Sep 25, 2014

PIANY: Write Cuomo to help pass certificates of insurance reform law

PIANY asked its members to contact their state legislators to ask them to weigh-in with the governors office on our top-priority certificates of insurance reform bill (A.9590 Morelle/S.6545-A Seward) last week. Your calls have worked. According to reports, the telephone lines were active in the legislative office building in response to your associations call for action. But that was just the first phase of the plan, and PIANY continues to rely on its members to help get this bill signed into law.

Representatives from Gov. Andrew M. Cuomos office have said that they do not believe that certificates of insurance pose a major problem for producers. We need members to persuade them otherwise.

Please write Gov. Cuomo a letter on your agencys letterhead and help PIANY show strong, broad-based support for this vital bill.

The message is simple. Simply reiterate these four points on your agencys letterhead:

         There is a large and growing problem regarding the improper use of certificates in New York (cite personal examples).

         The improper use of certificates creates situations in which proper insurance coverage is not in place, which puts both workers and the general public at risk.

         This bill (A.9590 Morelle/S.6545-A Seward) directly addresses the problem by regulating the use of certificate forms and requiring that certificates clearly and accurately reflect the coverages in the policy.

         This bill was amended and passed to eliminate the concerns the governor set forth in last years veto message.

Send the letter to:

The Honorable Andrew Cuomo

Office of the Governor

State Capitol

Albany, NY 12224

Please also copy the counsel to the governor, the secretary for financial services, on your letter (and send copies to us):

Mr. Niall O’Hegarty, Esq.

Counsel

Office of the Counsel to the Governor

State Capitol

Albany, NY 12224

George Haggerty

Deputy Secretary for Financial Services

Office of the Secretary to the Governor

State Capitol

Albany, NY 12224

The bill requires the use of an ACORD certificate form (with limited exceptions) and provides that no person or governmental entity shall request or require, prepare or issue a certificate of insurance that such person knows does not accurately state the terms of coverage provided by the policy; or purports to alter, amend, extend or misrepresent the terms of coverage to which the certificate makes reference; or purports to confer to any person new or additional rights beyond what the referenced policy of insurance expressly provides. Essentially, the bill requires a certificate to be a true and accurate representation of the policy.