BILL NUMBER: S4809A
SPONSOR: COMRIE
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the insurance law and the vehicle and traffic law, in
relation to captive insurance for commuter vans, black cars, ambulettes
and paratransit vehicles, and small school buses
 
PURPOSE:
The purpose of this legislation is to provide for-hire vehicle operators
the option for a parent insurance company to provide risk mitigation
services in underwriting to reduce insurance rates for policyholders
that experience excessive insurance costs in New York State
 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 authorizes a captive insurance program for commuter vans,
pre-arranged for-hire vehicles, transportation network companies and
accessible vehicles.
Section 2 provides the effective date.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
The culmination of issues that have affected and greatly reduced the
overall numbers for the for-hire transit market in NY have made commuter
vans and other transit options expensive to operate by reducing the
financial pool from which insurers could pull from for claims, thereby
putting greater costs onto vehicle operators.
Commuter van numbers in NYC dwindled from 300+ to -50 during COVID 19.
Many commuter vans and for-hire vehicles are being booted and repos-
sessed because they can't afford to operate much less, retain their
vehicles. Since the Parks Insurance receivership, insurance policies
were forced into the DFS assigned risk plan through AIPSO. Due to NYS
insurance costs exceeding $40,000-55,000/ year per driver/van under this
policy post COVID, many drivers use New Jersey, Connecticut or other out
of state plates to operate in New York City.
This bill aims to stabilize the NYS for hire transit market by authoriz-
ing captive insurance, where insurers can provide risk mitigation
services to strategically reduce the cost of insurance for drivers where
the costs have continued to be prohibitive for entrepreneurs.
 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2024: S8432/ A9099 Amended and Vetoed memo.83
2023: S4862 COMRIE / A5294 Anderson - vetoed
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
To be determined.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
Immediately.

Statutes affected:
S4809A: 1229-c vehicle and traffic law, 1229-c(8) vehicle and traffic law