rule requiring that any subsequent
changes in the rates or supplementary rate information for that class
line, subdivision, rating class or rating territory shall be filed with the
Department of Insurance at least sixty days before they become
effective. The Department of Insurance may extend the waiting
period for thirty additional days by written notice to the filer before
the first sixty-day period expires. Upon filing any rate to which this
section is applicable, the insurer shall give notice to the Department
of Consumer Affairs that such rate has been filed with the Department
of Insurance and such insurer shall so certify to the Department of
Insurance in its rate filing.
(B) By this rule, the Department of Insurance may require the
filing of supporting data for any classes, lines or subdivisions of
insurance, or classes of risks or combinations thereof it considers
necessary for the proper functioning of the rate monitoring and
regulating process.
(C) A rule promulgated under this section shall expire no later
than twenty-seven months after issue. The Department of Insurance
may renew the rule after a hearing and appropriate findings under this
section.
(D) If a filing is not accompanied by the information the
Department of Insurance has required under subsection (B) of this
section, the Department of Insurance shall within thirty days of the
initial filing inform the insurer that the filing is not complete, and the
filing is considered to be made when the information is furnished.
(E) If an insurer files for a rate reduction pursuant to a rule
promulgated under this section, the Department of Insurance may
order the provisional use of the requested rate reduction for such
period as the Department of Insurance may require to evaluate the
insurer's rate filing and supplementary rate information. The
implementation of such a provisional rate reduction shall not relieve
an insurer of its obligation to submit such information as considered
necessary by the Department of Insurance for its consideration of the
rate filing, nor shall it interfere with the Department of Insurance's
authority to suspend use of the provisional rate, reimpose the previous
rate, consider and approve a revised rate request, or otherwise
exercise its authority under Section 56-8-140.
(F) Each insurer shall so certify in a rate filing if coverage to
which the rate filing applies is reinsured by another company (i)
under common management, (ii) under common controlling
ownership, or (iii) under other common effective legal control as
defined by the laws of this State.
Section 56-8-170. (A) No prospective loss costs or
supplementary rate information for insurance as defined by the laws
of this State shall be applied or be used in this State until it has been
approved by the Department of Insurance.
(B) Prospective loss costs and supplementary rate information
filed under this section is considered to meet the requirements of this
chapter and may be applied or used unless disapproved by the
Department of Insurance within sixty days of the time that the filing
was made. The Department of Insurance may extend the waiting
period for an additional thirty days by written notice to the filer
before the sixty-day period expires.
(C) If a filing is not accompanied by the information necessary for
the Department of Insurance to determine if the requirements of
Section 56-8-50 are satisfied, the Department of Insurance shall so
inform the filer within sixty days of the initial filing, and the filing is
considered to be made when the necessary information is furnished.
(D) The provisions of subsection (B) of this section shall be
suspended when the Department of Insurance has ordered a hearing to
be held. The provision of Section 56-12-100 pertaining to public
notice, hearings, and approvals shall apply to filings made under this
section.
(E) Upon making a filing under this section, the filer shall give
notice to the Department of Consumer Affairs that such a filing has
been made and shall certify to the Department of Insurance that such
a notice has been given.
(F) Once a filing has been approved under this section, an insurer
may use the information in such filing pursuant to the provisions of
Sections 56-8-90 and 56-8-120.
Section 56-8-180. (A) No rate service organization shall provide
any service relating to the rates of any insurance subject to this
chapter, and no insurer shall use the service of a rate service
organization for such purposes unless the rate service organization
has obtained a license under Section 56-8-190.
(B) No rate service organization shall refuse to supply any
services for which it is licensed in this State to any insurer authorized
to do business in this State and offering to pay the fair and usual
compensation for the services.
(C) Any rate service organization subject to this chapter may
provide for the examination of policies, daily reports, binders,
renewal certificates, endorsements, other evidences of insurance, or
evidences of the cancellation of insurance, and may make reasonable
rules governing their submission and the correction of any errors or
omissions in them. This provision applies to the classes of insurance
for which the rate service organization is licensed pursuant to Section
56-8-190.
(D) A rate service organization may develop a uniform policy and
a uniform (i) statistical plans, (ii) experience rating plans, and (iii)
classification systems for use by its members in the provision of
insurance defined in the laws of this State and the reporting of the
experience of this line of insurance. Each rate service organization
may also develop manual rules for the recording and reporting of
uniform plans, systems, and rules shall be filed with the Commission
by the rate service organization and be approved before their use by
members of the rate service organization.
(E) No insurer shall be required to become a member or
subscriber to any rate service organization.
Section 56-8-190. (A) A rate service organization applying for a
license as required by Section 56-8-180 shall include with its
application:
(1) a copy of its constitution, charter, articles of organization,
agreement, association or incorporation, and a copy of its bylaws,
plan of operation and any other rules or regulations governing the
conduct of its business;
(2) a list of its members and subscribers;
(3) The name and address of one or more residents of this State
upon whom notices, process affecting it or orders of the Department
of Insurance may be served;
(4) A statement showing its technical qualifications for acting
in the capacity for which it seeks a license; and
(5) Any other relevant information and documents that the
Department of Insurance may require.
(B) Each organization which has applied for a license under
subsection (A) of this section shall promptly notify the Department of
Insurance of every material change in the facts or in the documents on
which its application was based.
(C) If the Department of Insurance finds that the applicant and the
natural persons through whom its acts are competent, trustworthy, and
technically qualified to provide the services proposed, and that all
requirements of law have been met, the Department of Insurance shall
issue a license specifying the authorized activity of the applicant.
(D) Licenses issued under subsection (C) of this section shall
remain in effect until the licensee withdraws from the State or until
the license is suspended or revoked.
(E) Any amendment to a document filed under item (1) of
subsection (A) of this section shall be filed promptly after it becomes
effective. Failure to comply with this subsection shall be a ground for
revocation of the license granted under subsection (C) of this section.
Section 56-8-200. (A) Each group, association or other
organization of insurers that engages in joint underwriting or joint
reinsurance for a class of insurance to which this chapter applies shall
file with the Department of Insurance (i) a copy of its constitution,
articles of incorporation, agreement or association, and of its bylaws,
rules and regulations governing its activities, all duly certified by the
custodian of the originals of the copies, (ii) a list of its members, and
(iii) the name and address of a resident of this State upon whom
notices or order of the Department of Insurance may be served.
