The coastland times. [volume] (Mnateo [i.e. Manteo], N.C.) 1947-1959, 1953-12-04

WOO YAOO VI 1893, yOo w A1OI SOAAAS
under the new laws security pro-
visions. If the property damage to
any one person exceeded $500,
however, you are again subject
to the laws security section. Let
me assume, in this purely hypo-
thetical case, that you are sub
ject to the security requirements.
In that event, the Department
of Motor Vehicles will pay par
ticular attention to several other
very important sections of the
report. One of them is the Sec
ton in which you furnish infor-
nation about insurance. If it
shows that you had in force, at
the time of the accident, the kind
of insurance that would cover
damage claims resulting from the
accident, your worries are over
as far as the new Safety Respon-
sibility Law are concerned. The
law specifically states that the
proper kind of insurance shall be
accepted automatically as evil
dence of your ability to pay for
the damage you caused.
If you did not carry insurance,
however, you will have to act
very quickly to meet the security
requirements in other ways. This
new law requires you to meet
damage claims up to $1l, 900. 1t
does not follow, however, that
the damage you cause will nee
essarily be that high. 1t can be
as low as S101, but 1 must warn
you in all candor that it is most
likely to be considerably higher.
Estimaters at the Department
will study your report carefully
and officially advise you as to the
amount of damages for which
you may be liable You then have
80 days from the date your acct
dent report was received to de-
post sufficient security or lose
your drivers license.
Please note that here, too, the
question of fault cannot be con-
sidered by the Department of
Motor Vehicles. You will remem-
Der that I said earlier our new
Safety Responsibility Law has no
loopholes. It gives its administra-
tors no jurisdiction whatever to
decide that ever moot question
among WORCESTERSHIRE was to
blame 1t simply tells us what
we must do within so days if you
are uninsured at the time you
drive your car into an accident
and are unable to deposit enough
collateral to cover the damage
you caused.
You will not be required to
deposit the collateral, of course,
if all other parties involved in
the accident absolve you from
liability, or if you are able to OBJ
tain a final court verdict of non
liability. Should you fail in either
of these steps, You may still exc
cute duly acknowledged written
agreement providing for the
satisfactory settlement of all
claims up to $1,000. If you are
unable to meet any of these re-
quirements and therefore deposit
collateral with the Department,
it will be returned if one year
elapses without court action for
damages being filed or when a
court issues final decree of non
liability.
Now suppose you don't happen
to have enough collateral lying
around to cover your estimated
liability for damages. What hap
pens next is entirely automatic
At the end of the 60-day period
of grace, your license to operate
a motor vehicle in North Carolina
is suspended; and it will remain
suspended until the new law is
satisfied in one of the ways I have
have just enumerated. 1t might
be noted in passing, that if an
other person, with your permis-
sion, was driving your car at the
time of the accident, both his
drivers license and your drivers
license will be suspended.
1t must be entirely clear to all
of you, I am sure, that this law
has real teeth. 1t doesn't tell the
Commissioner of Motor Vehicles
what he may do in certain cir
cumstances. 1t tells him very
plainly what he must do. You
may be sure that he will do it
just exactly as the law directs.
Neither does this statute offer the
slightest opportunity for any
lodging, 1t applies with equal
firmness to motorists from other
states when they are driving in
North Carolina.
The Legislature was perfectly
conscious that this type Of law
/ has very Sharp teeth and If took