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Unisun Insurance Co. v. Schmidt6/15/1998
case is virtually identical to ours. See Va. Code Ann. ยง 38.1-381(c) (Supp. 1960). In our view, the language in the policy limiting the definition of insured so as to embrace only those occupying vehicles insured under the liability coverage is consistent with the definition of insured in the statute. Under South Carolina's definition, a guest must be in a motor vehicle "to which the policy applies" in order to qualify as an insured. When Schmidt drove off in the BMW without permission, the BMW was. no longer a motor vehicle to which the policy applied.
The purpose of uninsured motorist coverage is not to provide coverage for the uninsured vehicle and its owner or operator, but to provide protection to an insured motorist, his family, and the permissive users of his vehicle. Ferguson v. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co., 261 S.C. 96, 198 S.E.2d 522 (1973). As the Virginia court explained in Harleysville it is not intended "to provide insurance coverage upon each and every uninsured vehicle to everyone." Harleysville, 125 S.E.2d at 843.
For these reasons, we hold that the trial court erred in finding Hurst to have been an insured under State Farm's uninsured motorist coverage. Because we conclude that Hurst is not an insured, we need not decide whether the BMW was an uninsured motor vehicle.
REVERSED.
HEARN, ANDERSON and STILWELL, JJ., concur.
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