Section 334 of the Insurance Law, added by Chapter 220 of the Laws of 1986, requires the Superintendent to submit to the Legislature, no later than May 1st annually, a report on commercial property/casualty insurance. Accordingly, pursuant to such section and Regulation 131 (11 NYCRR 162), insurers are required to submit statistical data to the Department annually on report Forms 131-A, -B, -C, -E and -F, as appropriate. Such data is also required to be submitted on computer tape in order to facilitate data capture. Insurers should continue to complete Form 131-D for individual claims and retain them in the insurer's claims files.

Reports for Form 131-A are received from over 500 insurers, annually. Forms 131-B, -C, -E and -F are required from about 100 insurers, annually. The preparation, completion, filing and review of the data furnished, and the data capture and completion of the required report, has become a cumbersome, time-consuming process, for insurers as well as the Department.

The process can now be streamlined through the use of media that have rendered computer tapes virtually obsolete. In 1994, 78 insurers/groups optionally filed forms 131-B, -C, -E and -F on diskette. While this was helpful, the varied formats used by different carriers made data entry and review difficult due to many incompatibilities of these systems. In order to alleviate this situation, and to simplify the process, the Department is providing insurers with pre-formatted diskettes, to be completed in the widely-used spreadsheet format of Lotus 1.2.3., in a MS-DOS or Windows version. Insurers are encouraged to make submissions using this media.

The diskettes (one copy, which insurers must reproduce for future submissions), standards and instructions for Form 131-A (due no later than April 15th) are enclosed with this Circular. Pursuant to Regulation 131, 1st Amendment, Section 162.2(d), each insurer group may submit a separate completed diskette and hard copy for each individual insurer. Insurers that shall be required to complete Forms 131-B, -C, -E and -F will be provided with the appropriate diskette, standards and instructions on or about June 1st of this year for insurers reports due next year in 1996. Hard copies of all reports continue to be required until further notice.

Insurers that cannot produce the required information in the manner requested herein should advise the Department immediately, by contacting:

Howard Baida
Associate Insurance Examiner
New York State Insurance Department
Property & Casualty Insurance Bureau
160 West Broadway
New York, New York 10013
Telephone 212-602-0370

Insurers requesting assistance in completing the diskettes should contact:

John Owens
Insurance Examiner
New York State Insurance Department
Property & Casualty Insurance Bureau
160 West Broadway
New York, New York 10013
Telephone 212-602-8817