Could an unlicensed employee drive a permitted golf cart on a South Carolina public street?

Plain-English summary

Hanahan’s police chief asked whether a golf-cart permit issued to a licensed owner allowed an unlicensed employee or agent to drive the cart on public streets. The AG said golf carts counted as motor vehicles under the cited licensing provisions. Section 56-3-115 allowed an owner to obtain a limited road-use permit, but each person who actually drove the cart still needed a valid driver’s license unless exempt under Section 56-1-30.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 2004. Subsequent statutory amendments, court decisions, or later AG opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current legal advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or remedy mentioned here.

Common questions

Q: Was the owner’s license enough for an employee to drive?
A: No. The AG said an agent or employee driving on a street or highway needed a license as well.

Q: Did the AG treat a golf cart as a motor vehicle?
A: Yes. That classification brought the driver-license requirement into its analysis.

Q: Were there possible exceptions for drivers?
A: The opinion preserved the exemptions in Section 56-1-30, without finding that an exemption applied to the described employee.

Background and statutory framework

Section 56-3-115 described the limited permit for a licensed owner and specified where and when the cart could travel. The AG read it alongside Section 56-1-20’s driver-license requirement and Section 56-1-30’s exemptions.

Citations

• Section 56-3-115
• Section 56-1-20
• Section 56-1-30

Source

• Landing page: https://www.scag.gov/opinions/opinions-archive/april-22-2004/
• Original PDF: https://www.scag.gov/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/04apr22wilcox.pdf

Original opinion text

The State of South Carolina

OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL
HENRY McMAsn:R
ATTORNEY GENERAL

April 22, 2004

Donald L. Wilcox, Chief of Police
City of Hanahan Police Department
1265 Yeamans Hall Road
Hanahan, South Carolina 29406

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Dear Chief Wilcox:
In a letter to this office you requested an interpretation of S.C. Code Ann. Section 56-3-115 (Supp. 2003) pertaining to golf carts and their operation on public highways. Such provision states as follows:

The owner of a vehicle commonly known as a golf cart, if he has a valid driver's license, may obtain a permit from the department upon the payment of a fee of five dollars and proof of financial responsibility which permits his agent, employees, or him to: ( 1) operate the golf cart on a secondary highway or street within two miles of his residence or place of business during daylight hours only; and (2) cross a primary highway or street while traveling along a secondary highway or street within two miles of his residence or place of business during daylight hours. You have questioned whether pursuant to such provision, an unlicensed individual could operate a golf cart on a street or highway as permitted by the provision. You stated that it has been asserted that only the owner is required to have a driver's license. Prior opinions of this office have concluded that golf carts fall within the definition of a "motor vehicle". See: Ops. Atty. Gen. dated October 6, I 998 and June 12, 1987. As defined by S. C. Code Ann. Section 56-1-10 (Supp. 2003), a "motor vehicle" includes " ... every vehicle which is selfpropelled, except 'moped' as defined in Article 9 of this chapter, .... " The October 6, 1998 opinion referenced that other jurisdictions have concluded that a golf cart comes within the definition of a "motor vehicle". S.C. Code Ann. Section 56-1-20 (1991) provides that "(n)o person, except those expressly exempted in this article, shall drive any motor vehicle upon a highway in this State unless such

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Chief Wilcox
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April 22, 2004

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person has a valid motor vehicle driver's license issued to him under the provisions ofthis article." S.C. Code Ann. Section 56-1-30 (1991) specifically exempts certain persons from licensing requirements. Consistent with such, inasmuch as a golf cart comes within the definition of a motor vehicle, in order to drive the golf cart upon the highways or streets as permitted by Section 56-3-115, an individual must be licensed unless exempted by Section 56-1-30. Therefore, in addition to the requirement that the owner be licensed, any agent or employee of the owner must be licensed as well in order to drive the golf cart on the streets or highways as authorized by Section 56-3-115. With kind regards, I am,

Very truly yours,

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Charles H. Richardson
Senior Assistant Attorney General
REVIEWED AND APPROVED BY:

Robert D. Cook
Assistant Deputy Attorney General

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