Code of Massachusetts Regulations
211 CMR - DIVISION OF INSURANCE
Title 211 CMR 88.00 - Procedures for the Appeal of Insurer At-fault Accident Determinations and the Conduct of Hearings on Insurer At-fault Accident Determinations
Section 88.03 - General Provisions

(1) Right of Appeal. An Involved Operator who disagrees with an Insurer's At-fault Accident Determination may appeal such determination to the Board.

(2) Insurer's Obligation to Provide Appeal Forms. An Insurer must enclose an Appeal Form with every Notice of At-fault Accident Determination it sends to an Operator.

(3) Notice of At-fault Accident Determination. An Insurer must file the forms for its Notice of At-fault Determination as part of its Merit Rating Plan. An Insurer may not use its Notice of At-fault Accident Determination prior to its approval by the Commissioner.

(4) Initiation of Appeal. An Appellant initiates an Appeal by timely filing with the Board an Appeal Form and the requisite filing fee. An Appellant who elects to waive his or her right to an in-person Appeal Hearing and requests the Board to decide the Appeal solely upon a document review shall submit any documents upon which the Appellant relies to support the contention that the Insurer's At-fault Accident Determination is incorrect. The Appellant shall include the Appellant's name, address and operator license number on all documents submitted to the Board.

(5) Appeal Docket. The Board shall open and maintain a separate docket for each Appeal. The docket includes the Appeal Record and shall include all other submissions by either Party and all documents relating to the Appeal. No materials filed with the Board will be returned.

(6) Right to Withdraw Appeal. An Appellant may withdraw his or her Appeal at any time. The withdrawal must be in writing and signed by the Appellant, or his or her Authorized Representative. Filing fees will not be refunded.

(7) Right to Withdraw At-fault Accident Determination. An Insurer may withdraw its At-fault Accident Determination at any time. The Insurer shall notify within ten days the Merit Rating Board of its decision to withdraw its At-fault Accident Determination. The Insurer also shall promptly notify the Appellant, and any other data collection agency to which the Insurer reported the At-fault Accident Determination, that the Insurer has withdrawn its At-fault Accident Determination.

(8) Burden of Proof. The Standards of Fault set forth in 211 CMR 74.04: Standards of Fault: Circumstances in Which an Operator's Fault Is Presumed to Be More than 50% presumptively shall be determinative on the question of fault unless the Appellant rebuts the Standards of Fault presumption by persuasive evidence.

(9) Time and Method of Filing. The Appellant shall file the Appeal Form and filing fee with the Board within 30 days of the date on the Insurer's Notice of At-fault Accident Determination. Filings may be made by first-class United States mail, postage prepaid, addressed to the Board at the address shown on the Appeal Form, or by delivery in hand to the Board at the business location shown on the Appeal Form. The timeliness of a filing shall be determined as follows:

(10) Computation of Time. The calculation of any time period referred to in 211 CMR 88.00 shall begin with the first day following the act which starts the running of the time period and shall include all subsequent days, until the last day of the time period. The last day of the time period is to be included in the calculation, unless it is a Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday, in which case the last day of the time period shall be deemed to be the next following business day.

(11) Extensions of Time. A Party seeking an extension of a time period set by the Board or by 211 CMR 88.00 must submit a written request to extend that period before the end of the original or previously extended time period. The Board, for good cause shown, may extend a filing time limit set or allowed by 211 CMR 88.00. The filing of such a request shall stop the running of the time period requested to be extended until the Board informs the Party of its decision on the request.