§ 3425 — Certain property/casualty insurance policies; cancellation and renewal provisions; agents' contracts and brokers' accounts

New York § 3425

• Jurisdiction: New York
• Law ISC: Insurance
• Art. 34: Insurance Contracts-property/casualty

Text

§ 3425. Certain property/casualty insurance policies; cancellation and\nrenewal provisions; agents' contracts and brokers' accounts. (a) This\nsection shall apply to covered policies of insurance as defined in\nparagraphs one, two and three hereof.\n (1) "Covered policy" means a contract of insurance, referred to in\nthis section as "automobile insurance", issued or issued for delivery in\nthis state, on a risk located or resident in this state, insuring\nagainst losses or liabilities arising out of the ownership, operation,\nor use of a motor vehicle, predominantly used for non-business purposes,\nwhen a natural person is the named insured under the policy of\nautomobile insurance; provided, however, that the use or operation of\nthe motor vehicle by a transportation network company driver as a TNC\nvehicle in accordance with article forty-four-B of the vehicle and\ntraffic law or the use or operation of the motor vehicle through a\npeer-to-peer car sharing program in accordance with article forty of the\ngeneral business law, shall not be included in determining whether the\nmotor vehicle is being used predominantly for non-business purposes.\n (2) "Covered policy" also means a contract of insurance, referred to\nin this section as "personal lines insurance", other than a contract of\ninsurance defined in paragraph one hereof, issued or issued for delivery\nin this state, on a risk located or resident in this state, insuring any\nof the following contingencies:\n (A) loss of or damage to real property used predominantly for\nresidential purposes and that consists of not more than four dwelling\nunits, other than hotels and motels;\n (B) loss of or damage to personal property in which natural persons\nhave an insurable interest, except personal property used in the conduct\nof a business;\n (C) other liabilities for loss of, damage to, or injury to persons or\nproperty, not arising from the conduct of a business, when a natural\nperson is the named insured under the policy; and\n (D) parametric insurance, as defined in paragraph thirty-four of\nsubsection (a) of section one thousand one hundred thirteen of this\nchapter.\n (3) A personal umbrella liability policy shall be considered a\n"covered policy" under paragraph two, and not paragraph one, of this\nsubsection.\n (4) A contract which insures any of the foregoing contingencies\ndescribed in paragraph one or two hereof as well as other contingencies\nshall be a covered policy if that portion of the annual premium\nattributable to such foregoing contingencies exceeds that portion\nattributable to other contingencies.\n (5) A covered policy shall not include a policy issued pursuant to any\nplan established under article fifty-three or fifty-four of this chapter\nor legal services insurance.\n (6) "Renewal" or "to renew" means the issuance and delivery by an\ninsurer, at the end of the policy period, of a policy superseding a\npolicy previously issued and delivered by the same insurer, or the\nissuance and delivery of a certificate or notice extending the term of a\npolicy beyond its policy period or term; provided, however, that any\npolicy with a policy period or term of less than one year shall, for the\npurpose of this section, be considered as if written for a policy period\nor term of one year, or any policy with no fixed expiration date, shall,\nfor the purpose of this section, be considered as if written for\nsuccessive policy periods or terms of one year.\n (7) With respect to personal lines insurance, "required policy period"\nmeans a period of three years from the date as of which a covered policy\nis first issued or is voluntarily renewed.\n (8) With respect to automobile insurance, "required policy period"\nmeans a period of one year from the date as of which a covered policy\nbecomes effective after first issuance or voluntary renewal.\n (9) With respect to automobile insurance, "voluntary renewal" means\nthe renewal of a covered policy which has completed the required policy\nperiod pursuant to this section.\n (10) "Nonpayment of premium" means the failure of the named insured to\ndischarge any obligation in connection with the payment of premiums on a\npolicy of insurance or any installment of such premium, whether the\npremium is payable directly to the insurer or its agent, or indirectly\nunder any premium finance plan or extension of credit. Payment to the\ninsurer, or to an agent or broker authorized to receive such payment,\nshall be timely, if made within fifteen days after the mailing to the\ninsured of a notice of cancellation for nonpayment of premium.\n (11) "Administrative suspension" means a temporary suspension of a\ndriver's license pending a hearing, prosecution or investigation or an\nindefinite suspension of a driver's license because of the failure of\nthe person suspended to perform an act, which suspension will be\nterminated by the performance of the act by the person suspended.\n (b) During the first sixty days a covered policy is in effect, no\nnotice of cancellation shall be issued or be effective unless it states\nor is accompanied by a statement of the specific reason or reasons for\nsuch cancellation.\n (c) After a covered policy has been in effect for sixty days, or upon\nthe effective date if the policy is a renewal, no notice of cancellation\nshall be issued to become effective unless required pursuant to a\nprogram approved by the superintendent as necessary because a\ncontinuation of the present premium volume would be hazardous to the\ninterests of policyholders of the insurer, its creditors or the public,\nor unless it is based on one or more of the following:\n (1) With respect to automobile insurance policies:\n (A) nonpayment of premium, provided, however, that a notice of\ncancellation on this ground shall inform the insured of the amount due;\n (B) suspension or revocation during the required policy period of the\ndriver's license of the named insured or any other person who\ncustomarily operates an automobile insured under the policy, other than\na suspension issued pursuant to subdivision one of section five hundred\nten-b of the vehicle and traffic law or one or more administrative\nsuspensions arising from the same incident which has or have been\nterminated prior to the effective date of cancellation; or\n (C) discovery of fraud or material mis-representation in obtaining the\npolicy or in the presentation of a claim thereunder.