Bobby Lee Lankford appeals the trial court’s grant of summary judgment to State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company on his claim for uninsured motorist UM coverage. For the reasons set forth below, we affirm. Summary judgment is proper when there is no genuine issue of material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. OCGA § 9-11-56c. A de novo standard of review applies to an appeal from a grant of summary judgment, and we view the evidence, and all reasonable conclusions and inferences drawn from it, in the light most favorable to the nonmovant. Matjoulis v. Integon Gen. Ins. Corp., 226 Ga. App. 459 1 486 SE2d 684 1997. So viewed, the evidence shows that on September 15, 2006, Lankford, while driving his employer’s truck, was involved in a collision with Charles Kaucky. Kaucky had an automobile insurance policy with State Farm, which provided liability coverage up to a $50,000-per-person limit. Lankford also had three separate State Farm policies, which provided potential UM coverage in excess of Kaucky’s policy. Three days after the collision, on September 18, a State Farm claims representative wrote Lankford a letter referencing Kaucky’s policy and discussing Lankford’s “recent accident.” Approximately one month later, on or around October 20, 2006, Lankford’s employer provided written notice that it intended to seek subrogation recovery rights in connection with the accident. The employer’s letter also referenced Kaucky’s policy and informed State Farm that Lankford’s treatment for his injuries was ongoing and that the employer would be seeking “repayment of all medical and indemnity expenses that have been paid by his worker’s compensation claim . . . .” Subsequently, on February 2, 2007, State Farm issued a check in the amount of $1,616.88 to cover repairs to Lankford’s employer’s vehicle. That check also referenced Kaucky as the “insured.” Five months later, in July 2007, Lankford underwent lumbar fusion surgery in connection with the injuries he received in this accident. That same month, his attorney requested and received disclosure of Kaucky’s policy limits. In September 2007, Lankford first discussed his injuries and his workers’ compensation claim with his State Farm agent, Jim Coker. He asserts that Coker never advised him that he needed to provide written notice in order assert a claim for UM recovery under his own State Farm policies.
On September 5, 2008, almost two years after the accident, Lankford first provided written notice that he had been involved in an accident and first raised the issue of UM coverage under his own policies when his attorney enclosed his complaint for damages in a letter to State Farm. The suit sought recovery for personal injury, lost wages and general damages arising out the accident. State Farm was formally served with the complaint on September 8, 2008, and six months later, the insurer moved for summary judgment, asserting that it had not received timely written notice in accordance with Lankford’s policies, which required that Lankford “must give us or one of our agents written notice of the accident or loss as soon as reasonably possible.” The trial court granted summary judgment to State Farm, holding that Lankford had failed to give the requisite notice and that Lankford had failed to present any facts to justify this delay.
