Motor vehicle insurance; establish limitations on recovery for owners failing to maintain.

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To: Insurance
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION 2026

By: Representative Rushing

HOUSE BILL NO. 682

AN ACT TO ESTABLISH LIMITATIONS ON RECOVERY FOR MOTOR VEHICLE 1
OWNERS INVOLVED IN AN ACCIDENT WHO DO NOT MAINTAIN MOTOR VEHICLE 2
LIABILITY INSURANCE OR ANOTHER FORM OF SECURITY AUTHORIZED UNDER 3
THE MISSISSIPPI MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY-RESPONSIBILITY LAW; TO CREATE 4
CERTAIN EXCEPTIONS WHEN THE LIMITATIONS ARE NOT APPLICABLE; TO 5
BRING FORWARD SECTION 63-15-3, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH 6
DEFINES CERTAIN TERMS USED UNDER THE MISSISSIPPI MOTOR VEHICLE 7
SAFETY-RESPONSIBILITY LAW, AND SECTION 63-15-43, MISSISSIPPI CODE 8
OF 1972, WHICH PRESCRIBES MINIMUM LIMITS OF LIABILITY IN MOTOR 9
VEHICLE LIABILITY POLICIES, FOR PURPOSES OF POSSIBLE AMENDMENT; 10
AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES. 11
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI: 12
SECTION 1. (1) (a) There may be no recovery for the first 13
Fifteen Thousand Dollars ($15,000.00) of bodily injury and no 14
recovery for the first Twenty-five Thousand Dollars ($25,000.00) 15
of property damage based on any cause or right of action arising 16
out of a motor vehicle accident, for the injury or damages 17
occasioned by an owner or operator of a motor vehicle involved in 18
the accident who fails to own or maintain a motor vehicle 19
liability policy or other security acceptable as proof of 20
financial responsibility under Section 63-15-37. 21
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(b) For purposes of this section, the meaning of the 22
terms "bodily injury" and "property damage" is governed by the 23
applicable motor vehicle liability insurance policy or, in the 24
event of proof of financial responsibility other than an insurance 25
policy, the meaning that is commonly ascribed to those terms. 26
(c) (i) The limitations on recovery prescribed in this 27
subsection do not apply if the driver of the other vehicle: 28
1. Is charged with an offense under Section 29
63-11-30 in connection with the accident and subsequently is 30
convicted of or pleads nolo contendere to the offense; 31
2. Intentionally causes the accident; 32
3. Flees from the scene of the accident; or 33
4. At the time of the accident, is in 34
furtherance of the commission of a felony offense. 35
(ii) The limitations on recovery prescribed in 36
this subsection do not apply if at the time of the accident, the 37
other vehicle is not being operated. 38
(2) A person who is involved in an accident in which the 39
other motor vehicle was not covered by a motor vehicle liability 40
policy or other form of security authorized under this chapter and 41
who is found to be liable for damages to the owner or operator of 42
the other motor vehicle may assert as an affirmative defense the 43
limitations on recovery prescribed in subsection (1) of this 44
section. 45
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(3) If the owner or operator of a motor vehicle who fails to 46
own or maintain a motor vehicle liability policy or other form of 47
security authorized under this chapter institutes an action to 48
recover damages in any amount regardless of whether that owner or 49
operator is at fault, and is awarded an amount equal to or less 50
than the minimum amount of motor vehicle liability insurance or 51
other security, then the owner or operator must be assessed and 52
held liable for all court costs incurred by all parties to the 53
action. 54
(4) A person who applies for a driver's license, registers a 55
motor vehicle, or operates or owns a motor vehicle in this state 56
is deemed to have given his consent to be subject to and governed 57
by this section. Each person who applies for the issuance or 58
renewal of a driver's license, motor vehicle title, or motor 59
vehicle registration must sign a declaration on a form developed 60
by the Department of Public Safety pursuant to rule and regulation 61
stating that the person acknowledges and gives consent to the 62
requirements and provisions of this section and that the person 63
will comply with this section and the Mississippi Motor Vehicle 64
Safety-Responsibility Law. However, proof of whether the person 65
obtained or signed this declaration is irrelevant to the 66
application of this section. 67
(5) This section does not preclude a passenger in a vehicle 68
from asserting a claim to recover damages for injury, death or 69
loss which the passenger occasioned, in whole or in part, by the 70
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negligence of another person arising out of the operation or use 71
of a motor vehicle. This subsection does not apply to a passenger 72
who is also the owner of the uninsured motor vehicle involved in 73
the accident. 74
(6) (a) Notwithstanding any provision of law to the 75
contrary, an insurer does not lose any rights of subrogation for 76
claims paid under the applicable insurance policy for the recovery 77
of any sum in excess of the first Fifteen Thousand Dollars 78
($15,000.00) of bodily injury and the first Twenty-five Thousand 79
Dollars ($25,000.00) of property damages. 80
(b) In claims where no suit is filed, the claimant's 81
insurer maintains all rights to recover any amount paid by the 82
claimant's insurer on behalf of the insured for the recovery of 83
any sum in excess of the first Fifteen Thousand Dollars 84
