BILL NUMBER:  S1859

 TITLE OF BILL :

An act to amend the insurance law, in relation to collision or
comprehensive coverage on motor vehicles

 PURPOSE :

The bill would exempt vehicle glass repair shops from Section 2610
subsection (c) of the NYS Insurance Law.

 SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS :

Section 1 - Amends Section 2610 of the insurance law by providing an
exemption to subsection (c)

Section 2 - Effective date

 JUSTIFICATION :

Subsection (b) of Section 2610 of the Insurance Law has consistently
recognized the difference between collision body repair and vehicle
glass repair and replacement services. Currently, there is an
exemption for claims "solely involving window glass" from the ban on
insurance companies suggesting or recommending certain repair shops.
              

This is in recognition of the high-volume nature of glass repair, and
the fact that the window glass repair referral process differs from
the collision repair process. Therefore, this legislation extends that
exemption to the disclosure requirements of subsection (c) (Chapter
278 of 2016).

Vehicle glass claims are typically conducted via telephone between the
insurer, the glass shop and the policy holder and consistently
receives a high level of customer satisfaction. Estimates are
generally unnecessary and not provided to the customer as part of the
vehicle glass claims process, enabling consumers to enjoy a
transaction that is relatively seamless. Adding the requirements of
subsection (c) to claims solely involving windows glass would add
unnecessary delays to the current process, create confusion for the
policyholder and increase costs for insurers.

 LEGISLATIVE HISTORY :

New bill

 FISCAL IMPLICATIONS :

None

 EFFECTIVE DATE :
This act shall take effect on the same date and in the same manner as
chapter 236 of the laws of 2016, takes effect.