H 2028 Session 107 (1987-1988)
H 2028 General Bill, By J.D. Bradley, Boan and P.T. Bradley
Similar(S 110, S 321)
A Bill to amend Title 38, Code of Laws of South Carolina, 1976, relating to
insurance, so as to, among other things, restructure the contents of the
Title, rearrange and recodify the provisions of law in this State concerning
insurance matters, and place in Title 38 various insurance provisions
heretofore codified in other Titles of the Code of Laws or uncodified; to
amend Section 15-9-280, relating to civil remedies and procedures and service
on unauthorized insurer, so as to, among other things, provide that any act of
transacting an insurance business as set forth in Section 38-25-110 by an
unauthorized insurer is equivalent to and constitutes an irrevocable
appointment by the insurer of the Secretary of State to be the true and lawful
attorney of the insurer upon whom may be served all lawful process in any
action, suit, or proceeding in any court by the Chief Insurance Commissioner
or by the State and upon whom may be served any notice, order, pleading, or
process in any proceeding before the Chief Insurance Commissioner and which
arises out of transacting an insurance business in this State by the insurer,
provide for the making of service of process, and impose duties on the
Secretary of State; to amend Article 3 of Chapter 9 of Title 15, relating to
civil remedies and procedures and personal or substitute service in the State,
by adding Section 15-9-285 so as to, among other things, provide that the
issuance and delivery of a policy of insurance or contract of insurance or
indemnity to any person in this State or the collection of a premium thereon
by an insurer not licensed in this State irrevocably constitutes the Chief
Insurance Commissioner the true and lawful attorney in fact upon whom service
of any and all processes, pleadings, actions, or suits arising out of the
policy or contract in behalf of the insured may be made, provide for the
making of service of process in the action, and impose duties upon the Chief
Insurance Commissioner; to amend Section 15-9-290, relating to civil remedies
and procedures and alternative method of service on unauthorized insurer, so
as to, among other things, provide that service of process in any action,
suit, or proceeding involving an unauthorized insurer is, in addition to that
which is provided in Section 15-9-280 and Section 15-9-285, valid under
certain conditions; to amend Chapter 9 of Title 23, relating to the State Fire
Marshal, by adding Article 3 so as to provide for a Firemen's Insurance and
Inspection Fund; to amend Title 39, relating to trade and commerce, by adding
Chapter 61 so as to enact the "Motor Club Services Act"; to amend Section
56-9-480, relating to motor vehicles, proof of financial responsibility,
satisfaction of judgments, and payments sufficient to satisfy requirements, so
as to provide that judgments referred to in Article 5 of Chapter 9 of Title 56
must, for the purpose of this Article only, be considered satisfied when
fifteen, rather than ten, thousand dollars has been credited upon any judgment
rendered in excess of that amount because of bodily injury to or death of one
person as the result of any one accident and when, subject to the limit of
fifteen, rather than ten, thousand dollars because of bodily injury to or
death of one person, the sum of thirty, rather than twenty, thousand dollars
has been credited upon any 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; to amend Section 56-9-580, relating to motor vehicles, certificate
of deposit of cash or securities as proof of financial responsibility, amount,
and the requirement that the deposit must be held to satisfy execution on a
judgment, so as to provide that proof of financial responsibility may be
evidenced by the certificate of the State Treasurer that the person named
therein has deposited with him thirty-five, rather than thirty-six, thousand
dollars in cash or securities such as may legally be purchased by savings
banks or for trust funds of a market value of thirty-five, rather than
thirty-six, thousand dollars; to amend Title 56, relating to motor vehicles,
by adding Chapter 10 so as to provide for motor vehicle registration and
financial security, including, among other things, provisions involving
insurance requirements relating to motor vehicle registration; to amend
Section 33-31-10, relating to the authorization to incorporate nonprofit
corporations, so as to provide that mutual benevolent aid associations
organized solely for the purposes defined in Section 38-35-10, rather than
Section 38-23-10, may be incorporated under the provisions of Chapter 31 of
Title 33; to amend Section 23-9-20, relating to duties of the State Fire
Marshal, so as to delete certain language concerning the transfer to the State
Fire Marshal of powers and duties vested in the Chief Insurance Commissioner
pursuant to certain Code Sections; to amend Section 23-9-30, as amended,
