Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 39, September 25, 2024
Subject to the provisions of this section and
notwithstanding other provisions of this Part, every motor vehicle liability
insurance policy insuring at time of issuance or renewal less than five private
passenger motor vehicles registered in this State shall provide, in the form
prescribed by subdivision (h) of this section, separate rental vehicle coverage
for the insured's obligation for actual damage to, or loss of, a rental
vehicle, including loss of use, rented by the insured in the United States, its
territories or possessions, and Canada under a rental agreement with a term of
30 continuous days or less, regardless of where such rental vehicle may be
registered, rented or operated.
(a)
Rental vehicle coverage shall be added by prescribed endorsement to all such
policies issued or renewed in this State on and after April 1, 1989.
(b) All such policyholders shall be sent the
notice prescribed by subdivision (i) of this section and shall be informed
that, in the event of a premium or a premium increase charged for rental
vehicle coverage, the policyholder shall then have an option to reject such
coverage within 10 calendar days following receipt of notice that such premium
or premium increase will be charged.
(c) The option to reject rental vehicle
coverage provided by subdivision (b) of this section shall apply only at new
policy issuance and upon initial policy renewal following the insurer's
determination to charge or increase a premium for this coverage.
(d) Rental vehicle coverage shall provide
protection:
(1) only with respect to rental
vehicles operated within the United States, its territories or possessions, and
Canada;
(2) regardless of whether
the rental vehicle is rented or operated for business or pleasure, unless used
for transporting persons or property for hire; and
(3) regardless of fault.
(e) For purposes of this section, the
following definitions shall apply:
(1)
Insured means named insured or any relative.
(2) Relative means a spouse, child or other
person related to the named insured by blood, marriage or adoption (including a
ward or foster child), who regularly resides in the insured's household,
including any such person who regularly resides in the household, but is
temporarily living elsewhere.
(3)
Private passenger motor vehicle has the meaning ascribed by section
3440
(a) of the Insurance Law.
(4) Long-term contract, as used by section
3440
(a) of the Insurance Law, means a contract
with a term of six months or longer.
(5)
Rental vehicle means a
vehicle of the type described in section
3440
(a) of the Insurance Law as a private
passenger motor vehicle, if:
(i) not used for
transporting persons or property for hire other than when the vehicle is used
as a transportation network company vehicle pursuant to article 44-B of the
Vehicle and Traffic Law; and
(ii)
owned by a person engaged in the business of renting or leasing vehicles rented
or leased without a driver to persons other than the owner and is registered in
the name of such owner. Rental vehicle shall not include a
motor vehicle used through a peer-to-peer car sharing program.
(f) The protection
provided under rental vehicle coverage shall not be provided elsewhere in the
policy.
(g) An insurer may provide
rental vehicle coverage broader than that required by this Part, in terms of
number or types of vehicles or territorial scope.
(h) The prescribed policy form shall be as
follows:
RENTAL VEHICLE COVERAGE ENDORSEMENT
INSURER INSURED POLICY NUMBER
____________
____________
This Rental Vehicle Coverage endorsement applies only to,
and is part of, every motor vehicle liability insurance policy that covers less
than five private passenger motor vehicles.
For each such policy, this endorsement provides coverage
for the insured's obligations in the event of actual damage to, or loss of, any
rental vehicle, including loss of use, rented by the insured anywhere in the
United States, its territories or possessions, and Canada under a rental
agreement with a term no longer than thirty continuous days, regardless of
where such rental vehicle may be registered, rented or operated.
Rental Vehicle Coverage shall provide protection
regardless of:
(a) fault; and
(b) whether the rental vehicle is
rented or operated for business or pleasure, unless used for transporting
persons or property for hire.
Definitions:
(a)
"Insured" means named insured or any relative;
(b) "Relative" means a spouse, child or other
person related to the named insured by blood, marriage or adoption (including a
ward or foster child), who regularly resides in the insured's household,
including any such person who regularly resides in the household, but who is
temporarily living elsewhere;
(c)
"Private passenger motor vehicle" means:
(1) a
motor vehicle of the private passenger or station wagon type that is owned or
hired under a longterm contract by an individual or by an individual and
spouse, and is neither used as a public or livery conveyance for passengers nor
rented to others without a driver; or
(2) a motor vehicle with a pick-up body, a
delivery sedan, panel truck or van, owned by an individual or by an individual
and spouse who are residents of the same household, or by a family farm
copartnership or a family farm corporation, and not customarily used in the
occupation, profession or business of the insured other than farming or
ranching, whether or not used in the course of driving to or from
work.
(d) "Long-term
contract" means a contract with a term of six months or longer.
