TITLE 33 INSURANCE

Section 24. Insurance Generally, 33-24-1 through 33-24-98.

ARTICLE 1 GENERAL PROVISIONS

33-24-44.1. Procedure for cancellation by insured and notice.

An insured may request cancellation of an existing insurance policy by returning the original policy to the insurer or by making a request for cancellation of an insurance policy to the insurer or its duly authorized agent orally, electronically, or in writing stating a future date on which the policy is to be canceled. In the event of oral cancellation the insurer, shall, within 10 days provide such insured, electronically or in writing, confirmation of such requested cancellation. The insurer or its duly authorized agent may require that the insured provide written, electronic, or other recorded verification of the request for cancellation prior to such cancellation taking effect. Such cancellation shall be accomplished in the following manner:
1. If only the interest of the insured is affected, the policy shall be canceled on the later of the date the returned policy or request is received by the insurer or its duly authorized agent or the date specified in the request; provided, however, that upon receipt of a request for cancellation from an insured, an insurer may waive the future date requirement by confirming the date and time of cancellation to the insured and the insurer shall document in its policy file the request for cancellation along with the date of the requested cancellation;
2. If by statute, regulation, or contract the insurance policy may not be canceled unless notice is given to a governmental agency, mortgagee, or other third party, the insurer shall mail or deliver such notice stating the date cancellation shall become effective, but such date shall not be less than ten days from the date of mailing or delivery of the notice.
Notices required by this Code section shall be delivered as provided in subsection (d) of Code Section 33-24-14, in person, or by depositing the notice in the United States mail to be dispatched by at least first-class mail to the last address of record of the named insured, governmental agency, mortgagee, or other third party, where applicable, and receiving the receipt provided by the United States Postal Service or such other evidence of mailing as prescribed or accepted by the United States Postal Service.
Where any notice is mailed or delivered in accordance with this Code section, the effective date of cancellation of the policy shall be the last effective date of any such notice.
Notwithstanding the failure of the insurer to comply with the provisions of this Code section, cancellation shall be effective on the effective date of any replacement policy providing the same or similar coverage, which date shall not be prior to the date provided in subsection (a) of this Code section.
Except as provided in Chapter 22 of this title, an insurance policy which by its terms may be canceled by the insured shall be canceled in accordance with this Code section.

(Code 1981, §33-24-44.1, enacted by Ga. L. 1987, p. 1466, § 2; Ga. L. 1994, p. 344, § 1; Ga. L. 2014, p. 829, § 6/HB 645; Ga. L. 2015, p. 5, § 33/HB 90; Ga. L. 2018, p. 675, § 1/HB 878.)

The 2014 amendment, effective July 1, 2014, inserted "as provided in subsection (d) of Code Section 33-24-14" near the beginning of subsection (b).

The 2015 amendment, effective March 13, 2015, part of an Act to revise, modernize, and correct the Code, revised punctuation in subsection (b).

The 2018 amendment, effective July 1, 2018, deleted "written" preceding "request" throughout subsection (a); in subsection (a), inserted "orally, electronically, or in writing" in the middle of the first sentence, and added the second and third sentences; in paragraph (a)(1), in the proviso, deleted "in writing" following "cancellation", and added "and the insurer shall document in its policy file the request for cancellation along with the date of the requested cancellation" at the end.

JUDICIAL DECISIONS

Insured's oral request that the policy be changed so as to delete coverage on one vehicle and extend coverage to another vehicle was in the nature of a binder and was enforceable according to the policy's terms, there being no evidence of the insured's intent or attempt to abandon or cancel the existing policy. Progressive Preferred Ins. Co. v. Davis, 199 Ga. App. 598, 405 S.E.2d 529, cert. denied, 199 Ga. App. 907, 405 S.E.2d 529 (1991).

Cancellation after injured employee had vested interest.

- Insured contractor, attempting to retroactively cancel the contractor's general commercial liability policy once a less expensive policy became effective, could not unilaterally effectuate the same when the contractor's employee and injured party had acquired a vested interest; the first insurer thus remained liable under O.C.G.A. § 33-24-44.1(a)(1). Harleysville-Atlantic Ins. Co. v. Queen, 250 Ga. App. 382, 552 S.E.2d 436 (2001).

Modification was not cancellation.

- Trial court's grant of summary judgment to insurers in the insurers' declaratory judgment action, wherein it was determined that the insurers owed no coverage obligations under a motorist's mother's policy to a driver who was involved in a collision with the motorist, was proper as the motorist's mother had not cancelled the policy when she sought deletion of the motorist's vehicle therefrom and a new policy solely in the motorist's name; rather, the motorist had modified the existing policy and, accordingly, the requirements for cancellation under O.C.G.A. § 33-24-44.1(a) were inapplicable. Danforth v. Gov't Emples. Ins. Co., 282 Ga. App. 421, 638 S.E.2d 852 (2006), cert. denied, No. S07C0473, 2007 Ga. LEXIS 143 (Ga. 2007).

RESEARCH REFERENCES

ALR.

- What constitutes waiver by insured or insured's agent of required notice of cancellation of insurance policy, 86 A.L.R.4th 886.

Syfert Injury Law Firm

2018 Georgia Code 33-24-44.1 | Car Wreck Lawyer