S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   1941
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             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:
 
   Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 4 and subdivision 7 of section
 311  of  the  vehicle and traffic law, paragraph (a) of subdivision 4 as
 amended by chapter 305 of the laws of 1995 and subdivision 7 as  amended
 by chapter 805 of the laws of 1984, are amended to read as follows:
   (a) Affording coverage as defined in the minimum provisions prescribed
 in  a  regulation  which  shall  be promulgated by the superintendent at
 least ninety days prior to effective date of this act.  The  superinten-
 dent  before  promulgating  such  regulations  or any amendment thereof,
 shall consult with all insurers licensed to write  automobile  liability
 insurance in this state and shall not prescribe minimum provisions which
 fail  to  reflect the provisions of automobile liability insurance poli-
 cies, other than motor vehicle liability policies as defined in  section
 three  hundred  forty-five  of this chapter, issued within this state at
 the date of such regulation or amendment thereof.  Nothing contained  in
 such  regulation  or  in  this  article  shall prohibit any insurer from
 affording coverage under an owner's policy of liability  insurance  more
 liberal  than  that  required  by  said minimum provisions.   Every such
 owner's policy of liability insurance shall provide insurance subject to
 said regulation against loss from  the  liability  imposed  by  law  for
 damages,  including  damages  for  care and loss of services, because of
 bodily injury to or death of any person and injury to or destruction  of
 property arising out of the ownership, maintenance, use, or operation of
 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.
              

                                                            LBD04212-01-1

 S. 1941                             2
 
 or  elsewhere  in  the United States in North America or the Dominion of
 Canada, subject to a  limit,  exclusive  of  interest  and  costs,  with
 respect  to each such motor vehicle except a tow truck, of [twenty-five]
 TWO  HUNDRED  FIFTY  thousand  dollars because of bodily injuries to and
 [fifty] FIVE HUNDRED thousand dollars because of death of one person  in
 any  one  accident and, subject to said limit for one person, to a limit
 of [fifty] FIVE HUNDRED thousand dollars because of bodily injury to and
 one [hundred thousand] MILLION dollars because of death of two  or  more
 persons  in  any one accident, and to a limit of [ten] TWENTY-FIVE thou-
 sand dollars because of injury to or destruction of property  of  others
 in  any one accident provided, however, that such policy need not be for
 a period  coterminous  with  the  registration  period  of  the  vehicle
 insured.  The  limit, exclusive of interest and costs, with respect to a
 tow truck shall be a combined single limit of  at  least  three  hundred
 thousand  dollars  because  of  bodily  injury  or  death to one or more
 persons or because of injury or destruction of property of others in any
 one accident, and to a limit of twenty-five thousand dollars because  of
 damage to a vehicle in the care, custody and control of the insured. Any
 insurer  authorized to issue an owner's policy of liability insurance as
 provided for in this article may, pending the issue of  such  a  policy,
 make  an  agreement,  to be known as a binder, or may, in lieu of such a
 policy, issue a renewal endorsement or evidence of renewal of an  exist-
 ing  policy;  each  of  which shall be construed to provide indemnity or
 protection in like manner and to the same extent as such a  policy.  The
 provisions of this article shall apply to such binders, renewal endorse-
 ments or evidences of renewal. Every such policy issued insuring private
 passenger  vehicles  and  every  renewal policy, renewal endorsement, or
 other evidence of renewal issued shall have attached  thereto  a  rating
 information  form which clearly specifies and defines the rating classi-
 fication assigned thereto, including any applicable merit  rating  plan;
 and
   7.  The  term  "financial  security deposit" shall mean for each motor
 vehicle the deposit with the commissioner of [twenty-five]  TWO  HUNDRED
 FIFTY  thousand  dollars  in cash, or securities, such as may legally be
 purchased by savings banks or trust funds, of a market value  of  [twen-
 ty-five] TWO HUNDRED FIFTY thousand dollars and an additional deposit in
 an amount determined by the commissioner to be sufficient to satisfy the
 requirements of article fifty-one of the insurance law.
   §  2. Paragraph 3 of subdivision (b) of section 345 of the vehicle and
 traffic law, as amended by chapter 305 of the laws of 1995,  is  amended
 to read as follows:
   (3)  Shall  insure  the insured or such other person against loss from
 the liability imposed by law for damages, including damages for care and
 loss of services because of bodily injury to or death of any person  and
 injury to or destruction of property arising out of the ownership, main-
 tenance, use, or operation of such motor vehicle or motor vehicles with-
 in  the  state  of  New York, or elsewhere in the United States in North
 America or the Dominion of Canada, subject  to  a  limit,  exclusive  of
 interest and cost, with respect to each such motor vehicle, except a tow
 truck,  of  [twenty-five]  TWO HUNDRED FIFTY thousand dollars because of
 bodily injury to or [fifty] FIVE HUNDRED  thousand  dollars  because  of
 death  of  one person in any one accident and, subject to said limit for
 one person, to a limit of [fifty] FIVE HUNDRED thousand dollars  because
 of bodily injury to or one [hundred thousand] MILLION dollars because of
 death  of  two  or  more  persons in any one accident, and to a limit of
 [ten] TWENTY-FIVE thousand dollars because of injury to  or  destruction