(e)
Rental vehicle means a
vehicle of the type described in subdivision (c) of this section, if:
(1) not used for transporting persons or
property for hire (except if the insured does so solely as a transportation
network company driver pursuant to article 44-B of the Vehicle and Traffic
Law); and
(2) owned by a person
engaged in the business of renting or leasing vehicles rented or leased without
a driver to persons other than the owner and is registered in the name of such
owner. Rental vehicle shall not include a motor vehicle used
through a peer-to-peer car sharing program.
Priority of payment
(a) In no event shall payment be made under
this endorsement duplicating payment made by this policy, another policy or
another insurer for the same claim.
(b) If more than one policy could cover the
claim, payment or the claim shall be made in the following order of priority:
(1) the policy with respect to which the
person is a named insured;
(2) if
the person is not a named insured on any policy, the policy with respect to
which the person is an insured; and
(3) where two or more policies provide
coverage of equal priority, the policy or insurer with respect to which the
claim is first submitted.
(c) An inquiry about coverage or notification
of damage to, or loss of, a rental vehicle shall constitute submission of a
claim.
Exclusions:
No Rental Vehicle Coverage shall be provided:
(a) arising beyond the geographic limitations
of the policy to which Rental Vehicle Coverage is endorsed;
(b) to an insured who has committed fraud in
connection with damage to, or loss of, a rental vehicle, including loss of use;
or
(c) for damage to, or loss of, a
rental vehicle, including loss of use, which the rental vehicle company is
precluded from recovering from the insured:
(1) pursuant to the terms of the rental
agreement; or
(2) due to the
prohibitions of section
396-z of
the General Business Law or similar statutory provisions of other
jurisdictions.
Subrogation:
(a)
In the event or any payment under this endorsement, the insurer is subrogated
to the extent of such payments to the rights of the person to whom, or for
whose benefit, such payments were made.
(b) Such person shall execute and deliver
instruments and papers and do whatever else is necessary to secure such
subrogation rights, and shall not act in a manner that may prejudice such
rights.
(c) Subrogation shall not
be pursued against any person who operated the rental vehicle with the
insured's permission.
(i)
The notice prescribed herein shall be sent to all policyholders, with motor
vehicle liability insurance policies covering less than five private passenger
motor vehicles, commencing February 24, 2003, upon policy renewal or new policy
issuance, and shall be sent again if the insurer at any time thereafter
determines to charge or increase a premium for rental vehicle coverage, giving
affected policyholders an option to reject this coverage, except to those who
previously exercised such option.
(j) An insurer shall include the following
exclusion (d) in the Rental Vehicle Coverage Endorsement form as follows:
(1) If the policy does not provide liability
coverage while the motor vehicle is used by a transportation network company
driver who is logged onto the transportation network company's digital network
but is not engaged in a transportation network company prearranged trip or
while the driver provides a transportation network company prearranged trip:
(d) while the rental vehicle is used by a
transportation network company driver who is logged onto the transportation
network company's digital network but is not engaged in a transportation
network company prearranged trip or while the driver provides a transportation
network company prearranged trip;
(2) If the policy does not provide liability
coverage while the motor vehicle is used by a transportation network company
driver who is logged onto the transportation network company's digital network
but is not engaged in a transportation network company prearranged trip:
(d) while the rental vehicle is used by a
transportation network company driver who is logged onto the transportation
network company's digital network but is not engaged in a transportation
network company prearranged trip; or
(3) If the policy does not provide liability
coverage while the motor vehicle is used by a transportation network company
driver who provides a transportation network company prearranged trip:
(d) while the rental vehicle is used by a
transportation network company driver who provides a transportation network
company prearranged trip.
RENTAL VEHICLE COVERAGE
NOTICE TO POLICYHOLDERS
**Rental Vehicle Coverage Premium Charge YES: ________
NO: ________
**If YES, Amount of Rental Vehicle Coverage Premium: $
________
The Rental Vehicle Coverage endorsement to this policy
provides protection in the event of damage to, or loss of, a rental vehicle,
including loss of use, as described in the endorsement.
Rental Vehicle Coverage is mandated by New York State law
to reduce problems that confront consumers and leave them vulnerable to major
unanticipated costs when dealing with rental vehicle companies.
This Rental Vehicle Coverage protects you whenever rental
vehicles are rented and operated anywhere within the United States, its
territories or possessions, and Canada.
In the event that a premium is at any time charged or
increased for Rental Vehicle Coverage, you have the right to reject this
coverage and not pay such charge, if you so inform your insurer within ten
calendar days after you receive notice that such a premium charge or increase
will be made for Rental Vehicle Coverage.
Please review the Rental Vehicle Coverage endorsement
itself. If, as indicated at the top of this notice, there is a premium charge
or increase and you wish to reject Rental Vehicle Coverage--or you simply wish
to obtain additional information regarding this coverage--please contact your
insurance agent or broker, or call our toll-free telephone number: 800-[insert
number].
