New York Senate Bill S08706 Latest Draft

   
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 8706  IN SENATE March 1, 2024 ___________ Introduced by Sen. KRUEGER -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Consumer Protection AN ACT to amend the general business law, in relation to requiring third-party food delivery services maintain insurance through a group policy that covers bodily injury or death arising out of or resulting from qualifying accidents involving a delivery person The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Paragraph (d) of subdivision 1 of section 391-v of the 2 general business law, as added by chapter 693 of the laws of 2021, is 3 amended and three new paragraphs (e), (f), and (g) are added to read as 4 follows: 5 (d) "Third-party food delivery platform" means the online or mobile 6 platform of the third-party food delivery service on which a consumer 7 can view products available for sale and place an order for a food 8 service establishment's products or on which a delivery driver can 9 accept and facilitate orders. 10 (e) "Delivery driver" means any individual who conveys products from a 11 food service establishment to a customer on behalf of a third-party food 12 delivery service. For the purposes of this paragraph, multiple delivery 13 drivers who share one account with a third-party food delivery service 14 shall each qualify as a delivery driver. 15 (f) "Qualifying accident" means a vehicular accident involving a 16 delivery driver that occurs while the delivery driver is logged into a 17 third-party food delivery platform and working on behalf of a third-par- 18 ty food delivery service. 19 (g) "Qualifying vehicle" means any two or three-wheeled vehicle, other 20 than a motorcycle that carries its own liability insurance per the 21 requirements of article six of the vehicle and traffic law, at the time 22 of the qualifying accident. 23 § 2. Section 391-v of the general business law is amended by adding a 24 new subdivision 3 to read as follows: 25 3. Each third-party food delivery service shall maintain insurance 26 through a group policy that covers bodily injury or death arising out of EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD13846-01-3 
 S. 8706 2 1 or resulting from qualifying accidents involving a delivery person 2 subject to the following provisions: 3 (a) Benefits shall be limited to only those qualifying accidents 4 involving delivery persons who are operating a qualifying vehicle. 5 (b) Benefits shall be limited to payments for basic economic losses up 6 to fifty thousand dollars per person. For the purpose of determining 7 basic economic loss, qualifying expenses shall be determined in accord- 8 ance with the definitions and limitations of section five thousand one 9 hundred two of the insurance law. 10 (c) The policy of liability insurance maintained by the third-party 11 food delivery service in accordance with this section shall provide for 12 the payment on benefits for qualifying accidents to all persons, other 13 than those explicitly excluded in this subdivision, for loss arising out 14 of the use or operation of a qualifying vehicle by a delivery driver in 15 New York. Persons eligible for benefits shall include, but are not 16 limited to: (i) delivery drivers; (ii) pedestrians; and (iii) cyclists 17 who are not delivery drivers who experience basic economic loss in 18 accordance with the provisions of paragraph (b) of this subdivision. 19 Persons shall be eligible for benefits irrespective of state residency 20 or citizenship status so long as the qualifying accident occurs in New 21 York. The payment of benefits shall be awarded irrespective of who was 22 at fault, liable, or responsible for the qualifying accident. Occupants 23 of a motor vehicle and occupants of a motorcycle that carries its own 24 liability insurance per the requirements of article six of the vehicle 25 and traffic law shall not be eligible for benefits. 26 (d) An insurer may exclude from coverage required by this section the 27 following individuals: 28 (i) a delivery driver who intentionally causes his own injury or who 29 is injured as a result of exhibiting dangerous conduct while in an 30 intoxicated condition or while impaired by the use of a drug, or 31 (ii) any other person who intentionally causes his own injury or who 32 is injured as a result of exhibiting dangerous conduct while in an 33 intoxicated condition or while impaired by the use of a drug. 34 (e) Insurance maintained by any third-party food delivery service to 35 satisfy the requirements of this section shall be offered without a 36 deductible. A third-party food delivery service may maintain insurance 37 to satisfy the requirements of this section through a third-party insur- 38 er, so long as the requirements of this section are met. 39 (f) Insurance offered by any third-party food delivery service to 40 satisfy the requirements of this section shall be primary to any health 41 insurance policies that would otherwise cover the basic economic losses 42 defined in this section. 43 (g) A delivery driver shall receive benefits in accordance with this 44 section irrespective of the delivery driver's immigration status or 45 status as an independent contractor. A delivery driver interfacing with 46 a third-party food delivery service at the time of a qualifying accident 47 shall receive benefits in accordance with this section irrespective of 48 whether the delivery driver's vehicle is in compliance with federal, 49 state, or local requirements, including registration requirements. 50 § 3. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after 51 it shall have become a law.