STATE LAW – MISSISSIPPI LIBRARY – GUIDE 06
Mississippi UM/UIM Stacking, Nonstacking Options & Multiple Policies
Mississippi traditionally permits UM stacking, but current law also permits a specially elected single-limit nonstacking option for policies covering four or more vehicles. Insured status remains a prerequisite.
Multiple Policies
Traditional stacking is not the only possible result
The correct outcome depends on insured status, the number of covered vehicles, the policies involved, and whether a qualifying § 83-11-102 nonstacking election was made.
Traditional stacking
State Farm v. Nester reaffirmed Mississippi’s traditional rule allowing stacking of applicable UM coverage where multiple policies or coverages protect the insured. Glennon limits that principle by requiring the claimant to be an insured under the coverage being added.
Four-or-more-vehicle single-limit option
Miss. Code § 83-11-102 permits an insurer and insured to use a single-limit nonstacking UM structure for a policy covering four or more vehicles. The statute requires a qualifying limit and an approved informed disclosure/selection process. Older references to a ten-vehicle threshold are obsolete under current law.
Separate policies may still matter
The statutory single-limit election addresses the qualifying multi-vehicle policy; it does not automatically erase UM from separate policies where aggregation is otherwise appropriate. Obtain every declarations page, endorsement, and election form before calculating available limits.
Authorities
Primary Mississippi authority for this topic
Use the current statute, controlling decisions, and operative policy before legal reliance.