(B) Each such organization of insurers shall notify the Department
of Insurance promptly of every change in the information required to
be filed by subsection (A) of this section.
(C) Each group, association or other organization of insurers that
engages in joint underwriting for a class of insurance to which this
chapter applies shall be subject to this chapter. Each such
organization of insurers that engages in joint reinsurance for a class of
insurance to which this chapter applies shall be subject to Sections
56-8-340, 56-8-350, and 56-8-360.
(D) If, after providing notice and opportunity to be heard, the
Department of Insurance finds that any activity or practice of any
such organization of insurers is unfair, unreasonable or otherwise
inconsistent with this chapter, it shall issue a written order (i)
specifying in what respect the activity or practice is unfair,
unreasonable or otherwise inconsistent with this chapter, and (ii)
requiring the discontinuance of the activity or practice.
Section 56-8-210. (A) As used in this section, the word `insurer'
includes two or more insurers (i) under common management, (ii)
under common controlling ownership or (iii) under other common
effective legal control and in fact engaged in joint or cooperative
underwriting investment management, marketing, servicing or
administration of their business and affairs as insurers.
(B) No insurer or rate service organization shall:
(1) combine or conspire with any other person to monopolize
or attempt to monopolize the business of insurance or any kind,
subdivision or class of insurance;
(2) agree with any other insurer or rate service organization to
charge or adhere to any rate, although insurers and rate service
organizations may continue to exchange statistical information;
(3) make any agreement with any other insurer, rate service
organization or other person to restrain trade unreasonably;
(4) make any agreement with any other insurer, rate service
organization or other person that may substantially lessen competition
in any kind, subdivision, or class of insurance; or
(5) make any agreement with any other insurer or rate service
organization to refuse to deal with any person in connection with the
sale of insurance.
(C) No insurer may acquire or retain any capital stock or assets of,
or have any common management with, any other insurer if such
acquisition, retention or common management substantially lessens
competition in the business of insurance or any kind, subdivision of
class thereof.
(D) No rate service organization, or any of its members or
subscribers, shall interfere with the right of any insurer to ask its rates
independently of the rate service organization.
(E) No rate service organization shall have or adopt any rule,
exact any agreement, or engage in any program that would require
any member, subscriber or other insurer to utilize some or all of its
services, or to adhere to its rates, rating plans, rating systems,
underwriting rules, or policy forms, or to prevent any insurer from
acting independently. Notwithstanding the foregoing, with respect to
insurance defined in the laws of this State, a rate service organization
may develop uniform (i) policies, (ii) classification system, (iii)
statistical plans, (iv) experience rating plans, and (v) manual rules
which shall be adhered to by its members.
Section 56-8-220. (A)(1) Whenever it appears to the Attorney
General, either upon complaint or otherwise, that any person has
engaged in, or is engaging in, or is about to engage in any act or
practice prohibited by Section 56-8-210, the Attorney General may,
consistent with his powers and duties to enforce the laws of this State
prohibiting conduct that unreasonably restrains trade, after notice to
the Department of Insurance:
(a) either require or permit such person to file with him a
statement in writing or otherwise, under oath, as to all facts and
circumstances concerning the subject matter;
(b) require such other data and information as he may
consider relevant to the subject matter of an investigation of a
possible violation of Section 56-8-210; and
(c) issue an investigative demand to witnesses by which he
may (i) compel the attendance of such witnesses; (ii) examine such
witnesses under oath before himself of the Department of Insurance;
(iii) subject to subsection (B) of this Section, require the production
of any documents or things that he considers relevant or material to
the inquiry; and (iv) issue written interrogatories to be answered by
the witness served or, if the witness served is a public or private
corporation or a partnership or association or governmental agency,
by any officer or agent, who shall furnish such information as is
available to the witness.
(2) The investigative powers authorized shall not abate or
terminate by reason of any action or proceeding brought by the
Attorney General or the Department of Insurance under this title.
When a document or thing is demanded by an investigative demand,
that demand shall not (i) contain any requirement that would be
unreasonable or improper if contained in a subpoena duces tecum
issued by a court of this State; or (ii) require the disclosure of any
document or thing that would be privileged, or production of which
for any other reason would not be required by a subpoena duces
tecum issued by a court of this State.
(B) Where the information requested pursuant to an investigative
demand may be derived or ascertained from the business records of
the party upon whom the interrogatory has been served or from an
examination, audit, or inspection of such business records, or from a
compilation, abstract, or summary based therein, and the burden of
deriving or ascertaining the answer is substantially the same for the
Attorney General as for the party from whom such information is
requested, it shall be sufficient for that party to specify the records
from which the answer may be derived or ascertained and to afford
the Attorney General, or other individuals properly designated by the
Attorney General, reasonable opportunity to examine, audit, or
inspect such records and to make copies, compilations, abstracts, or
summaries. The Attorney General is authorized, and may so elect, to
require the production pursuant to this section, of documents or things
before or after the taking of any testimony of the person summoned
pursuant to an investigative demand in which event, those documents
or things shall be made available to inspection and copying during
normal business hours at the principal place of business of the person
served, or at such other time and place as may be agreed upon by the
person served and the Attorney General.
(C) Any investigative demand issued by the Attorney General
under this section shall contain (i) a citation to this statute and
section, (ii) a citation to the statute and section pertaining to the
alleged violation under investigation, (iii) the subject matter of the
investigation, and (iv) the date, place, and time the person is required
to appear to produce testimony or documentary material in his
possession, custody or control. Such date shall not be less than
twenty days from the date of the investigative demand. Where
documentary material is required to be produced, it shall be described
by class so as to clearly indicate the material demanded.
(D) Service of an investigative demand as provided in this section
may be made by:
(1) delivery of a duly executed copy thereof to the person
served or, if a person is not a natural person, to the principal place of
business of the person to be served; or
(2) mailing by certified mail, return receipt requested a duly
executed copy thereof addressed to the person to be served at his
principal place of business in this State, or if that person has no place
of business in this State, to his principal office.
