NY State Senate Bill 2023-S4163

Senate Bill S4163

2023-2024 Legislative Session

Prohibits insurers from cancelling renters' insurance based on the ownership of a specific breed of dog

download bill text pdf

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Insurance Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Actions

View Actions

	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 03, 2024	referred to insurance
Feb 03, 2023	referred to insurance

2023-S4163 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A1149
Current Committee:: Senate Insurance
Law Section:: Insurance Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §3421, Ins L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2019-2020: S239
2021-2022: S1000, A8859

2023-S4163 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Prohibits insurers issuing policies insuring personal injury and property damage arising out of a lease, from cancelling or refusing to issue or renew such a policy, or charging increased premiums based upon the harboring of a specific breed of dog on the premises.

2023-S4163 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S4163

SPONSOR: HOYLMAN-SIGAL
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the insurance law, in relation to prohibiting insurers
from cancelling, refusing to issue or renew renters' insurance based on
the breed of dog owned

 
PURPOSE:

This bill prohibits insurers from cancelling or refusing to issue a
renters or homeowners insurance policy based on the ownership of a
specific breed of dog.

 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

Section one amends the insurance law is amended by adding a new section
3421.

Section two sets forth the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

A dog's temperament cannot be fairly predicted based upon its breed.
Breed specific insurance qualifications regulate all owners of dogs of
all targeted breeds despite substantial evidence that aggression is not
a specific breed trait. Aggression may occur in any breed of dog. Thus,
cancelling or refusing to issue a homeowners or renters liability insur-
ance policy based on the breed of dog residing in the home is an unfair
and discriminatory system. Breed specific regulations may alleviate the
anxieties of those who are particularly concerned about the reputation
of particular dog breeds; however, breed specific regulation is usually
intended to avoid specific types of behavior believed to predominate in
the breed. Whether aggression or other behaviors are predictable in
certain breeds as to justify separate treatment of the breed is imprac-
tical. Such regulation fails to adequately address the real problem:
aggressive dogs.

This bill will prohibit insurers from cancelling or refusing to issue a
homeowners or renters liability insurance policy based on their owner-
ship of a targeted breed of dog.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

S. 1000 of 2021-2022 (Hoylman): Died in Insurance

A. 0549 of 2021-2022 (Rosenthal L): Died in Insurance

S. 0239 of 2019-2020 (Hoylman): Died in Insurance

A. 1025 of 2019-2020 (Rosenthal L): Died in Insurance

S. 0084 of 2017-2018 (Hoylman): Died in Insurance

S. 3620 of 2015-2016 (Hoylman): Died in Insurance

A. 0561 of 2015-2016 (Rosenthal): Died in Insurance

A. 6957 of2013-2014 (Rosenthal): Died in Insurance

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None to the State.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This bill shall take effect immediately and shall apply to all policies
issued, renewed, modified, altered or amended on or after such date.

2023-S4163 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   4163
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             February 3, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sen. HOYLMAN-SIGAL -- read twice and ordered printed, and
   when printed to be committed to the Committee on Insurance
 
 AN ACT to amend the insurance law, in relation to  prohibiting  insurers
   from  cancelling,  refusing to issue or renew renters' insurance based
   on the breed of dog owned

   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. The section heading and subsection 1 of section 3421 of the
 insurance  law,  the section heading as added by chapter 545 of the laws
 of 2021 and subsection 1 as amended by chapter 679 of the laws of  2022,
 are amended to read as follows:
   Homeowners' liability insurance AND RENTERS' INSURANCE; dogs.  1. With
 respect  to  homeowners'  insurance  policies  as defined in section two
 thousand three hundred fifty-one of this chapter, AND   EVERY POLICY  OR
 CONTRACT  INSURING AGAINST LIABILITY FOR INJURY TO ANY PERSON, OR INJURY
 TO OR DESTRUCTION OF PROPERTY ARISING OUT OF A LEASE OF RESIDENTIAL ONE,
 TWO, THREE OR FOUR DWELLING REAL PROPERTY, INCLUDING RENTERS' INSURANCE,
 no insurer shall refuse to issue or renew, cancel, or charge  or  impose
 an  increased  premium  or rate for such policy or contract, or exclude,
 limit, restrict, or reduce coverage under such policy or contract  based
 solely  upon  harboring or owning any dog of a specific breed or mixture
 of breeds.
   § 2. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day  after  it  shall
 have become a law and shall apply to all policies issued, renewed, modi-
 fied,  altered  or  amended  on  or after such effective date; provided,
 however, that if chapter 679 of the laws of 2022 shall  not  have  taken
 effect  on  or before such date, then section one of this act shall take
 effect on the same date and in the same manner as such  chapter  of  the
 laws  of  2022  takes  effect  and  shall  apply to all policies issued,
 renewed, modified, altered or amended on or after such effective date.

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD04228-01-3

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