Sec. 14-29. Owners of motor or service buses, taxicabs, school buses, school transportation vehicles and motor vehicles in livery service to furnish insurance or bond.
Sec. 14-29. Owners of motor or service buses, taxicabs, school buses, school
transportation vehicles and motor vehicles in livery service to furnish insurance
or bond. (a) The commissioner shall not register any motor bus, taxicab, school bus,
motor vehicle in livery service, student transportation vehicle or service bus and no
person may operate or cause to be operated upon any public highway any such motor
vehicle until the owner or lessee thereof has procured insurance or a bond satisfactory
to the commissioner, which insurance or bond shall indemnify the insured against any
legal liability for personal injury, the death of any person or property damage, which
injury, death or damage may result from or have been caused by the use or operation
of such motor vehicle described in the contract of insurance or such bond. Such insurance
or bond shall not be required from (1) a municipality which the commissioner finds has
maintained sufficient financial responsibility to meet legal liability for personal injury,
death or damage resulting from or caused by the use or operation of a service bus owned
or operated by such municipality, or (2) the owner or lessee of such class of motor
vehicle who holds a certificate of public necessity and convenience from the Department
of Transportation if such owner or lessee has procured from the department a certificate
that the department has found that such owner or lessee is of sufficient financial responsibility to meet legal liability for personal injury, death or property damage resulting from
or caused by the use or operation of such motor vehicle. The Department of Transportation may issue such certificate upon presentation of evidence of financial responsibility
that is satisfactory to it.
(b) (1) The amount of insurance or of such bond which each such vehicle owner
or lessee shall carry as insurance or indemnity against claims for personal injury or death
shall be not less than (A) fifty thousand dollars for one person subject to that limit per
person; (B) for all persons in any one accident where the carrying capacity is seven
passengers or less, one hundred thousand dollars; (C) eight to twelve passengers, inclusive, one hundred fifty thousand dollars; (D) thirteen to twenty passengers, inclusive,
two hundred thousand dollars; (E) twenty-one to thirty passengers, inclusive, two hundred fifty thousand dollars; and (F) thirty-one passengers or more, three hundred thousand dollars; and such policy or such bond shall indemnify the insured against legal
liability resulting from damage to the property of passengers or of others to the amount
of ten thousand dollars.
(2) In lieu of the foregoing, a single limit of liability shall be allowed as insurance
or indemnity against claims for personal injury or death and legal liability resulting from
damage to the property of passengers or of others for any one accident (A) where the
carrying capacity is seven passengers or less, not less than one hundred thousand dollars;
(B) eight to twelve passengers, inclusive, not less than one hundred fifty thousand dollars; (C) thirteen to twenty passengers, inclusive, not less than two hundred thousand
dollars; (D) twenty-one to thirty passengers, inclusive, not less than two hundred fifty
thousand dollars; and (E) thirty-one passengers or more, not less than three hundred
thousand dollars. The provisions of this subsection shall not apply to (i) a municipality
which the commissioner has found to have sufficient financial responsibility to meet
legal liability for damages as provided in subsection (a) of this section or (ii) the owner
or lessees of any such motor vehicle holding a certificate of public convenience and
necessity issued by the Department of Transportation whom the department has found
to be of sufficient financial responsibility to meet legal liability for damages as provided
in subsection (a).
(c) Any person or company issuing any such insurance or indemnity bond shall file
with the Commissioner of Motor Vehicles a certificate in such form as he prescribes,
and no such insurance or bond shall lapse, expire or be cancelled while the registration
is in force until the commissioner has been given at least ten days' written notice of an
intention to cancel and until he has accepted other insurance or another indemnity bond
and has notified the person or company seeking to cancel such insurance or bond that
such other insurance or bond has been accepted or until the registration of such motor
vehicle described in such insurance policy or bond has been suspended or cancelled.
(d) Any person injured in person or property by any such motor vehicle may apply
to the commissioner for the name and description of the insurer of the vehicle causing
such injury or the name of the surety upon any indemnity bond of any such owner or
the name of the holder of a certificate of financial responsibility.
(e) Any person who violates any provision of this section shall be fined not more
than five hundred dollars or imprisoned not more than one year or both.
(f) Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, any person, association or corporation operating a motor vehicle in livery service under the provisions of sections 13b-101 to 13b-109, inclusive, shall carry insurance or indemnity against claims for personal
injury or death and legal liability resulting from damage to the property of passengers
or of others for any one accident in an amount not less than one million five hundred
thousand dollars for vehicles with a seating capacity of fourteen passengers or less and
five million dollars for vehicles with a seating capacity of fifteen passengers or more.
(1949 Rev., S. 2371; 1955, S. 1293d; November, 1955, S. N164; 1971, P.A. 487, S. 1; P.A. 75-486, S. 39, 69; P.A. 77-614, S. 162, 610; P.A. 80-482, S. 32, 348; P.A. 81-90; P.A. 82-460, S. 5; P.A. 85-613, S. 122, 154; P.A. 89-222, S. 5; P.A.
90-263, S. 4, 74; P.A. 93-341, S. 7; P.A. 96-180, S. 39, 166; P.A. 99-181, S. 11; P.A. 06-130, S. 13.)
History: 1971 act raised insurance or bond minimum from $25,000 to $50,000 for one person and raised insurance for
property damage from $5,000 to $10,000; P.A. 75-486 replaced public utilities commission with public utilities control
authority; P.A. 77-614 replaced public utilities control authority with division of public utility control within the department
of business regulation, effective January 1, 1979; P.A. 80-482 gave division departmental status and deleted reference to
abolished department of business regulation; P.A. 81-90 amended Subsec. (a), exempting self-insured municipalities from
the insurance or bond requirement for operation of public service motor vehicles or service buses; and amended Subsec.
(b), allowing a single limit of liability in lieu of the double limit for each public service motor vehicle, and exempting self-insured municipalities from provisions; P.A. 82-460 amended Subsec. (c) to add reference to suspension of registration
and to delete requirement that commissioner take number plates of vehicles with suspended or cancelled registrations;
P.A. 85-613 made technical changes, substituting references to transportation department for references to department of
public utility control in Subsecs. (a) and (b); P.A. 89-222 added new Subsec. (f) re increasing the insurance for motor
vehicles in livery service; P.A. 90-263 substituted motor bus, taxicab and motor vehicle in livery service for public service
motor vehicle; P.A. 93-341 applied Subsec. (a) provisions to school buses; P.A. 96-180 made technical changes in Subsec.
(b) to conform Subdiv., Subpara. and clause designations with customary statutory usage, effective June 3, 1996; P.A. 99-181 amended Subsec. (f) by increasing the required insurance or indemnity from not less than $600,000 to $1,500,000 for
vehicles with a seating capacity of fourteen passengers or less and $5,000,000 for vehicles with a seating capacity of fifteen
passengers or more; P.A. 06-130 amended Subsec. (a) to add student transportation vehicles and make a technical change,
effective June 2, 2006.
Cited. 9 CA 686.