(E) Within twenty days after the service of any such demand upon
any person or enterprise, or at any time before the return date
specified in the demand, whichever period is shorter, such party may
file with the Department of Insurance and serve upon the Attorney
General a petition for an order of the Department of Insurance
modifying or setting aside such demand. The time allowed for
compliance with the demand, in whole or in part as considered proper
and ordered by the Department of Insurance, shall not run during the
pendency of such petition in the Department of Insurance. Such
petition shall specify each ground upon which the petitioner relies in
seeking such relief, and may be based upon any failure of such
demand to comply with the provision of this section or upon any
constitutional or other legal right or privilege of such party. The
provisions of this subsection shall be the exclusive means for a
witness summoned pursuant to an investigative demand under this
section to challenge an investigative demand issued pursuant to
subsection (A) of this section.
(F) The examination of all witnesses under this section shall be
conducted by the Attorney General, or his designee, before an officer
authorized to administer oaths in this State. The testimony shall be
taken stenographically or by a sound-recording device and shall be
transcribed.
(G) Any person required to testify or to submit documentary
evidence shall be entitled, on payment of lawfully prescribed cost, to
procure a copy of any document produced by such person and of his
own testimony as stenographically reported or, in the case of
depositions, as reduced to writing by or under the direction of a
person taking the deposition. Any party compelled to testify or to
produce documents or things may be accompanied and advised by
counsel, but counsel may not, as a matter of right, otherwise
participate in the investigation.
(H) All persons served with an investigative demand by the
Attorney General under this section, other than any person or persons
whose conduct or practices are being investigated or any officer,
director, or person in the employ of such person under investigation,
shall be paid the same fees and mileage as paid witnesses in the courts
of this State. No person shall be excused from attending such inquiry
pursuant to the mandate of an investigative demand, from producing a
document or thing, or from being examined or required to answer
questions, on the ground of failure to tender or pay a witness fee or
mileage, unless a demand therefor is made at the time testimony is
about to be taken and is made as a condition precedent to offering
such production or testimony and unless payment is not made.
(I) Any natural person who neglects or refuses (i) to attend and
testify, (ii) to answer any lawful inquiry, or (iii) to produce documents
or things, if in his power to do so, in obedience of an investigative
demand or lawful request of the Attorney General or those properly
authorized by the Attorney General, pursuant to this section, shall be
subject to the penalty provisions of the laws of this State. Any natural
person who commits perjury, false swearing, or contempt in
answering or failing to answer, or in producing a document or thing
or failing to do so in accordance with an investigative demand or
lawful request by the Attorney General, pursuant to this section, shall
be guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction therefor by a court of
competent jurisdiction shall be punished by a fine or not more than
$5,000 or by imprisonment in jail for not more than one year, or both.
(J) In any investigation brought by the Attorney General pursuant
to his chapter, no individual shall be excused from attending,
testifying or producing documentary material, objects, or intangible
things in obedience to an investigative demand or under order of the
Department of Insurance on the ground that the testimony, document,
or thing required of him may tend to incriminate him or subject him
to any penalty. No testimony or other information compelled either
by the Attorney General or under order of the Department of
Insurance or a court or any information directly or indirectly derived
from such testimony or other information may be used against the
individual or witness in any criminal case. However, he may be
prosecuted or subjected to penalty or forfeiture for any perjury, false
swearing, or contempt committed in answering or failing to answer,
or in producing any document or thing or failing to do so in
accordance with the demand of the Attorney General or the
Department of Insurance. If an individual refuses to testify or
produce any document or thing after being granted immunity from
criminal prosecution and after being ordered to testify or produce any
document or thing as authorized by this section, he may be found to
be in civil contempt by a court of competent jurisdiction and
incarcerated until such time as he purges himself of contempt by
testifying, producing such document or thing, or presenting a written
statement as ordered. Such finding of contempt shall not prevent the
Attorney General from instituting other appropriate contempt
proceedings against any person who violates any of the provisions of
this section.
(K) It shall be the duty of all public, State, and local officials, their
employees, and all other persons to render and furnish to the Attorney
General or his designee, when so requested, all information and
assistance in their possession or within their power. Any officer
participating in such inquiry and any person examined as a witness
upon such inquiry who discloses to any person other than the
Attorney General the name of any witness examined or any other
information obtained upon such inquiry, except as so directed by the
Attorney General, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and subject to the
sanctions prescribed in subsection (I) of this section. Such inquiry
may upon written authorization by the Attorney General be made
public.
(L) The Attorney General may recommend rules and regulations
to implement and carry out the provisions of this section. All such
rules and regulations shall be subject to the approval of the
Department of Insurance.
(M) It shall be the duty of the Attorney General, or his designees,
to maintain the secrecy of all evidence, testimony, documents, or
other results of such investigations until formal proceedings are
instituted. Violation of this subsection shall be punishable pursuant
to the laws of this State. Nothing contained in this section shall be
construed to prevent the disclosure of any such investigative evidence
by the Attorney General in his discretion to the Director of Insurance,
the Department of Insurance, or to any federal or state law
enforcement authority that has restrictions governing confidentiality
similar to those contained in this subsection.
Section 56-8-230. (A) Notwithstanding the provisions of the
laws of this State, any insurer, rate service organization or other
person who knowingly or willfully violates any provision of Section
56-8-210 shall be punished for each such violation by a penalty of not
more than $100,000 and may be subject to suspension or revocation
of any license issued by the Department of Insurance.
(B) Any person threatened with injury or damage to his business
or property by reason of a violation of Section 56-8-210 may petition
the Department of Insurance for injunctive relief pursuant to the laws
of this State.
(C) The Department of Insurance may require an insurer, rate
service organization, or other person to make restitution in the amount
of the direct actual financial loss, including any costs associated with
bringing such a matter before the Department of Insurance and
reasonable attorney's fees, to (i) the State, a political subdivision
thereof, or any public agency injured in its business or property or (ii)
any person injured in his business or property by reason of a violation
of Section 56-8-210. If the Department of Insurance finds that the
violation is willful or flagrant, it may increase the restitution payment
to an amount not in excess of three times the actual damages
sustained.
Section 56-8-240. Any person injured in his business or property
by reason of any violation of Section 56-8-210 may maintain an
action to enjoin the violation.
Section 56-8-250. (A) Nothing in this chapter shall prohibit the
making of agreements among insurers for the equitable
apportionment among them of insurance which may be afforded
applicants who are in good faith entitled to but who are unable to
procure it through ordinary methods. Insurers may agree among
themselves on the use of reasonable rate modifications for such
insurance. These agreements and rate modifications shall be subject
to the approval of the Department of Insurance.
(B) The Department of Insurance may approve policy forms and
endorsements for use by such insurers with respect to insurance
afforded such applicants.
