Louisiana Revised Statutes 32:866 – Compulsory motor vehicle liability security; failure to comply; limitation of damages
Terms Used In Louisiana Revised Statutes 32:866
- Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
- Grace period: The number of days you'll have to pay your bill for purchases in full without triggering a finance charge. Source: Federal Reserve
- Judgment: means any judgment which shall have become final by expiration without appeal of the time within which a suspensive appeal might have been perfected or by final affirmation on appeal, rendered by a court of competent jurisdiction of any state or of the United States, upon a cause of action arising out of the ownership, maintenance, or use of any motor vehicle, for damages, including damages for care and loss of services, because of bodily injury to or death of any person, or for damages because of injury to or destruction of property including the loss of use thereof, or upon a cause of action on an agreement of settlement for such damages. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 32:851
- Lawsuit: A legal action started by a plaintiff against a defendant based on a complaint that the defendant failed to perform a legal duty, resulting in harm to the plaintiff.
- License: means any license, temporary instruction permit, or temporary license issued under the laws of this state pertaining to the licensing of persons to operate motor vehicles. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 32:851
- Motor vehicle: means every self-propelled vehicle (except traction engines, road rollers, farm tractors, electric-assisted bicycles, tractor cranes, power shovels, and well drillers) and every vehicle which is propelled by electric power obtained from overhead wires but not operated upon rails. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 32:851
- Nolo contendere: No contest-has the same effect as a plea of guilty, as far as the criminal sentence is concerned, but may not be considered as an admission of guilt for any other purpose.
- Operator: means every person who is in actual physical control of a motor vehicle. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 32:851
- Owner: means every person who holds the legal title to a motor vehicle or in the event a motor vehicle is the subject of an agreement for the conditional sale, lease, or transfer of the possession, however, thereof, with the right of purchase upon performance of the condition stated in the agreement and with an immediate right of possession vested in the conditional vendee, lessee, possessor, or in the event such or similar transaction is had by means of a mortgage, and the mortgagor of a vehicle is entitled to possession, then such conditional vendee, lessee, possessor, or mortgagor shall be deemed the owner for the purpose of this Chapter. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 32:851
- Person: means every natural person, firm, co-partnership, association, or corporation. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 32:851
- Registration: includes a registration certificate or certificates and registration plates issued under the laws of this state pertaining to the registration of motor vehicles. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 32:851
- State: means any state, territory, or possession of the United States, the District of Columbia, or any province of the Dominion of Canada. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 32:851
A.(1) There shall be no recovery for the first fifteen thousand dollars of bodily injury and no recovery for the first twenty-five thousand dollars of property damage based on any cause or right of action arising out of a motor vehicle accident, for such injury or damages occasioned by an owner or operator of a motor vehicle involved in such accident who fails to own or maintain compulsory motor vehicle liability security.
(2) For purposes of this Section, the meaning of “bodily injury” and “property damage” is governed by the applicable motor vehicle liability insurance policy or, in the event of security other than an insurance policy, the meaning of such terms is that which is commonly ascribed thereto.
(3)(a) The limitation of recovery provisions of this Subsection do not apply if the driver of the other vehicle:
(i) Is cited for a violation of La. Rev. Stat. 14:98 as a result of the accident and is subsequently convicted of or pleads nolo contendere to such offense.
(ii) Intentionally causes the accident.
(iii) Flees from the scene of the accident.
(iv) At the time of the accident, is in furtherance of the commission of a felony offense under the law.
(b) The limitation of recovery provisions of this Subsection do not apply if at the time of the accident, the other vehicle is not being operated and the vehicle is not in violation of the provisions of Chapter 1 of this Title.
B. Each person who is involved in an accident in which the other motor vehicle was not covered by compulsory motor vehicle liability security and who is found to be liable for damages to the owner or operator of the other motor vehicle may assert as an affirmative defense the limitation of recovery provisions of Subsection A of this Section.
C. If the owner of a motor vehicle, who fails to own or maintain compulsory motor vehicle liability security, institutes an action to recover damages in any amount, regardless of whether such owner or operator is at fault, and is awarded an amount equal to or less than the minimum amount of compulsory motor vehicle liability security, then such owner or operator shall be assessed and held liable for all court costs incurred by all parties to the action.
D. Each person who applies for a driver’s license, registers a motor vehicle, or operates or owns a motor vehicle in this state is deemed to have given his consent to be subject to and governed by the provisions of this Section. All persons who apply for the issuance or renewal of a driver’s license, motor vehicle title, or motor vehicle registration shall sign a declaration on a form developed by the Department of Public Safety and Corrections pursuant to rule and regulation that the person acknowledges and gives consent to the requirements and provisions of this Section and that the person will comply with all provisions of this Section and the Motor Vehicle Safety Responsibility Law. Proof of whether the person obtained or signed such declaration is irrelevant to the application of this Section.
E. Nothing in this Section shall preclude a passenger in a vehicle from asserting a claim to recover damages for injury, death, or loss which he occasioned, in whole or in part, by the negligence of another person arising out of the operation or use of a motor vehicle. This Subsection shall not apply to a passenger who is also the owner of the uninsured motor vehicle involved in the accident.
F.(1) Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, no insurer shall lose any rights of subrogation for claims paid under the applicable insurance policy for the recovery of any sum in excess of the first fifteen thousand dollars of bodily injury and the first twenty-five thousand dollars of property damages.
(2) In claims where no suit is filed, the claimant’s insurer shall have all rights to recover any amount paid by the claimant’s insurer on behalf of the insured for the recovery of any sum in excess of the first fifteen thousand dollars of bodily injury and the first twenty-five thousand dollars of property damages.
G.(1) Except for newly acquired vehicles added to a policy subject to the policy terms, the issuance, change, or adjustment of any motor vehicle liability security or insurance policy subsequent to a motor vehicle accident, without proof of coverage having been bound prior to such motor vehicle accident, shall not effectuate any of the following:
(a) The recovery for injury or damages that are otherwise prohibited under this Section.
(b) The defeat of any affirmative defense otherwise allowed under this Section.
(c) The avoidance of liability for court costs otherwise required under this Section.
(2) Reinstatement provisions of a policy during the premium payment grace period specified in the policy shall not be invalidated by the provisions of this Section.
H. The provisions of this Part shall not apply to any vehicle which is legally parked at the time of the accident.
Acts 1997, No. 1476, §4, eff. Sept. 6, 1998; Acts 1999, No. 1085, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 2000; Acts 2003, No. 532, §1; Acts 2008, No. 921, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 2010; Acts 2014, No. 149, §1.
NOTE: See Acts 1997, No. 1476, §5(D)(2). The rate reduction day was the date on which the judgment in the lawsuit became final, May 8, 1998. Sections 2 through 4 became effective 120 days thereafter, Sept. 6, 1998.