NEW MEXICO GUIDE 05
New Mexico Uninsured & Underinsured Motorist Coverage
New Mexico has extensive uninsured and underinsured motorist law. Current Section 66-5-301 requires UM/UIM coverage to be offered with automobile liability insurance, subject to the named insured’s right to reject coverage under New Mexico’s statutory and regulatory requirements. Coverage analysis should address the offer, any rejection or selection of lower limits, insured status, limits, offsets, exclusions, settlement effects and subrogation.
- Obtain declarations, endorsements and all UM/UIM selection or rejection documents.
- Identify every policy under which the injured person may qualify as an insured.
- Review whether any rejection or selection of limits below liability limits complies with current New Mexico requirements and controlling case law.
- Apply current Section 66-5-301, 13.12.3.9 NMAC and controlling New Mexico appellate authority before settlement.
The 2025 Legislature considered House Bill 97, which would have changed New Mexico to a mandatory minimum UM/UIM system effective January 1, 2026. That bill did not become law; the Legislature records HB 97 as having died after being postponed indefinitely. The current offer-and-rejection framework therefore remains the governing starting point.
Publication review note — September 17, 2026. UM/UIM rejection, disclosure, lower-limit selection and policy-reformation issues require primary-authority review before publication.
VictimsGuide 