STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 2518 2023-2024 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY January 26, 2023 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. HYNDMAN -- read once and referred to the Commit- tee on Insurance 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] title, issued within this 14 state at the date of such regulation or amendment thereof. Nothing 15 contained in such regulation or in this article shall prohibit any 16 insurer from affording coverage under an owner's policy of liability 17 insurance more liberal than that required by said minimum provisions. 18 Every such owner's policy of liability insurance shall provide insurance 19 subject to said regulation against loss from the liability imposed by 20 law for damages, including damages for care and loss of services, 21 because of bodily injury to or death of any person and injury to or 22 destruction of property arising out of the ownership, maintenance, use, 23 or operation of a specific motor vehicle or motor vehicles within the 24 state of New York, or elsewhere in the United States in North America or EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD06582-01-3
A. 2518 2 1 the Dominion of Canada, subject to a limit, exclusive of interest and 2 costs, with respect to each such motor vehicle except a tow truck, of 3 [twenty-five] two hundred fifty thousand dollars because of bodily inju- 4 ries to and [fifty] five hundred thousand dollars because of death of 5 one person in any one accident and, subject to said limit for one 6 person, to a limit of [fifty] five hundred thousand dollars because of 7 bodily injury to and one [hundred thousand] million dollars because of 8 death of two or more persons in any one accident, and to a limit of 9 [ten] twenty-five thousand dollars because of injury to or destruction 10 of property of others in any one accident provided, however, that such 11 policy need not be for a period coterminous with the registration period 12 of the vehicle insured. The limit, exclusive of interest and costs, with 13 respect to a tow truck shall be a combined single limit of at least 14 three hundred thousand dollars because of bodily injury or death to one 15 or more persons or because of injury or destruction of property of 16 others in any one accident, and to a limit of twenty-five thousand 17 dollars because of damage to a vehicle in the care, custody and control 18 of the insured. Any insurer authorized to issue an owner's policy of 19 liability insurance as provided for in this article may, pending the 20 issue of such a policy, make an agreement, to be known as a binder, or 21 may, in lieu of such a policy, issue a renewal endorsement or evidence 22 of renewal of an existing policy; each of which shall be construed to 23 provide indemnity or protection in like manner and to the same extent as 24 such a policy. The provisions of this article shall apply to such bind- 25 ers, renewal endorsements or evidences of renewal. Every such policy 26 issued insuring private passenger vehicles and every renewal policy, 27 renewal endorsement, or other evidence of renewal issued shall have 28 attached thereto a rating information form which clearly specifies and 29 defines the rating classification assigned thereto, including any appli- 30 cable merit rating plan; and 31 7. The term "financial security deposit" shall mean for each motor 32 vehicle the deposit with the commissioner of [twenty-five] two hundred 33 fifty thousand dollars in cash, or securities, such as may legally be 34 purchased by savings banks or trust funds, of a market value of [twen- 35 ty-five] two hundred fifty thousand dollars and an additional deposit in 36 an amount determined by the commissioner to be sufficient to satisfy the 37 requirements of article fifty-one of the insurance law. 38 § 2. Paragraph 3 of subdivision (b) of section 345 of the vehicle and 39 traffic law, as amended by chapter 305 of the laws of 1995, is amended 40 to read as follows: 41 (3) Shall insure the insured or such other person against loss from 42 the liability imposed by law for damages, including damages for care and 43 loss of services because of bodily injury to or death of any person and 44 injury to or destruction of property arising out of the ownership, main- 45 tenance, use, or operation of such motor vehicle or motor vehicles with- 46 in the state of New York, or elsewhere in the United States in North 47 America or the Dominion of Canada, subject to a limit, exclusive of 48 interest and cost, with respect to each such motor vehicle, except a tow 49 truck, of [twenty-five] two hundred fifty thousand dollars because of 50 bodily injury to or [fifty] five hundred thousand dollars because of 51 death of one person in any one accident and, subject to said limit for 52 one person, to a limit of [fifty] five hundred thousand dollars because 53 of bodily injury to or one [hundred thousand] million dollars because of 54 death of two or more persons in any one accident, and to a limit of 55 [ten] twenty-five thousand dollars because of injury to or destruction 56 of property of others in any one accident. The limit, exclusive of