Section 56-8-260. (A) The Department of Insurance may
promulgate reasonable rules and statistical plans for each of the rating
systems on file with it, which may be modified from time to time.
These rules and plans shall be used by each insurer in the recording
and reporting of its loss and countrywide expense experience so that
the experience of all insurers may be made available, at least
annually, in the form and detail necessary to aid the Department of
Insurance in determining whether rating systems comply with the
standards set forth in Section 56-8-50. The rules and plans may also
provide for the recording and reporting of expense experience items
that are specially applicable to this State and cannot be determined by
prorating the countrywide experience.
(B) In promulgating the rules and plans the Department of
Insurance shall give due consideration (i) to the rating systems on file
with it and (ii) to the rules and to the form of the plans used for rating
systems in other states so that the rules and plans may be as uniform
as is practicable among the several states.
(C) The Department of Insurance may designate one or more rate
service organizations or other agencies to assist it in gathering the
experience data and making compilation of it. These compilations
shall be made available, subject to reasonable rules promulgated by
the Department of Insurance, to insurers and rate service
organizations. Any rate service organization designated by the
Department of Insurance shall retain the experience data and
compilations of the experience data in the format and detail required
by the applicable statistical plan and shall submit this information to
the Department of Insurance upon request.
(D) Every rate service organization that has uniform (i) statistical
plan, (ii) classification systems, (iii) experience rating plans, and (iv)
manual rules filed and approved in accordance with the provision of
Section 56-8-180(D) shall gather and compile the experience data of
its members for insurance as defined in the laws of this State. Each
member insurer shall adhere to such uniform plans, systems, and rules
of its designated rate service organization in the recording of its
experience and the reporting of such information to the rate service
organization. Each rate service organization that gathers and
compiles information pursuant to this subsection shall be subject to
the provisions of subsection (C) as to the availability, retention, and
filing of the experience data of its members.
Section 56-8-270. To promote uniform administration of rate
regulatory laws, the Department of Insurance and each insurer and
each rate service organization subject to this chapter may (i) exchange
information and experience data with insurance supervisory officials,
insurers, and rate service organizations in other states and (ii) consult
with them regarding rate making and the application of rating
schedules and rating plans. Reasonable rules and plans may be
promulgated by the Department of Insurance for the interchange of
date necessary for the application of rating plans.
Section 56-8-280. Subject to the Department of Insurance's
approval, a rate in excess of that provided by an applicable filing may
be used for a specific risk upon the filing of (i) written application of
the insurer stating its reasons for the increased rate and (ii) the written
consent of the insured or prospective insured.
Section 56-8-290. The Department of Insurance may approve for
use in this State policies or forms for writing at divisible or indivisible
rates and premiums any combination of the classes of insurance set
forth in of Section 56-8-30(A), except insurance on or with respect to
operating properties of railroad. The rates and premium for
combination policies whether divisible or indivisible, shall be subject
to this chapter.
Section 56-8-300. No rate service organization subject to this
chapter shall adopt any rule prohibiting or regulating the payment of
dividends, savings or unabsorbed premium deposits allowed or
returned by insurers to their policyholders, members or subscribers.
Section 56-8-310. Each rate service organization and each insurer
subject to this chapter shall provide within this State reasonable
means for any person aggrieved by the application of its rating system
to be heard in person or by an authorized representative on his written
request. Any person who makes the written request shall be entitled
to review the manner in which the rating system has been applied to
the insurance afforded him. If the rate service organization or insurer
fails to grant or reject the request within thirty days after it is made,
the applicant may proceed in the same manner as if his application
had been rejected. Any person affected by the action of the rate
service organization or the insurer on the request may, within thirty
days after written notice of the action, appeal to the Department of
Insurance. The Department of Insurance may affirm or reverse the
action after a hearing held upon not less than ten days' written notice
to the applicant and to the rate service organization or insurer.
Section 56-8-320. Cooperation among rate service organizations
or among rate service organizations and insurers in rate making or in
other matters within the scope of this chapter is hereby authorized if
the filings resulting from such cooperation are subject to all the
provisions of this chapter applying to filings generally. The
Department of Insurance may review such cooperative activities and
practices. If, after providing notice and opportunity to be heard, it
finds that any cooperative activity or practice is unfair, unreasonable,
or otherwise inconsistent with this chapter, the Department of
Insurance shall issue a written order specifying in what respects the
cooperative activity or practice is unfair, unreasonable or otherwise
inconsistent with this chapter, and (ii) requiring the discontinuance of
the cooperative activity or practice.
Section 56-8-330. (A) Whenever the Department of Insurance
considers it necessary to be informed about any matter related to the
enforcement of the insurance laws, it may examine the affairs and
condition of any rate service organization under Section 56-8-180(A)
and of any joint underwriting or joint reinsurance organization under
Section 56-8-200.
(B) So far as reasonably necessary for any examination under
subsection (A) of this section, the Department of Insurance may
examine the accounts, records, documents or evidence of transactions,
so far as they relate to the examinee, of any (i) officer, (ii) manager,
(iii) general agent, (iv) employee, (v) person who has executive
authority over or is in charge of any segment of the examinee's
affairs, (vi) person controlling or having a contract under which has
the right to control the examinee whether exclusively or with others,
(vii) person who is under the control of the examinee, or (viii) person
who is under the control of a person who controls or has a right to
control the examinee whether exclusively or with others.
(C) On demand every examinee under subsection (A) of this
section shall make available to the Department of Insurance for
examination any of its own accounts, records, documents or
evidences of transactions and any of those of the persons listed in
subsection (B) of this section.
(D) The Department of Insurance may examine every licensed
rate service organization at intervals established by the Department of
Insurance.
(E)(1) Instead of all or part of an examination under subsections
(A) and (B) of this section, or in addition to it, the Department of
Insurance may order an independent audit by certified public
accountants or actuarial evaluation by actuaries approved by it of any
person subject to the examination requirement. Any accountant or
actuary selected shall be subject to standards respecting conflicts of
interest used by the Department of Insurance. An audit or evaluation
under this subsection shall be subject to subsections (H) through (O)
of this section, so far as appropriate.
(2) Instead of all or part of an examination under this section,
the Department of Insurance may accept the report of an audit already
made by a certified public accountants or actuarial evaluation by
actuaries approved by it, or the report of an examination made by the
insurance department of another state.
