Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Auto Insurance Excluded Drivers topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Georgia committee hears bill to flag "excluded drivers" on insurance records, with insurers' and driving schools' support
Summary
House Bill 585 would require insurers to flag drivers excluded from a vehicle policy in the state's law‑enforcement insurance lookup so officers can identify and cite uninsured operators; supporters say it closes a loophole that leaves crash victims to uninsured‑motorist funds and driving instructors out of pocket.
House Bill 585, introduced by Pro Tem Jones and added to the committee agenda, would require insurance companies to indicate in the state's law‑enforcement database when a policy lists a driver as “excluded.” Pro Tem Jones said the change would let officers know when a driver who is operating a vehicle is not covered and allow citation for lack of insurance.
"What has happened," Pro Tem Jones said, "is that when the excluded driver were to drive the car and be stopped ... the police officer ... will see the car's insured" but not the exclusion. She told the committee judges and magistrates have reported repeated instances in which victims learned afterward that the at‑fault driver was excluded from the policy and the insurer would not pay.
Witnesses told the committee the consequence for crash victims is generally the same as with any uninsured vehicle: claims are handled through uninsured‑motorist coverage. Barry Schrank, president and owner of Taggart's Driving School, said two of his training cars were hit last year by drivers who were later disclosed to be excluded; Schrank said he paid roughly $1,600 in one crash and about $1,000 in another because of deductibles and limited insurers who write driving‑school policies.
State Farm representative Bobby Potter said his company supports the bill and worked with Pro Tem Jones. "It holds two people accountable," Potter said, describing the change as an added data field in the lookup system so law enforcement can tell whether a driver is excluded and, if appropriate, issue a ticket. He outlined the bill's range of penalties, calling $200 the minimum and noting "12 months in jail is the maximum."
Committee members asked whether the bill would change how victims are compensated. Pro Tem Jones repeatedly said it would not make insurers pay excluded drivers' claims; rather, it makes the exclusion visible so officers and then judges can address whether an owner "knowingly authorized" an excluded driver to operate the vehicle. She told the committee that while there is not a central count of how often exclusions are used, traffic and magistrate judges have reported seeing the practice.
The committee recorded a procedural vote to advance the measure after discussion; the transcript does not contain a roll‑call tally.
Next steps: the bill was advanced procedurally from the committee for further consideration; no legislative calendar date was recorded in the transcript.