relating to resident fire marshals, so as to delete a reference to Chapter 57
of Title 38; to amend Section 15-9-300, relating to civil remedies and
procedures and service on unauthorized insurer, so as to add a reference to
Section 15-9-285 and delete a reference to Section 38-53-50; to amend Section
15-9-310, relating to civil remedies and procedures and service on attorney of
reciprocal insurance subscribers, so as to delete references to certain Code
Sections and add references to other Code Sections; to amend Section 15-9-270,
relating to civil remedies and procedures and service on insurance companies,
so as to delete certain language, including references to certain Code
Sections, and add a reference to Section 38-5-70; to amend Section 56-9-30,
relating to the provision that Chapter 9 of Title 56 is inapplicable to
certain motor vehicles, so as to delete an exception related to Article 7 of
Chapter 9 of Title 56; to amend Section 56-1-110, relating to motor vehicles
and imputed liability of person signing application for damages caused by
uninsured minor, so as to add a reference to Sections 38-77-140 through
38-77-310 as a basis for exempting a parent or guardian or other responsible
adult from the liability otherwise imposed under Section 56-1-110; to amend
Section 56-9-20, as amended, relating to definitions under the Motor Vehicle
Financial Responsibility Act, so as to alter the definitions of "Insured Motor
Vehicle", "Motor Vehicle Liability Policy", "Proof of Financial
Responsibility", and "Uninsured Motor Vehicle" principally by deleting
references to certain provisions or Sections of the Code of Laws and adding
references to different Code Sections; to authorize and direct the Code
Commissioner to place appropriate provisions of Acts dealing with insurance
enacted in 1987 in the appropriate area covered by this Act, to eliminate or
delete from this Act certain provisions of law, and to amend provisions of
this Act corresponding to amendments of the insurance laws as may have been
passed by the General Assembly during 1987 in other Acts; to amend Section
42-7-200, relating to the State Workers' Compensation Insolvency Fund, so as
to delete a reference to Section 42-5-140 and replace it with a reference to
Section 38-7-50; and to repeal the following: Article 7 of Chapter 9 of Title
56 relating to motor vehicles and coverage limitations, uninsured motorist
provisions, and the like; Chapter 11 of Title 56 relating to the South
Carolina Automobile Reparation Reform Act of 1974; Chapter 13 of Title 56
relating to motor vehicle physical damage appraisers; Chapter 9 of Title 35
relating to insider trading in securities of domestic stock insurance
companies; Sections 42-5-90, 42-5-100, 42-5-110, 42-5-120, 42-5-140, 42-5-150,
42-5-160, 42-5-170, and 42-5-180 relating to various provisions on insurance
and self-insurance under Workers' Compensation; Act 306 of 1975 relating to
providing a contingency plan for the writing of medical malpractice liability
insurance through a joint underwriting association upon the finding of an
emergency by the Insurance Commission; Act 767 of 1976 relating to the writing
of medical malpractice liability insurance through a joint underwriting
association, including, among other things, placing pharmacists in the
definition of health care provider and placing per claim and aggregate limits
on the amount of insurance which may be paid to a claimant upon enactment of a
Patient Compensation Fund Act; Act 104 of 1977 relating to the writing of
medical malpractice liability insurance through a joint underwriting
association and the creation of a Board of Governors to administer the
Patients' Compensation Fund, including, among other things, increasing the
membership of the Board of Directors of the Joint Underwriting Association and
the membership of the Board of Governors to administer the Patients'
Compensation Fund; Act 258 of 1977 relating to prohibiting the Insurance
Commission, Commissioner, or Joint Underwriting Association from implementing
any assessment that may be prescribed by the Joint Resolution establishing the
Joint Underwriting Association for the purpose of writing medical malpractice
liability insurance until July 1, 1978; Act 645 of 1978 relating to the
writing of medical malpractice insurance through a Joint Underwriting
Association, the establishment of a Patients' Compensation Fund, and a
contingency plan for writing legal professional malpractice insurance through
a Joint Underwriting Association, including, among other things, providing for
an appeal from a ruling or action by the medical or legal association or the
Patients' Compensation Fund to the Insurance Commission; Act 257 of 1977, Act
662 of 1978, Act 221 of 1979, and Act 200 of 1981 relating to the writing of
medical malpractice liability insurance through a Joint Underwriting
Association and the extension of the expiration date of the Underwriting
