Even with a suspended license and driving without insurance, typically you are still able to place a claim with the at-fault party's liability insurance for the damages to your vehicle. South Carolina is a tort liability state, which means the not-at-fault person can pursue a claim against the at-fault party.

To find out for certain if the other party's insurance company will indeed pay for your car, put in a claim with them. If your car is totaled and they do agree to pay, it would not be for repairs but a settlement for the actual cash value of the vehicle.

Since you should not have been driving with a suspended license or being uninsured, if you were cited for these actions you will face penalties. Section 56-1-460 of SC code of laws (motor vehicle title 56) lists the penalties for driving while a license is cancelled, suspended or revoked.

Here it states that a person who drives a motor vehicle on any public highway of SC when his license to drive is canceled, suspended, or revoked must, upon conviction, be punished as follows:

• for a first offense, fined three hundred dollars or imprisoned for thirty days, or both;
• for a second offense, fined six hundred dollars or imprisoned for sixty consecutive days, or both; and
• for a third and subsequent offense, fined one thousand dollars and imprisoned for not less than ninety days nor more than six months, no portion of which may be suspended by the trial judge.

The SC code of laws, specifically Title 56, Chapter 9, speaks about the motor vehicle financial responsibility act. Here it states that the general penalty for any person who violates this chapter, for which no penalty is otherwise provided, shall be fined not more than one hundred dollars or imprisoned for not more than thirty days.

The South Carolina DMV notes that if you fail to maintain proof of insurance on the motor vehicle you are guilty of a misdemeanor and may face suspension action by the SC Department of Motor Vehicles. Penalties can include the owner’s driver license and vehicle registration being suspended and he or she may have to pay $5.00 for each day the vehicle was uninsured, up to $200.00, plus an additional $200.00 reinstatement fee