Automobile Insurance

These questions and answers are for consumers of financial products seeking answers regarding Automobile Insurance questions. If you are a business, Industry or regulated entity, please check our industry questions.


What are the effective dates for the new claims practice procedures required by the revised Regulation 68?

With some clarifications or exceptions, the new claims practice procedures contained in Regulation 68-C are in effect as of April 5, 2002. The following are the clarifications or exceptions:

  • Simple interest will be paid by insurers for overdue claims arising from accidents that occur on or after April 5, 2002.
  • The Explanation of Benefits must be provided for claims received by insurers on or after April 5, 2002.
  • Benefits for Other Necessary Expenses may no longer be assigned for claims arising from accidents that occur on or after April 5, 2002.

Is there a prescribed form which must be used by a No-Fault insurer or self-insurer in order to request additional verification of claim?

No such requirement exists within Regulation 68.

Where may I obtain a copy of AAA Form AR1, the New York Motor Vehicle No-Fault Insurance Law Arbitration Request Form?

AAA Form AR1 may be obtained by selecting this link or visit the web site of the American Arbitration Association for further information on how to file for No-Fault arbitration.

The revised Regulation 68 specifically provides the arbitrator with the discretion to resolve disputes involving amounts of less than $2,000 by written submissions only. When does this rule take effect?

This rule takes effect for all arbitration requests filed on or after April 5, 2002.

The First Amendment to Regulation 68-D gives the arbitrator the authority to assess costs against the applicant under certain circumstances. When does this rule take effect?

This rule takes effect for all arbitration requests filed on or after April 5, 2002.

I have received a No-Fault Arbitration award over a month ago but I have not received payment from the insurer. What should I do?

If a conciliation agreement or settlement letter issued by the American Arbitration Association (AAA) or arbitration award is not paid within 30 days of the date the agreement was mailed to the parties, an applicant or applicant's attorney may submit a written enforcement request to the Department's Property Bureau.  With every request for enforcement, the Department requires insurers and self-insurers to either provide proof to the Department that full payment was made or an explanation why payment was not made.

If payment is not made by the insurer in accordance with the terms specified in the conciliation letter or arbitration award within 45 days following such resolution, an additional attorney’s fee shall be paid by the insurer when the attorney writes to the insurer in order to receive such overdue payment. The additional attorney's fee shall be $60 and shall become payable only after written request from the attorney to the insurer, received by the insurer more than 45 days after mailing of the conciliation letter or arbitration award. Such fee shall not be payable if payment was made by the insurer prior to the attorney's request for such payment or if an arbitration award is appealed.

When insurers do not make timely payments, you are encouraged to request enforcement of such dispute resolutions with the Department. The enforcement request should include (1) a full and complete copy of the conciliation agreement, settlement letter or arbitration award and (2) a copy of your follow-up correspondence addressed to the insurer requesting that they issue payment for the unpaid conciliation agreement or arbitration award.  Your enforcement request should be directed to:

Hyman Silberstein, Senior Insurance Examiner
New York State Department of Financial Services
One State Street
New York, NY 10004

There are new procedures for the enforcement of unpaid arbitration awards and the payment of an attorney's fee for obtaining payment of such unpaid awards. When do these new procedures take effect?

The new procedures for obtaining payment of an unpaid award and for the payment of an attorney's fee for enforcement of awards apply to requests for enforcement of awards that result from arbitration requests filed with the American Arbitration Association on or after April 5, 2002.

No-Fault provides coverage for my lost wages subject to a 20% statutory offset.  My lost wage payment is subject to additional statutory offsets for amounts recovered or recoverable on account of personal injury to an eligible injured person under State or Federal laws providing disability benefits.  Are these other statutory offsets deducted from my gross wages before application of the 20% offset, or are they deducted after application of the 20% offset?

The determination of whether the offsets for New York State Disability benefits are deducted before or after the 20% offset is dependent upon the taxability of the disability benefit.   If the benefit is taxable, it is deducted prior to application of the 20% offset.  If the benefit is not taxable, it is deducted after application of the 20% offset factor.   In order to expedite the processing of your wage claim, you should provide evidence of taxability of your New York State Disability benefit to your No-Fault insurer at the time you make a No-Fault lost wage claim.

How much auto insurance must I carry?

New York State law requires that motorists carry a minimum amount of liability insurance of $25,000 for bodily injury to one person, $50,000 for bodily injury to all persons, and $10,000 for property damage in any one accident. Mandatory "no-fault" coverage of $50,000 is also required.

Many motorists carry higher liability limits and additional personal injury protection beyond these minimum benefits required by law. The law also requires all auto insurance policies to provide uninsured motorists coverage (for bodily injury), subject to the same minimums. In addition, SUM (Supplementary Uninsured/Underinsured Motorists) coverage can also be purchased, in amounts up to the bodily injury liability limits of an insured's own policy. An insurer must offer SUM limits of $250,000 per person per accident and $500,000 per accident ($250,000/$500,000) if a person has bodily injury liability limits of that amount or higher. Insurers may offer higher SUM limits if they wish.