($15,000.00) of bodily injury and the first Twenty-five Thousand 85
Dollars ($25,000.00) of property damages. 86
(7) (a) Except for a newly acquired vehicle added to a 87
policy subject to the policy terms, the issuance, change or 88
adjustment of a motor vehicle liability insurance policy 89
subsequent to a motor vehicle accident, without proof of coverage 90
having been bound before the motor vehicle accident, does not 91
effectuate any of the following: 92
(i) The recovery for injury or damages that are 93
otherwise prohibited under this section; 94
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(ii) The defeat of an affirmative defense 95
otherwise allowed under this section; or 96
(iii) The avoidance of liability for court costs 97
otherwise required under this section. 98
(b) Reinstatement provisions of a policy during the 99
premium payment grace period specified in the policy may not be 100
deemed invalidated by this section. 101
(8) This section does not apply to a vehicle that legally is 102
parked at the time of the accident. 103
SECTION 2. Section 63-15-3, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 104
brought forward as follows: 105
63-15-3. The following words and phrases, when used in this 106
chapter, shall, for the purposes of this chapter, have the 107
meanings respectively ascribed to them in this section, except in 108
those instances where the context clearly indicates a different 109
meaning: 110
(a) "Highway" means the entire width between property 111
lines of any road, street, way, thoroughfare or bridge in the 112
State of Mississippi not privately owned or controlled, when any 113
part thereof is open to the public for vehicular traffic and over 114
which the state has legislative jurisdiction under its police 115
power. 116
(b) "Judgment" means any judgment which shall have 117
become final by expiration, without appeal, of the time within 118
which an appeal might have been perfected, or by final affirmation 119
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on appeal, rendered by a court of competent jurisdiction of any 120
state or of the United States, upon a cause of action arising out 121
of the ownership, maintenance or use of any motor vehicle, for 122
damages, including damages for care and loss of services, because 123
of bodily injury to or death of any person, or for damages because 124
of injury to or destruction of property, including the loss of use 125
thereof, or upon a cause of action on an agreement of settlement 126
for such damages. 127
(c) "Motor vehicle" means every self-propelled vehicle 128
(other than traction engines, road rollers and graders, tractor 129
cranes, power shovels, well drillers, implements of husbandry, 130
electric bicycles, personal delivery devices and electric personal 131
assistive mobility devices as defined in Section 63-3-103) which 132
is designed for use upon a highway, including trailers and 133
semitrailers designed for use with such vehicles, and every 134
vehicle which is propelled by electric power obtained from 135
overhead wires but not operated upon rails. 136
For purposes of this definition, "implements of husbandry" 137
shall not include trucks, pickup trucks, trailers and semitrailers 138
designed for use with such trucks and pickup trucks. 139
(d) "License" means any driver's, operator's, 140
commercial operator's, or chauffeur's license, temporary 141
instruction permit or temporary license, or restricted license, 142
issued under the laws of the State of Mississippi pertaining to 143
the licensing of persons to operate motor vehicles. 144
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(e) "Nonresident" means every person who is not a 145
resident of the State of Mississippi. 146
(f) "Nonresident's operating privilege" means the 147
privilege conferred upon a nonresident by the laws of Mississippi 148
pertaining to the operation by him of a motor vehicle, or the use 149
of a motor vehicle owned by him, in the State of Mississippi. 150
(g) "Operator" means every person who is in actual 151
physical control of a motor vehicle. 152
(h) "Owner" means a person who holds the legal title of 153
a motor vehicle; in the event a motor vehicle is the subject of an 154
agreement for the conditional sale or lease thereof with the right 155
of purchase upon performance of the conditions stated in the 156
agreement and with an immediate right of possession vested in the 157
conditional vendee or lessee or in the event a mortgagor of a 158
vehicle is entitled to possession, then such conditional vendee or 159
lessee or mortgagor shall be deemed the owner for the purpose of 160
this chapter. 161
(i) "Person" means every natural person, firm, 162
copartnership, association or corporation. 163
(j) "Proof of financial responsibility" means proof of 164
ability to respond in damages for liability, on account of 165
accidents occurring subsequent to the effective date of said 166
proof, arising out of the ownership, maintenance or use of a motor 167
vehicle, in the amount of Twenty-five Thousand Dollars 168
($25,000.00) because of bodily injury to or death of one (1) 169
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person in any one (1) accident, and subject to said limit for one 170
(1) person, in the amount of Fifty Thousand Dollars ($50,000.00) 171
because of bodily injury to or death of two (2) or more persons in 172
any one (1) accident, and in the amount of Twenty-five Thousand 173
Dollars ($25,000.00) because of injury to or destruction of 174
