South Carolina Code 38-77-1130. Provision to authorized agencies, by insurance companies, of information regarding motor vehicle theft or motor vehicle insurance fraud; release of information by authorized agencies; immunity from liability
(1) pertinent insurance policy information relevant to theft or fraud under investigation and any application for a policy;
Terms Used In South Carolina Code 38-77-1130
- Action: means affirmative acts and the failure to take action. See South Carolina Code 38-77-1120
- Authorized agency: means :
(1) the South Carolina State Law Enforcement Division, the Department of Public Safety, the sheriff's department of any county of this State, and any duly constituted criminal investigative department or agency of another state of the United States;
(2) the Attorney General of this State, any circuit solicitor of this State, any prosecuting attorney for a county, circuit, or district of another state or of the United States;
(3) the South Carolina Department of Insurance and the South Carolina Department of Consumer Affairs of the Attorney General's Office; and
(4) the United States Department of Justice and its Federal Bureau of Investigation. See South Carolina Code 38-77-1120 - Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
- Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
- Immune: means that neither a civil action nor a criminal prosecution may arise from any action taken pursuant to this article unless actual malice on the part of the insurance company or authorized agency against the insured or gross negligence or reckless disregard for his rights is present. See South Carolina Code 38-77-1120
- insurance: includes annuities. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
- Insurance company: means an "insurer". See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
- Insured: means the named insured and, while resident of the same household, the spouse of any named insured and relatives of either, while in a motor vehicle or otherwise, and any person who uses with the consent, expressed or implied, of the named insured the motor vehicle to which the policy applies and a guest in the motor vehicle to which the policy applies or the personal representative of any of the above. See South Carolina Code 38-77-30
- Motor vehicle: means every self-propelled vehicle which is designed for use upon a highway, including trailers and semitrailers designed for use with these vehicles but excepting traction engines, road rollers, farm trailers, 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 South Carolina Code 38-77-30
- Person: means a corporation, agency, partnership, association, voluntary organization, individual, or another entity, organization, or aggregation of individuals. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
- 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. See South Carolina Code 38-77-30 - Premium: means payment given in consideration of a contract of insurance. See South Carolina Code 38-1-20
- Relevant: means having any tendency to make the existence of any fact that is of consequence to the investigation or determination of the issue more probable or less probable than it would be without the evidence. See South Carolina Code 38-77-1120
(2) policy premium payment records which are available;
(3) history of previous claims made by the insured;
(4) material relating to the investigation of the loss including statements of any person, proof of loss, and any other evidence relevant to the investigation.
(b) When an insurance company has reason to believe that a motor vehicle loss in which it has an interest may involve theft or a fraudulent claim, the company may notify, in writing, an authorized agency and provide it with any or all material developed from the company’s inquiry into the loss; however, when this information includes possible evidence of motor vehicle theft or motor vehicle insurance fraud involving specifically named persons, the information in all cases may be furnished to the solicitor in the circuit where the loss occurred and he shall furnish the information to other authorized agencies if he considers the action appropriate. When an insurance company provides any one of the authorized agencies with notice of a theft or fraud, it is sufficient notice for the purpose of this article.
(c) The authorized agency provided with information may release or provide the information to any agency asked to participate in the investigation.
(d) Any insurance company providing information to an authorized agency has the right to be informed, upon written request, as to the status of the case by the agency within a reasonable time, as determined by the authorized agency.
(e) Any insurance company or authorized agency which releases information, whether oral or written, and any person acting in their behalf, pursuant to this article, is immune from any liability arising out of the release.