A. 2518 3 1 interest and costs, with respect to a tow truck shall be a combined 2 single limit of three hundred thousand dollars because of bodily injury 3 of death to one or more persons or because of injury or destruction of 4 property of others in any one accident, and to a limit of twenty-five 5 thousand dollars because of damage to a vehicle in the care, custody and 6 control of the insured. 7 § 3. Paragraph 1 of subsection (f) of section 3420 of the insurance 8 law, as amended by section 19 of part III of chapter 59 of the laws of 9 2019, is amended to read as follows: 10 (1) No policy insuring against loss resulting from liability imposed 11 by law for bodily injury or death suffered by any natural person arising 12 out of the ownership, maintenance and use of a motor vehicle or an 13 altered motor vehicle commonly referred to as a "stretch limousine" 14 having a seating capacity of eight or more passengers used in the busi- 15 ness of carrying or transporting passengers for hire, by the insured 16 shall be issued or delivered by any authorized insurer upon any motor 17 vehicle or an altered motor vehicle commonly referred to as a "stretch 18 limousine" having a seating capacity of eight or more passengers used in 19 the business of carrying or transporting passengers for hire, then prin- 20 cipally garaged or principally used in this state unless it contains a 21 provision whereby the insurer agrees that it will pay to the insured, as 22 defined in such provision, subject to the terms and conditions set forth 23 therein to be prescribed by the board of directors of the Motor Vehicle 24 Accident Indemnification Corporation and approved by the superintendent, 25 all sums, not exceeding a maximum amount or limit of [twenty-five] two 26 hundred fifty thousand dollars exclusive of interest and costs, on 27 account of injury to and all sums, not exceeding a maximum amount or 28 limit of [fifty] five hundred thousand dollars exclusive of interest and 29 costs, on account of death of one person, in any one accident, and the 30 maximum amount or limit, subject to such limit for any one person so 31 injured of fifty thousand dollars or so killed of one [hundred thousand] 32 million dollars, exclusive of interest and costs, on account of injury 33 to, or death of, more than one person in any one accident, which the 34 insured or his legal representative shall be entitled to recover as 35 damages from an owner or operator of an uninsured motor vehicle, uniden- 36 tified motor vehicle which leaves the scene of an accident, a motor 37 vehicle registered in this state as to which at the time of the accident 38 there was not in effect a policy of liability insurance, a stolen vehi- 39 cle, a motor vehicle operated without permission of the owner, an 40 insured motor vehicle where the insurer disclaims liability or denies 41 coverage or an unregistered vehicle because of bodily injury, sickness 42 or disease, including death resulting therefrom, sustained by the 43 insured, caused by accident occurring in this state and arising out of 44 the ownership, maintenance or use of such motor vehicle. No payment for 45 non-economic loss shall be made under such policy provision to a covered 46 person unless such person has incurred a serious injury, as such terms 47 are defined in section five thousand one hundred two of this chapter. 48 Such policy shall not duplicate any element of basic economic loss 49 provided for under article fifty-one of this chapter. No payments of 50 first party benefits for basic economic loss made pursuant to such arti- 51 cle shall diminish the obligations of the insurer under this policy 52 provision for the payment of non-economic loss and economic loss in 53 excess of basic economic loss. Notwithstanding any inconsistent 54 provisions of section three thousand four hundred twenty-five of this 55 article, any such policy which does not contain the aforesaid provisions 56 shall be construed as if such provisions were embodied therein.
A. 2518 4 1 § 4. Subsection (a) of section 5210 of the insurance law, as amended 2 by chapter 305 of the laws of 1995, is amended to read as follows: 3 (a) When any qualified person who has complied with all the applicable 4 requirements of this article recovers a final judgment in a court 5 against a financially irresponsible motorist, for injury to, or death 6 of, any person arising out of the ownership, maintenance or use of the 7 uninsured motor vehicle in this state, which remains unpaid, and all 8 appeals have been concluded or the time for commencing them has expired, 9 the judgment creditor may file a verified petition in the court in which 10 the judgment was entered and, upon ten days' written notice to the 11 corporation apply to the court for an order directing payment by the 12 corporation of the amount unpaid on the judgment. However, there shall 13 be no right of recovery by a covered person from the corporation for 14 non-economic loss unless such person has incurred a serious injury, as 15 such terms are defined in section five thousand one hundred two of this 16 chapter. Such judgment exclusive of interest and costs shall not 17 exceed: 18 (1) [twenty-five] two hundred fifty thousand dollars on account of 19 injury to one person in any one accident, and 20 (2) [fifty] five hundred thousand dollars on account of death to one 21 person in any one accident, and 22 (3) [fifty] five hundred thousand dollars on account of injury to more 23 than one person in any one accident subject to the limit of twenty-five 24 thousand dollars for any one person, and 25 (4) one [hundred thousand] million dollars on account of death to more 26 than one person in any one accident subject to the limit of fifty thou- 27 sand dollars for any one person. 28 § 5. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after 29 is shall have become a law.