property of others in any one (1) accident. Liability insurance 175
required under this paragraph (j) may contain exclusions and 176
limitations on coverage as long as the exclusions and limitations 177
language or form has been filed with and approved by the 178
Commissioner of Insurance. 179
(k) "Registration" means a certificate or certificates 180
and registration plates issued under the laws of this state 181
pertaining to the registration of motor vehicles. 182
(l) "Department" means the Department of Public Safety 183
of the State of Mississippi, acting directly or through its 184
authorized officers and agents, except in such sections of this 185
chapter in which some other state department is specifically 186
named. 187
(m) "State" means any state, territory or possession of 188
the United States, the District of Columbia, or any province of 189
the Dominion of Canada. 190
SECTION 3. Section 63-15-43, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 191
brought forward as follows: 192
63-15-43. (1) A "motor vehicle liability policy" as said 193
term is used in this chapter shall mean an owner's or an 194
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operator's motor vehicle liability policy, that has been certified 195
as provided in Section 63-15-39 or Section 63-15-41, as proof of 196
financial responsibility, and issued, except as otherwise provided 197
in Section 63-15-41, by an insurance company duly authorized to 198
write motor vehicle liability insurance in this state, to or for 199
the benefit of the person named therein as insured. 200
(2) Such owner's motor vehicle liability policy: 201
(a) May be any motor vehicle liability policy form that 202
has been filed with and approved by the Commissioner of Insurance 203
and may contain exclusions and limitations on coverage as long as 204
the exclusions and limitations language has been filed with and 205
approved by the Commissioner of Insurance. 206
(b) Shall have limits of liability no less than: 207
Twenty-five Thousand Dollars ($25,000.00) because of bodily injury 208
to or death of one (1) person in any one (1) accident and, subject 209
to said limit for one (1) person, Fifty Thousand Dollars 210
($50,000.00) because of bodily injury to or death of two (2) or 211
more persons in any one (1) accident, and Twenty-five Thousand 212
Dollars ($25,000.00) because of injury to or destruction of 213
property of others in any one (1) accident. 214
(3) Every motor vehicle liability policy certified under the 215
provisions of this chapter shall be subject to the following 216
provisions which need not be contained therein: 217
(a) The liability of the insurance company with respect 218
to the insurance required by this chapter shall become absolute 219
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whenever injury or damage covered by said motor vehicle liability 220
policy occurs; said policy may not be cancelled or annulled as to 221
such liability by any agreement between the insurance company and 222
the insured after the occurrence of the injury or damage; no 223
statement made by the insured or on his behalf and no violation of 224
said policy shall defeat or void said policy; 225
(b) The satisfaction by the insured of a judgment for 226
such injury or damage shall not be a condition precedent to the 227
right or duty of the insurance company to make payment on account 228
of such injury or damage; 229
(c) The insurance company shall have the right to 230
settle any claim covered by the policy, and if such settlement is 231
made in good faith, the amount thereof shall be deductible from 232
the limits of liability specified in paragraph (b) of subsection 233
(2) of this section; or 234
(d) The policy, the written application therefor, if 235
any, and any rider or endorsement which does not conflict with the 236
provisions of the chapter shall constitute the entire contract 237
between the parties. 238
(4) Any policy which grants the coverage required for a 239
motor vehicle liability policy may also grant any lawful coverage 240
in excess of or in addition to the coverage specified for a motor 241
vehicle liability policy, and such excess or additional coverage 242
shall not be subject to the provisions of this chapter. With 243
respect to a policy which grants such excess or additional 244
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ST: Motor vehicle insurance; establish
limitations on recovery for owners failing to
maintain.
coverage, the term "motor vehicle liability policy" shall apply 245
only to that part of the coverage which is required by this 246
section. 247
(5) Any motor vehicle liability policy may provide that the 248
insured shall reimburse the insurance company for any payment the 249
insurance company would not have been obligated to make under the 250
terms of the policy except for the provisions of this chapter. 251
(6) Any motor vehicle liability policy may provide for the 252
prorating of the insurance thereunder with other valid and 253
collectible insurance. 254
(7) The requirements for a motor vehicle liability policy 255
may be fulfilled by the policies of one or more insurance 256
companies which policies together meet such requirements. 257
(8) Any binder issued pending the issuance of a motor 258
vehicle liability policy shall be deemed to fulfill the 259
requirements for such a policy. 260
SECTION 4. Section 1 of this act shall be codified as a new 261
section in Chapter 15, Title 63, Mississippi Code of 1972. 262
SECTION 5. This act shall take effect and be in force from 263
and after July 1, 2026. 264