(F) An examination may cover comprehensively all aspects of the
examinee's affairs and condition. The Department of Insurance shall
determine the exact nature and scope of each examination, and in
doing so shall take into account all relevant factors, including but not
limited to (i) the length of time the examinee has been operating, (ii)
the length of time it has been licensed in this State, (iii) the nature of
the services provided, (iv) the nature of the accounting records
available and (v) the nature of examination performed elsewhere.
(G) For each examination under this section, the Department of
Insurance shall issue an order stating the scope of the examination
and designating the examiner in charge. On demand a copy of the
order shall be exhibited to the examinee.
(H) Any examiner authorized by the Department of Insurance
shall, so far as necessary for the purposes of the examination, have
access at all reasonable hours to the premises and to any books,
records, files, securities, documents or property of the examinee and
to those of persons under subsection (B) of this section so far as they
relate to the affairs of the examinee.
(I) The officers, employees and agents of the examinee and of
persons under subsection (B) of this section shall comply with every
reasonable request of the examiners for assistance in any matter
relating to the examination. No person shall obstruct or interfere with
the examination in any way other than by legal process.
(J) If the Department of Insurance finds the accounts or records
to be inadequate for proper examination of the condition and affairs
of the examinee or improperly kept or posted, it may employ experts
to rewrite, post or balance them at the expense of the examinee.
(K) The examiner in charge of an examination shall make a
proposed report of the examination that shall include the information
and analysis as is ordered in subsection (H) of this section, together
with the examiner's recommendations. At the discretion of the
examiner in charge, preparation of the proposed report may include
conferences with the examinee or its representatives. The proposed
report shall remain confidential until filed under subsection (L) of this
section.
(L) The Department of Insurance shall serve a copy of the
proposed report upon the examinee. Within twenty days after service,
the examinee may serve upon the Department of Insurance a written
demand or a hearing on the contents of the report. If a hearing is
demanded the Department of Insurance shall give notice and hold a
hearing, and on demand by the examinee the hearing shall be
informal and private. The Department of Insurance shall adopt the
report with any necessary modifications and file it for public
inspection, or it may order a new examination within either (i) sixty
days after the hearing or (ii) if no hearing is demanded, sixty days
after the last day on which the examinee might have demanded a
hearing.
(M) The Department of Insurance shall forward a copy of the
examination report to the examinee immediately upon adoption,
except that if the proposed report is adopted without change, the
Department of Insurance need only so notify the examinee.
(N) The examinee shall furnish copies of the adopted report to
each member of its board of directors or their governing board.
(O) The Department of Insurance may furnish, without cost or at a
price to be determined by it, a copy of the adopted report to the
insurance commissioner of any jurisdiction in which the examinee is
licensed and to any other interest person in this State or elsewhere.
(P) In any proceeding by or against the examinee of any officer of
agent of the examinee, the examination report as adopted by the
Department of Insurance shall be admissible as evidence of the facts
stated in the examination report. In any proceeding by or against the
examinee the facts asserted in any report properly admitted in
evidence shall be presumed to be true in the absence of contrary
evidence.
(Q) The reasonable costs of an examination under this section
shall be paid by the examinee except as provided in subsection (T) of
this section. The costs shall include the salary and expenses of each
examiner and any other expenses directly apportioned to the
examination.
(R) The amount payable under subsection (Q) of this section shall
become due ten days after the examinee has been served a detailed
account of the costs.
(S) The Department of Insurance may require any examinee,
before or during an examination, to deposit with the State Treasurer
any deposits the Department of Insurance considers necessary to pay
the cost of the examination. Any deposit and any payment made
under subsections (Q) and (R) of this section shall be credited to the
special fund of the Department of Insurance.
(T) On the examinee's request or on its own motion, the
Department of Insurance may pay all or part of the costs of an
examination whenever it finds that, because of the frequency of
examinations or other factors, imposition of the costs would place an
unreasonable burden on the examinee. The Department of Insurance
shall include in its annual report information about any instance in
which it applied this subsection.
(U) Deposits and payments under subsections (Q) through (T) of
this section shall not be considered to be a tax or license fee within
the meaning of any law. If any other state charges a per diem fee for
examination of examinees domiciled in this State, any examinee
domiciled in that other state shall pay the same fee when examined by
the Department of Insurance.
Section 56-8-340. (A) Any person aggrieved by an order or a
decision of the Department of Insurance made under this chapter
without a hearing may, within thirty days after notice of the order or
decision, make a written request to the Department of Insurance for a
hearing on that order or decision. Within a reasonable time after the
request the Department of Insurance, after having given not less than
ten days' written notice of the time and place of hearing, shall hear the
person aggrieved by the order or decision. Within a reasonable time
after the hearing the Department of Insurance shall affirm, reverse or
modify its previous action, specifying its reasons for the affirmation,
reversal or modification.
(B) Pending the hearing and decision on its previous action, the
Department of Insurance may suspend or postpone the effective date
of the order or decision to which the hearing relates.
Section 56-8-350. No person shall willfully withhold information
from or knowingly give false or misleading information to (i) the
Department of Insurance, (ii) any statistical agency designated by the
Department of Insurance, (iii) any rate service organization or (iv)
any insurer, if that information will affect the rates or premiums
subject to this chapter.
Section 56-8-360. The issuance, procurement or negotiation of a
single policy of insurance is considered a separate violation.
SECTION 4. Title 56 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
"Chapter 12
Regulation of Rates for Certain Types of Insurance
Section 56-12-10. (A) The purposes of this chapter are to protect
policyholders and the public against the adverse effects of excessive,
inadequate, or unfairly discriminatory insurance rates, and to
authorize and regulate cooperative action among insurers in rate
making and in other matters within the scope of this chapter. Nothing
in this chapter is intended to (i) prohibit or discourage reasonable
competition, or (ii) prohibit or encourage uniformity in insurance
rates, rating systems and rating plans or practices, except to the extent
necessary to accomplish the purposes mentioned above.
(B) This chapter shall be liberally interpreted to effect the
purposes of this chapter.
Section 56-12-20. As used in this chapter:
`Pool' means an arrangement, either voluntary or mandated by law,
established on an on-going basis, pursuant to which two or more
insurers participate in the sharing of risks on a predetermined basis,
which arrangement may operate through an association, syndicate, or
other pool arrangement.
