BILL NUMBER: S9421
SPONSOR: BRESLIN
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the insurance law, in relation to anti-concurrent causa-
tion clauses
 
PURPOSE OF THE BILL:
This bill would amend the Insurance Law in relation to anti-concurrent
causation ("ACC") clauses.
 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 of the bill would add a new Insurance Law § 3416, which would
prohibit an insurance policy from excluding coverage for any loss of or
damage to property resulting from water or water-borne material that
backs up through sewers or drains, or overflows or is discharged from a
sump, sump pump, or related equipment, on the ground that the loss or
damage also may have been caused directly or indirectly by an excluded
peril contributing concurrently or in any sequence to cause the loss.
This section would only apply to non-commercial policies.
Section 2 would provide that the bill takes effect 90 days after it is
signed into law and applies to policies issued or renewed on or after
that date.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
Past storms, such as Storm Sandy in 2012 and Tropical Depression Ida in
2021, brought strong winds, intense rainfall, and record storm surges,
which interfered with the normal drainage of sewage in many areas.
Because flooding caused the drainage systems to fail, some New York
residents experienced sewage backing up into their homes. Some resi-
dents who had purchased sewage backup coverage found that their property
insurance policies, nevertheless, would not cover the damage caused by
the sewage back up because of the ACC clauses in their policies. This
bill would prohibit an insurance policy from excluding coverage for any
loss of or damage to property resulting from water or water-borne mate-
rial that backs up through sewers or drains, or overflows or is
discharged from a sump, sump pump, or related equipment, on the ground
that the loss or damage also may have been caused directly or indirectly
by an excluded peril contributing concurrently or in any sequence to
cause the loss.
 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
This is a new bill.
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
Ninety days after it is signed into law.