Bill Text: NY S01941 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Increases the minimum insurance coverage requirements for automobiles registered and/or operated within the state of New York.
Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-1)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-01-05 - REFERRED TO TRANSPORTATION [S01941 Detail]
Download: New_York-2021-S01941-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 1941 2021-2022 Regular Sessions IN SENATE January 16, 2021 ___________ Introduced by Sens. AKSHAR, FELDER, HARCKHAM -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Trans- portation AN ACT to amend the vehicle and traffic law and the insurance law, in relation to increasing the minimum insurance coverage requirements for automobiles registered and/or operated within the state of New York The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 4 and subdivision 7 of section 2 311 of the vehicle and traffic law, paragraph (a) of subdivision 4 as 3 amended by chapter 305 of the laws of 1995 and subdivision 7 as amended 4 by chapter 805 of the laws of 1984, are amended to read as follows: 5 (a) Affording coverage as defined in the minimum provisions prescribed 6 in a regulation which shall be promulgated by the superintendent at 7 least ninety days prior to effective date of this act. The superinten- 8 dent before promulgating such regulations or any amendment thereof, 9 shall consult with all insurers licensed to write automobile liability 10 insurance in this state and shall not prescribe minimum provisions which 11 fail to reflect the provisions of automobile liability insurance poli- 12 cies, other than motor vehicle liability policies as defined in section 13 three hundred forty-five of this chapter, issued within this state at 14 the date of such regulation or amendment thereof. Nothing contained in 15 such regulation or in this article shall prohibit any insurer from 16 affording coverage under an owner's policy of liability insurance more 17 liberal than that required by said minimum provisions. Every such 18 owner's policy of liability insurance shall provide insurance subject to 19 said regulation against loss from the liability imposed by law for 20 damages, including damages for care and loss of services, because of 21 bodily injury to or death of any person and injury to or destruction of 22 property arising out of the ownership, maintenance, use, or operation of 23 a specific motor vehicle or motor vehicles within the state of New York, EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD04212-01-1S. 1941 2 1 or elsewhere in the United States in North America or the Dominion of 2 Canada, subject to a limit, exclusive of interest and costs, with 3 respect to each such motor vehicle except a tow truck, of [twenty-five] 4 two hundred fifty thousand dollars because of bodily injuries to and 5 [fifty] five hundred thousand dollars because of death of one person in 6 any one accident and, subject to said limit for one person, to a limit 7 of [fifty] five hundred thousand dollars because of bodily injury to and 8 one [hundred thousand] million dollars because of death of two or more 9 persons in any one accident, and to a limit of [ten] twenty-five thou- 10 sand dollars because of injury to or destruction of property of others 11 in any one accident provided, however, that such policy need not be for 12 a period coterminous with the registration period of the vehicle 13 insured. The limit, exclusive of interest and costs, with respect to a 14 tow truck shall be a combined single limit of at least three hundred 15 thousand dollars because of bodily injury or death to one or more 16 persons or because of injury or destruction of property of others in any 17 one accident, and to a limit of twenty-five thousand dollars because of 18 damage to a vehicle in the care, custody and control of the insured. Any 19 insurer authorized to issue an owner's policy of liability insurance as 20 provided for in this article may, pending the issue of such a policy, 21 make an agreement, to be known as a binder, or may, in lieu of such a 22 policy, issue a renewal endorsement or evidence of renewal of an exist- 23 ing policy; each of which shall be construed to provide indemnity or 24 protection in like manner and to the same extent as such a policy. The 25 provisions of this article shall apply to such binders, renewal endorse- 26 ments or evidences of renewal. Every such policy issued insuring private 27 passenger vehicles and every renewal policy, renewal endorsement, or 28 other evidence of renewal issued shall have attached thereto a rating 29 information form which clearly specifies and defines the rating classi- 30 fication assigned thereto, including any applicable merit rating plan; 31 and 32 7. The term "financial security deposit" shall mean for each motor 33 vehicle the deposit with the commissioner of [twenty-five] two hundred 34 fifty thousand dollars in cash, or securities, such as may legally be 35 purchased by savings banks or trust funds, of a market value of [twen-36ty-five] two hundred fifty thousand dollars and an additional deposit in 37 an amount determined by the commissioner to be sufficient to satisfy the 38 requirements of article fifty-one of the insurance law. 39 § 2. Paragraph 3 of subdivision (b) of section 345 of the vehicle and 40 traffic law, as amended by chapter 305 of the laws of 1995, is amended 41 to read as follows: 42 (3) Shall insure the insured or such other person against loss from 43 the liability imposed by law for damages, including damages for care and 44 loss of services because of bodily injury to or death of any person and 45 injury to or destruction of property arising out of the ownership, main- 46 tenance, use, or operation of such motor vehicle or motor vehicles with- 47 in the state of New York, or elsewhere in the United States in North 48 America or the Dominion of Canada, subject to a limit, exclusive of 49 interest and cost, with respect to each such motor vehicle, except a tow 50 truck, of [twenty-five] two hundred fifty thousand dollars because of 51 bodily injury to or [fifty] five hundred thousand dollars because of 52 death of one person in any one accident and, subject to said limit for 53 one person, to a limit of [fifty] five hundred thousand dollars because 54 of bodily injury to or one [hundred thousand] million dollars because of 55 death of two or more persons in any one accident, and to a limit of 56 [ten] twenty-five thousand dollars because of injury to or destructionS. 