§ 3412 — Automobile physical damage insurance covering private passenger automobiles; salvage; total losses; thefts; duties of insurers

§ 3412. Automobile physical damage insurance covering private\npassenger automobiles; salvage; total losses; thefts; duties of\ninsurers. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, the\nprovisions of this section shall be applicable to all physical damage\nlosses incurred on policies covering private passenger automobiles\nregistered in this state for model year nineteen hundred seventy-three\nor later.\n (b) In accordance with regulations of the superintendent insurers\nshall, except where the insured is permitted to retain the automobile as\npart of the claim settlement, take possession of any salvage and the\ncertificate of title, properly endorsed to them of private automobiles\nwhenever a loss is determined by the insurer to be a total loss or a\nconstructive total loss. Insurers, in disposing of the salvage, shall\nfully comply with the requirements of section four hundred twenty-nine\nof the vehicle and traffic law. An insurer shall also have the right,\nwhere a claim is filed for the replacement of an inflated and deployed\nor stolen inflatable restraint system (air bag), as defined in\nsubparagraph (b) of S 4.1.5.1 of standard 208 of part 571 of title 49 of\nthe code of federal regulations, to inspect the vehicle for which the\nclaim is being filed to verify that the air bag did inflate and deploy\nor was stolen. The insurer shall also have the right to take possession\nof a deployed airbag.\n (c) Except with respect to vehicles recovered after a theft loss has\nbeen paid and which meet the criteria set forth in subdivision two of\nsection four hundred thirty of the vehicle and traffic law, insurers\nshall not, directly or indirectly, transfer within or without this state\nany vehicle for salvage, except to a governmental agency, an automobile\ndealer, a vehicle dismantler, or a scrap processor licensed, registered\nor certified in accordance with the provisions of the vehicle and\ntraffic law, or any such person meeting licensing, registration or\ncertification requirements of the state in which such person does\nbusiness. An insurer or its agents shall not purchase salvage vehicles\nor used major component parts of motor vehicles except from a registered\nvehicle dismantler or an automobile dealer.\n (d) Insurers shall report private passenger automobiles involved in\ntotal losses, including the vehicle identification number and such other\ninformation as may be required, to a central organization engaged in\nautomobile loss prevention as designated by the superintendent, in\naccordance with regulations of the superintendent. The central\norganization shall also be responsible for recording any special vehicle\nidentification number issued by the commissioner of motor vehicles\npursuant to subdivision two of section four hundred thirty-one of the\nvehicle and traffic law and in accordance with regulations of the\nsuperintendent.\n (e) Prior to the payment of total losses, insurers shall comply with\nverification procedures in accordance with regulations of the\nsuperintendent.\n (f) Police and other law enforcement agencies charged with the\ninvestigation of automobile thefts shall promptly report to the owner of\nthe automobile and the central organization designated by the\nsuperintendent, all locations of private passenger automobiles reported\nstolen or found to be abandoned. In accordance with regulations of the\nsuperintendent, the central organization shall be responsible for\nreceiving and recording such reports, and shall promptly transmit such\ninformation to the insurer of the automobile physical damage coverage.\n (g) All policies providing automobile physical damage coverage shall\ninclude a provision authorizing the insurer to take the insured motor\nvehicle into custody for safekeeping, when notified that the motor\nvehicle reported stolen or found to be abandoned has been located.\n (h) (1) The central organization designated by the superintendent and\neach insurer authorized to issue automobile comprehensive insurance\npolicies covering losses incurred to private passenger vehicles shall\nupon request of any appropriate law enforcement agency or insurance\norganization engaged in automobile loss prevention release information\nin its possession resulting from an investigation conducted by it\npertaining to such comprehensive loss, including information as such\nagency or organization deems related to its investigation. Should a\ncentral organization or the insurer be of the opinion that the loss was\ncaused by any criminal or fraudulent act of any person or organization,\nor that an improper action occurred in the disposition of automobiles\nsubject to the provisions of this section, it shall notify the\nappropriate law enforcement agency or insurance organization engaged in\nautomobile loss prevention of that opinion, and it shall notify the\ndepartment of financial services or department of motor vehicles of any\nimproper action of their respective licensees or registrants.\n (2) Any information or evidence furnished pursuant to this subsection\nshall be held in confidence by the appropriate agency or insurance\norganization engaged in automobile loss prevention, until such\ninformation is required to be released pursuant to a criminal\nproceeding, or if such agency or organization shall be served a summons\nor subpoena to testify as to any information or evidence in its\npossession regarding such automobile comprehensive loss in any civil\naction where an insured or other person is seeking recovery under a\npolicy against an insurer for such loss.\n