Current through Register 1531, September 27, 2024
(1)
General. The Board shall issue its Findings and Order
as promptly as administratively feasible after the completion of the Appeal
Hearing.
(2)
Findings
and Order. The Findings and Order issued following an Appeal
Hearing either shall vacate or uphold the Insurer's At-fault Accident
Determination.
(a)
Vacate
At-fault Accident Determination. If the Board finds that the
Insurer's At-fault Accident Determination was not in accordance with the
Standards of Fault promulgated under
211 CMR 74.00:
Standards of Fault to Be Used by the Board of Appeal on Motor Vehicle
Liability Policies and Bonds and Insurers in Presuming Fault When Making at
Fault Determinations, it shall vacate the Insurer's At-fault Accident
Determination. The Board shall notify the Appellant, the Insurer, and the Merit
Rating Board of its decision. The Insurer promptly shall notify any other data
collection agency to which the Insurer reported the At-fault Accident
Determination that the Board has vacated the determination. If the Insurer,
based on the claim underlying the Appeal, has imposed a Surcharge for At-fault
Accidents on the policy insuring the Involved Operator, it shall promptly
rescind the Surcharge and return any premium paid as a result of the Surcharge.
No Insurer shall thereafter include such accident for the purpose of
calculating a premium for a Private Passenger Motor Vehicle insurance policy
covering the Involved Operator unless the Board's Findings and Order are
reversed by a court of competent jurisdiction.
(b)
Uphold At-fault Accident
Determination. If the Board finds that the Insurer correctly
determined the Appellant's fault in accordance with the Standards of Fault
promulgated under
211 CMR 74.00:
Standards of Fault to Be Used by the Board of Appeal on Motor Vehicle
Liability Policies and Bonds and Insurers in Presuming Fault When Making at
Fault Determinations, it shall uphold the Insurer's At-fault Accident
Determination. The Board shall notify the Appellant and the Insurer of its
decision.
(3)
Form of Findings and Order. The Findings and Order
shall be in the form of a written document filed in the docket as part of the
Appeal Record and shall be accompanied by a statement of the reasons for the
decision, including a determination of each issue of fact or law necessary to
render such decision.
(4)
Notice of Decision and Right to Appeal. The Board
shall send a notice and a copy of the Findings and Order to the Parties that:
(a) advises the Parties of their rights to
appeal the Board's Findings and Order to the Superior Court where the Appellant
resides or has a principal place of business within the Commonwealth, or in the
Superior Court for Suffolk County, in accordance with M.G.L. c. 175E, §
7A, and M.G.L. c. 30A, § 14.
(b) advises the Parties that such an appeal
must be filed within 30 days of the Board's Findings and Order.
(c) advises the Parties of the procedures for
filing an appeal under M.G.L. c. 175E, § 7A.