`Residual market mechanism' means an arrangement, either
voluntary or mandated by law, involving participation by insurers in
equitable apportionment among themselves of insurance which may
be afforded applicants who are unable to obtain insurance through
ordinary methods including any filed and approved plans.
`South Carolina Auto Insurance Plan' means that organization
established for assigned risks pursuant to the provisions of Section
56-4-860.
Section 56-12-30. This chapter applies only to (i) the coverages
provided in the South Carolina Automobile Insurance Plan, and (ii)
uninsured motorist coverage as required by Section 56-2-310(A).
Section 56-12-40. (A)(1) Each group, association, or other
organization of insurers that engages in joint underwriting or joint
reinsurance for the insurance to which this chapter applies shall file
with the Department of Insurance (i) a copy of its constitution, its
articles or incorporation, agreement or association, and a copy of its
bylaws, rules and regulations governing its activities, all duly
certified by the custodian of the originals of the copies, (ii) a list of its
members, and (iii) the name and address of a resident of this State
upon whom notices or orders of the Department of Insurance or
process may be served.
(2) Each such organization of insurers shall notify the
Department of Insurance promptly of every change in the information
required to be filed by this subsection.
(3) This subsection shall not apply to the South Carolina
Automobile Insurance Plan.
(B) Each group, association or other organization of insurers that
engages in joint underwriting for the insurance to which this chapter
applies shall be subject to this chapter. Each such organization of
insurers that engages in joint reinsurance for the insurance to which
this chapter applies shall be subject to Section 56-12-280.
(C) If, after providing notice and opportunity to be heard, the
Department of Insurance finds any activity or practice of any such
organization of insurers to be unfair, unreasonable or otherwise
inconsistent with this chapter, it shall issue a written order (i)
specifying in what respect the activity or practice is unfair,
unreasonable or otherwise inconsistent with this chapter, and (ii)
requiring the discontinuance of the activity or practice.
Section 56-12-50. Notwithstanding any other provision of law,
insurers and rate service organizations participating in joint
reinsurance pools organized for the purpose of establishing a residual
market mechanism may, in connection with such purpose, act in
cooperation with each other in the making or rates, rating systems,
policy forms, underwriting rules, surveys, inspections, investigations,
the furnishing of statistical or other information on losses and
expenses, or the conduct of research.
Section 56-12-60. (A) Each insurer writing in this State a class
of insurance to which this chapter applies shall file with the
Department of Insurance every manual of classifications, minimum
rate, class rate, rating schedule, rating plan, rating rule, and every
modification of any of the foregoing that it proposes to use. Every
filing shall indicate the character and extent of coverage
contemplated. When a filing is not accompanied by the information
upon which the insurer supports the filing;, and the Department of
Insurance does not have sufficient information to determine whether
the filing meets the requirements of this chapter, the Department of
Insurance may require the insurer to furnish the information upon
which it supports the filing. A filing and any supporting information
shall be a public record. Upon filing any rate to which this chapter is
applicable, the insurer shall give notice to the Department of
Consumer Affairs that such rate has been filed with the Department of
Insurance and such insurer shall so certify to the Department of
Insurance in its rate filing. For the purposes of this section, a group
or fleet of insurers operating under the same general management
may be considered an insurer.
(B) Each insurer shall submit with each rate filing so much of the
following information as considered appropriate by the Department of
Insurance:
(1) number of exposures;
(2) direct premiums written;
(3) direct premiums earned;
(4) direct losses paid identified by such period as the
Department of Insurance may require;
(5) number of claims paid;
(6) direct losses incurred during the year, direct losses incurred
during the year which occurred and were paid during the year, and
direct losses incurred during the year which were reported during the
year but were not yet paid; during the year which were reported
during the but were not yet paid;
(7) any loss development factor used and supporting data
thereon;
(8)number of claims unpaid;
(9) loss adjustment expenses paid identified by such period as
the Department of Insurance may require;
(10) loss adjustment expense incurred during the year, loss
adjustment expenses incurred during the year for losses which
occurred and were paid during the year, and loss adjustment expenses
incurred during the year for losses which were reported during the
year but were not yet paid;
(11) other expenses incurred, separately by category of expense,
excluding loss adjustment expenses;
(12) investment income on assets related to reserve and
allocated surplus accounts;
(13) total return on allocated surplus;
(14) any loss trend factor used and supporting data thereon;
(15) any expense trend factor used and supporting date thereon;
and
(16) such other information as may be required by rule of the
Department of Insurance, including statewide rate information
presented separately for South Carolina and each state wherein the
insurer writes the line, subline or rating classification for which the
rate filing is made and which the Department of Insurance considers
necessary for its consideration.
(C) Where actual experience does not exist or is not credible, the
Department of Insurance may allow the use of estimates for the
information required by items (1) through (1)5 of subsection (B) of
this section and may require the insurer to submit such information as
the Department of Insurance considers necessary to support such
estimates.
(D) The Department of Insurance shall develop uniform
statements of formats specifying the information categories specified
in this section. Such statements or formats shall be utilized by all
insurers in all rate filings.
Section 56-12-70. An insurer may satisfy its obligation to make
the rate filings required in Section 56-12-60 by becoming a member
of or a subscriber to a rate service organization that makes such
filings and that is licensed pursuant to the laws of this State, and by
authorizing the Department of Insurance to accept the filings on its
behalf. Filings made by rate service organizations shall meet the
requirements of Section 56-12-60. No insurer shall be required to
become a member of or a subscriber to any rate service organization.
Section 56-12-80. (A) Rates for the classes of insurance to
which this chapter applies shall not be excessive, inadequate or
unfairly discriminatory. All rates and all changes and amendments to
rates to which this chapter applies for use in this State shall consider
loss experience and other factors within South Carolina if relevant
and actuarially sound; provided, other data, including countrywide,
regional or other state date, may be considered where such data is
relevant and where a sound actuarial basis exists for considering data
other than South Carolina-specific date.
(B)(1) In making rates for the classes of insurance to which this
chapter applies, separate consideration shall be given to (i) past and
prospective loss experience within and outside this State, (ii)
conflagration or catastrophe hazards, (iii) a reasonable margin for
underwriting profit and contingencies, (iv) dividends, saving or
unabsorbed premium deposits allowed or returned by insurers to their
policyholders, members or subscribers, (v) past and prospective
expense both countrywide and those specifically applicable to this
State, (vi) investment income earned or realized by insurers from their
unearned premium and loss reserve and the Department of Insurance
may give separate consideration to investment income earned on
surplus funds, (vii) the loss reserving practices, standards and
procedures utilized by the insurer, and (viii) all other relevant factors
within and outside this State. When actual experience or data does
not exist, the Department of Insurance may consider estimates.