 S. 1941                             3
 
 of  property  of  others  in  any  one accident. The limit, exclusive of
 interest and costs, with respect to a tow  truck  shall  be  a  combined
 single  limit of three hundred thousand dollars because of bodily injury
 of  death  to one or more persons or because of injury or destruction of
 property of others in any one accident, and to a  limit  of  twenty-five
 thousand dollars because of damage to a vehicle in the care, custody and
 control of the insured.
   §  3.  Paragraph  1 of subsection (f) of section 3420 of the insurance
 law, as amended by  section 19 of part III of chapter 59 of the laws  of
 2019, is amended to read as follows:
   (1)  No  policy insuring against loss resulting from liability imposed
 by law for bodily injury or death suffered by any natural person arising
 out of the ownership, maintenance and use  of  a  motor  vehicle  or  an
 altered  motor  vehicle  commonly  referred  to as a "stretch limousine"
 having a seating capacity of eight or more passengers used in the  busi-
 ness  of  carrying  or  transporting passengers for hire, by the insured
 shall be issued or delivered by any authorized insurer  upon  any  motor
 vehicle  or  an altered motor vehicle commonly referred to as a "stretch
 limousine" having a seating capacity of eight or more passengers used in
 the business of carrying or transporting passengers for hire, then prin-
 cipally garaged or principally used in this state unless it  contains  a
 provision whereby the insurer agrees that it will pay to the insured, as
 defined in such provision, subject to the terms and conditions set forth
 therein  to be prescribed by the board of directors of the Motor Vehicle
 Accident Indemnification Corporation and approved by the superintendent,
 all sums, not exceeding a maximum amount or limit of  [twenty-five]  TWO
 HUNDRED  FIFTY  thousand  dollars  exclusive  of  interest and costs, on
 account of injury to and all sums, not exceeding  a  maximum  amount  or
 limit of [fifty] FIVE HUNDRED thousand dollars exclusive of interest and
 costs,  on  account of death of one person, in any one accident, and the
 maximum amount or limit, subject to such limit for  any  one  person  so
 injured of fifty thousand dollars or so killed of one [hundred thousand]
 MILLION  dollars,  exclusive of interest and costs, on account of injury
 to, or death of, more than one person in any  one  accident,  which  the
 insured  or  his  legal  representative  shall be entitled to recover as
 damages from an owner or operator of an uninsured motor vehicle, uniden-
 tified motor vehicle which leaves the scene  of  an  accident,  a  motor
 vehicle registered in this state as to which at the time of the accident
 there  was not in effect a policy of liability insurance, a stolen vehi-
 cle, a motor vehicle  operated  without  permission  of  the  owner,  an
 insured  motor  vehicle  where the insurer disclaims liability or denies
 coverage or an unregistered vehicle because of bodily  injury,  sickness
 or  disease,  including  death  resulting  therefrom,  sustained  by the
 insured, caused by accident occurring in this state and arising  out  of
 the  ownership, maintenance or use of such motor vehicle. No payment for
 non-economic loss shall be made under such policy provision to a covered
 person unless such person has incurred a serious injury, as  such  terms
 are  defined  in  section five thousand one hundred two of this chapter.
 Such policy shall not duplicate  any  element  of  basic  economic  loss
 provided  for  under  article  fifty-one of this chapter. No payments of
 first party benefits for basic economic loss made pursuant to such arti-
 cle shall diminish the obligations of  the  insurer  under  this  policy
 provision  for  the  payment  of  non-economic loss and economic loss in
 excess  of  basic  economic  loss.    Notwithstanding  any  inconsistent
 provisions  of  section  three thousand four hundred twenty-five of this

 S. 1941                             4
 
 article, any such policy which does not contain the aforesaid provisions
 shall be construed as if such provisions were embodied therein.
   §  4.  Subsection (a) of section 5210 of the insurance law, as amended
 by chapter 305 of the laws of 1995, is amended to read as follows:
   (a) When any qualified person who has complied with all the applicable
 requirements of this article  recovers  a  final  judgment  in  a  court
 against  a  financially  irresponsible motorist, for injury to, or death
 of, any person arising out of the ownership, maintenance or use  of  the
 uninsured  motor  vehicle  in  this state, which remains unpaid, and all
 appeals have been concluded or the time for commencing them has expired,
 the judgment creditor may file a verified petition in the court in which
 the judgment was entered and, upon  ten  days'  written  notice  to  the
 corporation  apply  to  the  court for an order directing payment by the
 corporation of the amount unpaid on the judgment.  However, there  shall
 be  no  right  of  recovery by a covered person from the corporation for
 non-economic loss unless such person has incurred a serious  injury,  as
 such  terms are defined in section five thousand one hundred two of this
 chapter.   Such judgment exclusive  of  interest  and  costs  shall  not
 exceed:
   (1)  [twenty-five]  TWO  HUNDRED  FIFTY thousand dollars on account of
 injury to one person in any one accident, and
   (2) [fifty] FIVE HUNDRED thousand dollars on account of death  to  one
 person in any one accident, and
   (3) [fifty] FIVE HUNDRED thousand dollars on account of injury to more
 than  one person in any one accident subject to the limit of twenty-five
 thousand dollars for any one person, and
   (4) one [hundred thousand] MILLION dollars on account of death to more
 than one person in any one accident subject to the limit of fifty  thou-
 sand dollars for any one person.
   § 5. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
 is shall have become a law.