Association; Act 199 of 1983 relating to the writing of medical malpractice
liability insurance through a Joint Underwriting Association and deletion of
the requirement that the Association expire on December 31, 1983; Act 440 of
1986 relating to the provision that no health maintenance organization may
prohibit any licensed physician, podiatrist, optometrist, or oral surgeon from
participating as a provider in the organization on the basis of his profession
and to the provision that nothing in Act 440 of 1986 may be construed to
interfere with the medical decision of the primary health care provider to use
or not use any health professional on a case-by-case basis; Act 518 of 1986
relating to the adding of a Section to the Code of Laws so as to provide for
educational requirements for applicants for insurance agents' licenses and to
make exceptions; Subsection A of Section 31 of Part II of Act 540 of 1986 (The
General Appropriations Act) relating to, among other things, the requirement
that every insurance company of any class, except certain benevolent
institutions, shall, before transacting any business in this State, pay a
license fee of four hundred dollars to the Chief Insurance Commissioner and
shall thereafter pay an annual license fee of four hundred dollars; Subsection
B of Section 31 of Part II of Act 540 of 1986 relating to the levy upon each
insurance company licensed by the Commissioner of an insurance premium tax
based upon total premiums, other than Workers' Compensation insurance
premiums, and annuity considerations, collected by the company in the State
during each calendar year; Subsection C of Section 31 of Part II of Act 540 of
1986 relating to, among other things, the requirement that, not later than
March first of each year, every insurance company licensed by the Commissioner
shall file with him a return of premiums collected by the company in the State
during the immediately preceding calendar year ending on December
thirty-first; Subsection D of Section 31 of Part II of Act 540 of 1986
relating to, among other things, the provision that one-fourth of the
insurance premium taxes collected under Subsection B of this Section 31, and
one-fourth of the retaliatory collections made under Subsection E of this
Section 31 which are attributable to the tax levied in Subsection B, are
alloted to the several counties, respectively, in proportion to the latest
official United States Census of the counties, and are appropriated to
ordinary county purposes; Subsection E of Section 31 of Part II of Act 540 of
1986 relating to, among other things, the requirement that, under certain
conditions, similar insurance companies of other states establishing or having
theretofore established an agency or agencies in South Carolina shall make a
particular deposit for a particular purpose with the Commissioner; Subsection
F of Section 31 of Part II of Act 540 of 1986 relating to an amendment of a
Section of the Code of Laws concerning a return to the Chief Insurance
Commissioner by fire insurance companies; Subsection G of Section 31 of Part
II of Act 540 of 1986 relating to, among other things, the provisions that any
insurer or rating organization affected by certain provisions of law may, at
any time up until April 1, 1987, make a filing with the Commissioner
requesting a change in rates solely to reflect changes in certain imposed tax
liabilities; Subsection H of Section 31 of Part II of Act 540 of 1986 relating
to the provision that each license issued under Article 1 of Chapter 5 of
Title 38 is for an indefinite term unless sooner revoked or suspended;
Subsection J of Section 31 of Part II of Act 540 of 1986 relating to the
provision that the quarterly payments required of insurance companies for June
1, 1986, and September 1, 1986, are due and payable to the Chief Insurance
Commissioner on or before September 1, 1986; Subsection K of Section 31 of
Part II of Act 540 of 1986 relating to an amendment of a Section of the Code
of Laws concerning the payment of an annual license fee; Subsection L of
Section 31 of Part II of Act 540 of 1986 relating to an amendment of a Section
of the Code of Laws concerning the fee for an adjuster's license under the
insurance laws; Subsection M of Section 31 of Part II of Act 540 of 1986
relating to an amendment of a Section of the Code of Laws concerning fees for
insurance agents' licenses and the issuance of semiannual licenses; and
Subsection N of Section 31 of Part II of Act 540 of 1986 relating to an
amendment of a Section of the Code of Laws concerning licenses for appraisers
for motor vehicle physical damage claims, the license fee, and regulations.
12/03/86 House Prefiled
12/03/86 House Referred to Committee on Labor, Commerce and Industry
01/13/87 House Introduced and read first time HJ-33
01/13/87 House Referred to Committee on Labor, Commerce and
Industry HJ-40
05/12/87 House Tabled in committee
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