(2) In the case of fire insurance rates, consideration shall be
given to the experience of the fire insurance business during a period
of not less than the most recent five-year period for which such
experience is available.
(3) In the case of uninsured motorist coverage required by
Section 56-2-310(A), consideration shall be given to all sums
distributed by the Department of Insurance from the Uninsured
Motorist Fund in accordance with the provisions of Section 56-2-580
of this title.
(C) For the classes of insurance to which this chapter applies (i)
the systems of expense provisions included in the rates for use by any
insurer or group of insurers may differ from those of other insurers or
groups of insurers to reflect the requirements of the operating
methods of any such insurer or group for any class of insurance, or for
any subdivision, or combination of insurance for which separate
expense provisions apply, and (ii) risks may be grouped by
classifications for the establishment of rates and minimum premiums.
Classification rates may be modified to produce rates for individual
risks in accordance with rating plans that establish standards for
measuring variation in hazards, expense provisions, or both. The
standards may measure any difference among risks that cant be
demonstrated to have a probable effect upon losses or expense.
(D) All rates, rating schedules or rating plans and every manual of
classifications, rules and rates, including every modification thereof,
approved by the Department of Insurance under this chapter, shall be
used until a change is approved by the Department of Insurance.
Section 56-12-90 (A) Except as provided in Section 56-12-120, no
filing shall become effective, be applied, or be used in this State until
it has been approved by the Department of Insurance. However, a
rate produced in accordance with a rating schedule or rating plan,
previously approved by the Department of Insurance, may be used
pending the approval.
(B) A filing is considered to meet the requirements of this chapter
and to become effective unless disapproved by the Department of
Insurance within sixty days of the time that the filing was made.
However, the Department of Insurance may extend the waiting period
for thirty additional days by written notice to the filer before the
sixty-day period expires.
(C) If a filing is not accompanied by the information necessary for
the Department of Insurance to determine if the requirements of
Section 56-12-80 are satisfied, the Department of Insurance shall so
inform the filer within sixty days of the initial filing. The filing is
considered to be made when the necessary information is furnished.
(D) The provisions of subsection (B) of this section shall be
suspended when the Department of Insurance has ordered a hearing to
be held under the provisions of Section 56-12-100.
Section 56-12-100. (A) When a filing has made with the
Department of Insurance, the Department of Insurance shall
determine whether publication of notice of the filing is necessary. If
the Department of Insurance determines that such publication is
required, the notice shall be published in the form and for the time
prescribed by the Department of Insurance, not to exceed once a week
for four consecutive weeks, in a newspaper or newspapers of general
circulation published by the State.
(B) Before publication or upon completion of publication, the
Department of Insurance shall determine whether a hearing should be
held before acting upon the filing. If the Department of Insurance
determines that a hearing should be held, its shall order one to be held
within a reasonable time, but not less than ten days after issuing the
order setting the hearing. The Department of Insurance shall notify
the person making the filing and any other person it considers
interested in the filing of the hearing.
(C) Upon determination that publication of notice of a filing is
unnecessary, upon completion of any required publication when no
hearing is ordered, or upon completion of a hearing, the Department
of Insurance shall (i)approve the filing as submitted or with any
modifications considered appropriate by the Department of Insurance,
or (ii) disapprove the filing. If a filing is approved with
modifications, or is disapproved, the order of such approval or
disapproval shall state the reasons for the decision.
Section 56-12-110. The Department of Insurance may investigate
and determine, (i) upon its own motion, (ii) at the request of any
citizen of this State, or (iii) at the request of any insurer subject to this
chapter, whether rates in this State for the insurance to which this
chapter applies are excessive, inadequate or unfairly discriminatory.
In accordance with its findings, the Department of Insurance may
order changes in the rates that are fair and equitable to all interested
parties. In any investigation and determination, the Department of
Insurance shall give due consideration to those factors specified in
Section 56-12-80(B).
Section 56-12-120. The Department of Insurance, by order, may
suspend or modify the filing requirement of this chapter for any kind
of insurance or subdivision or combination of insurance, or for classes
of risks, where the rates for the insurance cannot practicably be filed
before they are used. The order shall be made known to insurers and
rate service organizations affected by it. The Department of
Insurance may make any examination it considers advisable to
determine whether any rates affected by the order meet the standards
set out in Section 56-12-80(A).
Section 56-12-130. To promote uniform administration of rate
regulatory laws, the Department of Insurance and each insurer and
each rate service organization subject to this chapter may (i) exchange
information and experience data with insurance supervisory officials,
insurers, and rate service organizations in other states, and (ii) consult
with them regarding rate making and the application of rating
schedules and rating plans. Reasonable rules and plans may be
promulgated by the Department of Insurance for the interchange of
data necessary for the application of rating plans.
Section 56-12-140. (A) The Department of Insurance may
promulgate reasonable rules and statistical plans for each of the rating
systems on file with it, which may be modified from time to time.
These rules and plans shall be used by each insurer in the recording
and reporting of its loss and countrywide expense experience, so that
the experience of all insurers may be made available, at least
annually, in the form and detail as may be necessary to aid the
Department of Insurance in determining whether rating systems
comply with the standards set forth in Section 56-12-80(A). The
rules and plans may also provide for the recording and reporting of
expense experience items that are specially applicable to this State
and cannot be determined by prorating the countryside expense
experience.
(B) In promulgating the rules and plans, the Department of
Insurance shall give due consideration to (i) the rating systems on file
with it and (ii)the rules and the form of the plans used for rating
systems in other states so that the rules and plans may be as uniform
as practicable among the several states. No insurer shall be required
to record or report its loss experience on a classification basis that is
inconsistent with the rating system filed by it or on its behalf.
(C) The Department of Insurance may designate one or more rate
service organizations or other agencies to assist it in gathering the
experience data and making compilations of it. The compilations
shall be made available, subject to reasonable rules promulgated by
the Department of Insurance, to insurers and rate service
organizations.
