Contact Chiropractic, P.C. v. New York City Transit Authority

135 A.D.3d 804, 22 N.Y.S.3d 891

• Court: Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York
• Decided: January 20, 2016
• Docket: 2014-05446
• Status: Published

Opinion

In an action to recover no-fault benefits under a policy of automobile insurance, the defendant appeals, by permission, from an order of the Appellate Term of the Supreme Court for the Second, Eleventh, and Thirteenth Judicial Districts dated December 3, 2013, which affirmed so much of an order of the Civil Court of the City of New York, Queens County (Latin, J.), dated July 27, 2011, as, upon renewal, adhered to the original determination in an order of the same court (Lebedeff, J.), dated December 4, 2007, denying that branch of its motion which was for summary judgment dismissing the complaint as time-barred.

Ordered that the order dated December 3, 2013, is affirmed, with costs.

The Appellate Term correctly determined that an action by an injured claimant, or his or her assignee, to recover first-party no-fault benefits from a defendant who is self-insured, is subject to a six-year statute of limitations, since the claim is essentially contractual, as opposed to statutory, in nature (see Matter of New York City Tr. Auth. v Powell, 126 AD3d 705 [2015]; Matter of New York City Tr. Auth. v Hill, 107 AD3d 897 [2013]; Matter of ELRAC Inc., v Suero, 38 AD3d 544 [2007]; Mandarino v Travelers Prop. Cas. Ins. Co., 37 AD3d 775 [2007]).

Accordingly, it was properly determined that the statute of limitations had not expired when this action was commenced. Dillon, J.P., Dickerson, Miller and Duffy, JJ., concur.