(a) Except for suspensions under § 55-12-115, and the proof required prior to the issuance of a restricted license as provided in § 55-12-114, where a person is required to give proof of financial responsibility, the proof shall be maintained for a period of three (3) years by that person. If a person elects to use a policy of insurance and financial responsibility insurance certificate as proof of financial responsibility under this section, the effective date as appears on the financial responsibility certificate shall be the date upon which financial responsibility has been proven, and financial responsibility shall be maintained for a period of three (3) years.

Terms Used In Tennessee Code 55-12-126

  • Bond: means irrevocable bond executed by a corporate surety company licensed to do business as a corporate surety company in this state, with penalties of like amounts as those pertaining to an insurance policy or the amount of damages suffered, whichever is less, the bond to guarantee the payment of any final judgment which might thereafter be rendered against the bonded party resulting from the accident up to and including the total amount of the bond, except the bond may specify a limited payment to those persons who have at the time of its execution filed claims with the commissioner, and shall contain a clause therein that it shall remain in force for one (1) year from the date of the accident or until final determination of any court action brought as a result of the accident, whichever may be the longer period of time. See Tennessee Code 55-12-102
  • Commissioner: means the commissioner of safety, unless otherwise indicated or unless the context otherwise requires. See Tennessee Code 55-12-102
  • Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
  • Driver: means :
    (A) For purposes of a conventionally operated vehicle, every person who drives or is in actual physical control of a vehicle. See Tennessee Code 55-8-101
  • 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.
  • Judgment: means any judgment that shall have become final by expiration without appeal of the time within which an 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. See Tennessee Code 55-12-102
  • License: means any license, temporary instruction permit, or temporary license issued under the laws of this state, or any other state, pertaining to the licensing of persons to operate motor vehicles within this state. See Tennessee Code 55-12-102
  • Motor vehicle: means every self-propelled vehicle that is designed for use upon the highway, including trailers and semitrailers designed for use with motor vehicles, and every vehicle that is propelled by electric power obtained from overhead wires but not operated upon rails, except traction engines, road rollers and farm tractors. See Tennessee Code 55-12-102
  • Operator: means :
    (A) For purposes of a conventionally operated vehicle, every person who is in actual physical control of a motor vehicle whether or not licensed as an operator or chauffeur under the laws of this state. See Tennessee Code 55-12-102
  • Owner: means a person who holds the legal title of a motor vehicle, or in the event a motor vehicle is the subject of an agreement for the conditional sale or lease thereof with the right of purchase upon performance of the conditions stated in the agreement and with an immediate right of possession vested in the conditional vendee or lessee, or in the event a mortgagor of a vehicle is entitled to possession, then the conditional vendee, lessee or mortgagor shall be deemed the owner for the purpose of this part. See Tennessee Code 55-12-102
  • Person: means a natural person, firm, copartnership, association, corporation, or an engaged ADS. See Tennessee Code 55-8-101
  • Registration: means a registration certificate or certificates and registration plates issued under the laws of this state pertaining to the registration of motor vehicles. See Tennessee Code 55-12-102
  • State: means any state, territory or possession of the United States, the District of Columbia, or any province of the Dominion of Canada. See Tennessee Code 55-12-102
  • United States: includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • Vehicle: means every device in, upon or by which any person or property is or may be transported or drawn upon a highway, excepting devices used exclusively upon stationary rails or tracks. See Tennessee Code 55-8-101
(b) If a policy of insurance or a bond required under this section and issued to any person is cancelled or terminated, the commissioner of safety shall suspend the license of that person and shall request that the commissioner of revenue suspend that person’s motor vehicle registration, unless the person has filed proof of another policy or bond meeting the requirements of this part, and the license of that person shall immediately be surrendered to the commissioner of safety and that person’s motor vehicle registration shall immediately be surrendered to the commissioner of revenue. Any notice of suspension issued under this section shall be sent by United States mail to the last known address of the person not less than twenty (20) days prior to the effective date of suspension, and shall state that the operator, owner, or both, are entitled to an administrative hearing before the commissioner of safety or the commissioner’s delegate conducted pursuant to a request under § 55-12-103(a). Any request for an administrative hearing must be submitted in writing on or before the final date of suspension.
(c) Any person whose license or registration, or both, have been suspended for failure to maintain evidence of financial responsibility shall, upon reapplying for an operator’s license, refile and maintain with the commissioner evidence of financial responsibility, pay a sixty-five-dollar restoration fee and pass the driver license examination. If the commissioner of safety, pursuant to this subsection (c), reinstates a person’s operator’s license that has been suspended under the authority of this section, then the commissioner of safety shall request that the commissioner of revenue reinstate that person’s motor vehicle registration revoked under authority of this section and, upon payment to the commissioner of revenue of the appropriate motor vehicle registration fees provided by § 55-4-111, § 55-4-112 or § 55-4-113, the registration shall be reinstated immediately.
(d) At any time after five (5) years from the date of revocation, the department of safety may, in its own discretion or upon request of the person required to furnish proof of financial responsibility, release the requirement of that proof, if the records of the department of safety establish that the person, during the preceding five-year period, has not been convicted of any offense authorizing or requiring the suspension or revocation of a license or registration by the department of safety or by the department of revenue and has not suffered suspension, revocation, prohibition, or cancellation of license or registration upon order of the department or a court arising from a conviction of a violation of the law. If the department of safety, pursuant to this subsection (d), releases the requirement that a person furnish proof of financial responsibility, and if that person’s motor vehicle registration has been suspended or revoked due to failure to furnish that proof, then the commissioner of safety shall request that the commissioner of revenue reinstate the motor vehicle owner’s registration and, upon payment to the commissioner of revenue of the appropriate motor vehicle registration fees provided by § 55-4-111, § 55-4-112 or § 55-4-113, the registration shall be reinstated immediately. Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, this subsection (d) shall not apply if there is an unsatisfied judgment based on a motor vehicle accident.