§ 32-7-23 — Uninsured Motorist Coverage; “Uninsured Motorist” Defined; Limitation on Recovery

(a) No automobile liability or motor vehicle liability policy insuring against loss resulting from liability imposed by law for bodily injury or death suffered by any person arising out of the ownership, maintenance, or use of a motor vehicle shall be delivered or issued for delivery in this state with respect to any motor vehicle registered or principally garaged in this state unless coverage is provided therein or supplemental thereto, in limits for bodily injury or death set forth in subsection (c) of Section 32-7-6, under provisions approved by the Commissioner of Insurance for the protection of persons insured thereunder who are legally entitled to recover damages from owners or operators of uninsured motor vehicles because of bodily injury, sickness or disease, including death, resulting therefrom; provided, that the named insured shall have the right to reject such coverage; and provided further, that unless the named insured requests such coverage in writing, such coverage need not be provided in or supplemental to a renewal policy where the named insured had rejected the coverage in connection with the policy previously issued to him or her by the same insurer.
(b) The term uninsured motor vehicle shall include, but is not limited to, motor vehicles with respect to which:
(1) Neither the owner nor the operator carries bodily injury liability insurance;
(2) Any applicable policy liability limits for bodily injury are below the minimum required under Section 32-7-6;
(3) The insurer becomes insolvent after the policy is issued so there is no insurance applicable to, or at the time of, the accident; and
(4) The sum of the limits of liability under all bodily injury liability bonds and insurance policies available to an injured person after an accident is less than the damages which the injured person is legally entitled to recover.
(c) The recovery by an injured person under the uninsured provisions of any one contract of automobile insurance shall be limited to the primary coverage plus such additional coverage as may be provided for additional vehicles, but not to exceed two additional coverages within such contract.

Legislative History

(Acts 1965, No. 866, p. 1614; Acts 1984, No. 84-301, p. 672, §4.)