Section 56-12-150. Subject to the Department of Insurance's
approval, a rate in excess of that provided by an applicable filing may
be used for a specific risk upon the filing of (i) written application of
an insurer stating its reasons for the increased rate, accompanied by
(ii) the written consent of the insured or prospective insured.
Section 56-12-160. No insurer shall make or issue an insurance
policy or contract to which this chapter applies, except in accordance
with the filings that are in effect for that insurer, or in accordance
with an applicable provision in Sections 56-12-120 or 56-12-150.
Section 56-12-170. (A) Agreements among insurers may be made
for the equitable apportionment among them of insurance that may be
afforded applicants who are in good faith entitled to insurance but
who are unable to procure it through ordinary methods. Insurers may
agree among themselves on the use of reasonable rate modifications
for the insurance. The agreements and rate modifications shall be
subject to the approval of the Department of Insurance.
(B) The Department of Insurance may require that the agreements
contain reasonable performance standards for insurers or agents, or
both, with respect to insurance afforded such applicants. The
performance standards may contain, but shall not be limited to: (i)
original applications, (ii) premium payments, (iii) policy issuance,
(iv) policy changes, (v) return premium, (vi) return commission and
(vii) administrative procedures for monitoring compliance with the
standards.
(C) The Department of Insurance may approve policy forms and
endorsements for use by such insurers with respect to insurance
afforded such applicants.
Section 56-12-180. Each rate service organization and each insurer
subject to this chapter that makes its own rates shall furnish to any
insured affected by those rates, or to the authorized representative of
the insured, all pertinent information regarding the rate within a
reasonable time after receiving a written request for the information.
Section 56-12-190. No rate service organization subject to this
chapter shall adopt any rule prohibiting or regulating the payment of
dividends, savings or unabsorbed premium deposits allowed or
returned by insurers to their policyholders, members or subscribers.
Section 56-12-200. Each rate service organization and each insurer
subject to his chapter that makes its own rates shall provide within the
State reasonable means whereby any person aggrieved by the
application of its rating system may, after written request, be heard in
person or by an authorized representative to review the manner in
which the rating system has been applied to the insurance afforded
him. If the rate service organization or insurer fails to grant or reject
the request within thirty days, after it is made, the applicant may
proceed in the same manner as if his application had been rejected.
Any person affected by the action of the rate service organization or
the insurer on such request may, within thirty days after written notice
of the action, appeal to the Department of Insurance. The Department
of Insurance may affirm or reverse the action after a hearing held
upon not less than ten days' written notice to the applicant and to the
rate service organization or insurer.
Section 56-12-210. Cooperation among rate service organizations
or among rate service organizations and insurers in rate making or in
other matters within the scope of this chapter is authorized if the
filings resulting from the cooperation are subject to all the provisions
of this chapter that are applicable to filings generally. The
Department of Insurance may review cooperative activities and
practices. If, after providing notice and opportunity to be heard, it
finds that any activity or practice is unfair, unreasonable or otherwise
inconsistent with this chapter, it shall issue an order (i) specifying in
what respects the activity or practice is unfair, unreasonable or
otherwise inconsistent with this chapter, and (ii) requiring the
discontinuance of the activity or practice.
Section 56-12-220. Any rate service organization subject to this
chapter may subscribe for or purchase actuarial, technical or other
services if these services are available without discrimination to all
members of and subscribers to the rate service organization.
Section 56-12-230. Any rate service organization subject to this
chapter for the classes of insurance for which it files rates may
provide for the examination of policies, daily reports, binders,
renewal certificates, endorsements or other evidences of insurance, or
evidences of the cancellation of insurance, and may make reasonable
rules governing their submission and the correction of any errors or
omissions in them.
Section 56-12-240. For the purpose of this chapter, `advisory
organization' means any group, association or other organization of
insurers, located within or outside this State, that assists insurers who
make their own filings or rate service organizations in rate making, by
the collection and furnishing of loss or expense statistics or by the
submission of recommendations, but that does not make filings under
this chapter for the kind of insurance involved.
Section 56-12-250. Each advisory organization shall file with the
Department of Insurance:
(1) a copy of its constitution, its articles of agreement or
association or its certificate of incorporation, and of its bylaws, rules
and regulations governing its activities;
(2)a list of its members; and
(3)the name and address of a resident of this State upon whom may
be served notices or orders of the State or process issued at its
direction.
Section 56-12-260. If after a hearing the Department of Insurance
finds that the furnishing of information or assistance by any advisory
organization involves any act or practice that is unfair, unreasonable
or otherwise inconsistent with this chapter, the Department of
Insurance may issue a written order (i) specifying in what respects the
act or practice is unfair, unreasonable or otherwise inconsistent with
this chapter, and (ii) requiring the discontinuance of the act or
practice.
Section 56-12-270. No insurer that makes its own filings nor any
rate service organization shall support its filing by statistics or adopt
rate making recommendations furnished to it by an advisory
organization that has not complied with (i) the provisions of this
article or (ii) any order of the Department of Insurance entered under
Section 56-12-260, involving such statistics or recommendations. If
the Department of Insurance finds any insurer or rate service
organization to be in violation of this section it may issue an order
requiring the discontinuance of the violation.
Section 56-12-280. (A) Any person aggrieved by an order or a
decision of the Department of Insurance made under this chapter
without a hearing may, within thirty days after notice of the order or
decision, make a written request to the Department of Insurance for a
hearing on the order or decision. Within a reasonable time after the
request the Department of Insurance, after having given at least ten
days' written notice of the time and place of hearing, shall hear the
person aggrieved by the order or decision. Within a reasonable time
after the hearing the Department of Insurance shall affirm, reverse or
modify its previous action, specifying its reasons for the affirmation,
reversal or modification.
(B) Pending the hearing and decision on its previous action, the
Department of Insurance may suspend or postpone the effective date
of the order or decision to which the hearing relates.
Section 56-12-290. No person shall willfully withhold information
from or knowingly give false or misleading information to (i) the
Department of Insurance, (ii) any statistical agency designated by the
Department of Insurance, (iii) any rate service organization or (iv)
any insurer that will affect the rates or premiums subject to this
chapter."
SECTION 5. Articles 1, 3, and 5 of Chapter 77, Title 38 of the 1976
Code, Chapters 9 and 10 of Title 56, and Sections 56-1-610 through
56-1-690 are repealed.
SECTION 6. Except as otherwise specifically provided herein, this
act takes effect July 1, 1997.
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