§17-29-10. Automobile Insurance Provisions

WV Code § 17-29-10 (2019) (N/A)
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(a) Insurers that write automobile insurance in this state may exclude any and all coverage afforded under the policy issued to an owner or operator of a personal vehicle for any loss or injury that occurs while a driver is logged on to a transportation network company’s digital network or while a driver provides a prearranged ride. This right to exclude all coverage may apply to any coverage included in an automobile insurance policy including, but not limited to:

(1) Liability coverage for bodily injury and property damage;

(2) Uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage;

(3) Medical payments coverage;

(4) Comprehensive physical damage coverage; and

(5) Collision physical damage coverage.

Such exclusions apply notwithstanding any requirement under article four, chapter seventeen-d of this code. Nothing in this section implies or requires that a personal automobile insurance policy provide coverage while the driver is logged on to the transportation network company’s digital network, while the driver is engaged in a prearranged ride or while the driver otherwise uses a vehicle to transport passengers for compensation. Nothing shall be deemed to preclude an insurer from providing coverage for the transportation network company driver’s vehicle, if it so chooses to do so by contract or endorsement.

(b) Automobile insurers that exclude the coverage described in section eight of this article have no duty to defend or indemnify any claim expressly excluded thereunder. Nothing in this article invalidates or limits an exclusion contained in a policy, including any policy in use or approved for use in this state prior to the enactment of this article that excludes coverage for vehicles used to carry persons or property for a charge or available for hire by the public. An automobile insurer that defends or indemnifies a claim against a driver that is excluded under the terms of its policy shall have a right of contribution against other insurers that provide automobile insurance to the same driver in satisfaction of the coverage requirements of section eight of this article at the time of loss.

(c) In a claims coverage investigation, transportation network companies and any insurer providing coverage under section eight of this article shall cooperate to facilitate the exchange of relevant information with directly involved parties and any insurer of the transportation network company driver if applicable, including the precise times that a transportation network company driver logged on and off of the transportation network company’s digital network in the twelve hour period immediately preceding and in the twelve hour period immediately following the accident and disclose to one another a clear description of the coverage, exclusions and limits provided under any automobile insurance maintained under section eight of this article.