1941 3 1 of property of others in any one accident. The limit, exclusive of 2 interest and costs, with respect to a tow truck shall be a combined 3 single limit of three hundred thousand dollars because of bodily injury 4 of death to one or more persons or because of injury or destruction of 5 property of others in any one accident, and to a limit of twenty-five 6 thousand dollars because of damage to a vehicle in the care, custody and 7 control of the insured. 8 § 3. Paragraph 1 of subsection (f) of section 3420 of the insurance 9 law, as amended by section 19 of part III of chapter 59 of the laws of 10 2019, is amended to read as follows: 11 (1) No policy insuring against loss resulting from liability imposed 12 by law for bodily injury or death suffered by any natural person arising 13 out of the ownership, maintenance and use of a motor vehicle or an 14 altered motor vehicle commonly referred to as a "stretch limousine" 15 having a seating capacity of eight or more passengers used in the busi- 16 ness of carrying or transporting passengers for hire, by the insured 17 shall be issued or delivered by any authorized insurer upon any motor 18 vehicle or an altered motor vehicle commonly referred to as a "stretch 19 limousine" having a seating capacity of eight or more passengers used in 20 the business of carrying or transporting passengers for hire, then prin- 21 cipally garaged or principally used in this state unless it contains a 22 provision whereby the insurer agrees that it will pay to the insured, as 23 defined in such provision, subject to the terms and conditions set forth 24 therein to be prescribed by the board of directors of the Motor Vehicle 25 Accident Indemnification Corporation and approved by the superintendent, 26 all sums, not exceeding a maximum amount or limit of [twenty-five] two 27 hundred fifty thousand dollars exclusive of interest and costs, on 28 account of injury to and all sums, not exceeding a maximum amount or 29 limit of [fifty] five hundred thousand dollars exclusive of interest and 30 costs, on account of death of one person, in any one accident, and the 31 maximum amount or limit, subject to such limit for any one person so 32 injured of fifty thousand dollars or so killed of one [hundred thousand] 33 million dollars, exclusive of interest and costs, on account of injury 34 to, or death of, more than one person in any one accident, which the 35 insured or his legal representative shall be entitled to recover as 36 damages from an owner or operator of an uninsured motor vehicle, uniden- 37 tified motor vehicle which leaves the scene of an accident, a motor 38 vehicle registered in this state as to which at the time of the accident 39 there was not in effect a policy of liability insurance, a stolen vehi- 40 cle, a motor vehicle operated without permission of the owner, an 41 insured motor vehicle where the insurer disclaims liability or denies 42 coverage or an unregistered vehicle because of bodily injury, sickness 43 or disease, including death resulting therefrom, sustained by the 44 insured, caused by accident occurring in this state and arising out of 45 the ownership, maintenance or use of such motor vehicle. No payment for 46 non-economic loss shall be made under such policy provision to a covered 47 person unless such person has incurred a serious injury, as such terms 48 are defined in section five thousand one hundred two of this chapter. 49 Such policy shall not duplicate any element of basic economic loss 50 provided for under article fifty-one of this chapter. No payments of 51 first party benefits for basic economic loss made pursuant to such arti- 52 cle shall diminish the obligations of the insurer under this policy 53 provision for the payment of non-economic loss and economic loss in 54 excess of basic economic loss. Notwithstanding any inconsistent 55 provisions of section three thousand four hundred twenty-five of thisS. 1941 4 1 article, any such policy which does not contain the aforesaid provisions 2 shall be construed as if such provisions were embodied therein. 3 § 4. Subsection (a) of section 5210 of the insurance law, as amended 4 by chapter 305 of the laws of 1995, is amended to read as follows: 5 (a) When any qualified person who has complied with all the applicable 6 requirements of this article recovers a final judgment in a court 7 against a financially irresponsible motorist, for injury to, or death 8 of, any person arising out of the ownership, maintenance or use of the 9 uninsured motor vehicle in this state, which remains unpaid, and all 10 appeals have been concluded or the time for commencing them has expired, 11 the judgment creditor may file a verified petition in the court in which 12 the judgment was entered and, upon ten days' written notice to the 13 corporation apply to the court for an order directing payment by the 14 corporation of the amount unpaid on the judgment. However, there shall 15 be no right of recovery by a covered person from the corporation for 16 non-economic loss unless such person has incurred a serious injury, as 17 such terms are defined in section five thousand one hundred two of this 18 chapter. Such judgment exclusive of interest and costs shall not 19 exceed: 20 (1) [twenty-five] two hundred fifty thousand dollars on account of 21 injury to one person in any one accident, and 22 (2) [fifty] five hundred thousand dollars on account of death to one 23 person in any one accident, and 24 (3) [fifty] five hundred thousand dollars on account of injury to more 25 than one person in any one accident subject to the limit of twenty-five 26 thousand dollars for any one person, and 27 (4) one [hundred thousand] million dollars on account of death to more 28 than one person in any one accident subject to the limit of fifty thou- 29 sand dollars for any one person. 30 § 5. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after 31 is shall have become a law.