\n (2) With respect to personal lines insurance policies:\n (A) nonpayment of premium, provided, however, that a notice of\ncancellation on this ground shall inform the insured of the amount due;\n (B) conviction of a crime arising out of acts increasing the hazard\ninsured against;\n (C) discovery of fraud or material misrepresentation in obtaining the\npolicy or in the presentation of a claim thereunder;\n (D) discovery of willful or reckless acts or omissions increasing the\nhazard insured against;\n (E) physical changes in the property insured occurring after issuance\nor last annual anniversary date of the policy which result in the\nproperty becoming uninsurable in accordance with the insurer's\nobjective, uniformly applied underwriting standards in effect at the\ntime the policy was issued or last voluntarily renewed; or\n (F) a determination by the superintendent that the continuation of the\npolicy would violate or would place the insurer in violation of this\nchapter.\n (3) The provisions of this subsection shall apply to each and every\ncoverage or limit afforded under the policy.\n (d) (1) Unless the insurer, at least forty-five but not more than\nsixty days in advance of the end of the policy period, mails or delivers\nto the named insured, at the address shown in the policy, a written\nnotice of its intention not to renew a covered policy, or to condition\nits renewal upon change of limits or elimination of any coverages, the\nnamed insured shall be entitled to renew the policy upon timely payment\nof the premium billed to the insured for the renewal. The specific\nreason or reasons for nonrenewal or conditioned renewal shall be stated\nin or shall accompany the notice. This paragraph shall not apply when\nthe named insured, an agent or broker authorized by the named insured,\nor an insurer of the named insured, has mailed or delivered written\nnotice to the insurer that the policy has been replaced or is no longer\ndesired.\n (2) If an insurer has the right to cancel a policy it may, in lieu of\ncancellation, condition continuation of such policy upon change of\nlimits or elimination of any coverage not required by law, if written\nnotice of such intention is mailed or delivered to the insured at the\naddress shown in the policy at least twenty days prior to the effective\ndate of such action.\n (3) At its discretion, the insurer may, in lieu of renewing the policy\nin the form as last issued, substitute at the annual renewal date\nanother approved policy form which contains at least substantially\nequivalent value in the aggregate of benefits, as determined by the\nsuperintendent. Notice of intention to substitute a different policy\nform on a renewal shall be made in the same manner as is prescribed in\nparagraph one of this subsection for a conditioned renewal but with\nrespect to automobile insurance policies shall not be subject to the\npercentage limitations contained in subsection (f) of this section\napplicable to a conditioned renewal. Notice of intention to substitute a\ndifferent policy form shall be accompanied by a full and clear\ncomparison of the differences between the policy form as last issued and\nthe substitute policy form.\n (e) With respect to personal lines insurance policies, no notice of\nnonrenewal or conditional renewal of a covered policy shall be issued to\nbecome effective during the required policy period unless it is based\nupon a ground for which the policy could have been cancelled. With\nrespect to homeowners' policies as defined in section two thousand three\nhundred fifty-one of this chapter, on properties located in areas served\nby a market assistance program established by the superintendent for the\npurpose of facilitating placement of homeowners' insurance, notices of\ncancellation, nonrenewal or conditional renewal shall conform with\nstandards established by the superintendent in regulation. Such\nstandards shall require that the notice include, at a minimum:\nnotification of the possibility of eligibility for coverage through a\nmarket assistance program or the New York property insurance\nunderwriting association; information on how to apply; and such other\ninformation as required by the superintendent.\n (f) (1) With respect to automobile insurance policies, the total\nnumber (rounded to the nearest whole number) of notices of intention not\nto renew a covered policy, and of notices of intention to condition\nrenewal upon reduction of limits or elimination of any coverages, which\nan insurer may issue shall be limited for each calendar year to two\npercent of the total number of covered policies of the insurer in force\nat last year-end in each such insurer's rating territory in use in this\nstate which have completed their required policy period under this\nsection, except as set forth in subsection (r) of this section. However,\nthe insurer may non-renew or conditionally renew one policy in any such\ninsurer's rating territory in use in this state, if the applicable\npercentage limitation results in less than one policy. Cancellations\nmade pursuant to subsection (b) or (c) of this section shall be\nindependent of and in addition to the number of notices of intention not\nto renew or to condition renewal upon reduction of limits or elimination\nof any coverages not required by law, permitted under this subsection.\n (2) For every two new automobile policies which the insurer\nvoluntarily writes in each such territory, such insurer shall be\npermitted to non-renew or conditionally renew one additional automobile\npolicy in that territory in excess of the two percent limit established\nin paragraph one of this subsection, subject to a fair and\nnondiscriminatory formula developed by the superintendent, which shall\nconsider the number of automobile policies written less cancellations\ninitiated by the insurer within the first sixty days of the policy\nperiod.\n (3) The superintendent shall revoke the rights of any insurer or group\nof insurers under paragraph two of this subsection, upon a\ndetermination, after a public hearing, that such an insurer or group of\ninsurers has utilized such rights to the detriment of any class or group\nof classes within a rating territory.\n (g) Notwithstanding any of the provisions and limitations of this\nsection, any property/casualty insurance company organized for the sole\nand exclusive purpose of providing insurance policies to members of an\norganization, and providing such insurance policies on risks in New\nYork, may refuse to renew automobile liability policies of persons who\nfail to meet the requirements contained in the by-laws of such company\nprohibiting the sale of policies to non-members of the organization,\nprovided that such company shall continue to participate in any assigned\nrisk plans established pursuant to article fifty-three of this chapter.\n (h) (1) Proof of mailing of a notice of cancellation, reduction of\nlimits, substitution of policy form, elimination of coverages,\nconditioned renewal or of intention not to renew, or proof of the\nmailing of the reasons therefor, to the named insured at the address\nshown in the policy, shall be sufficient proof of the giving of notice\nand the giving of reasons required by this section.\n (2) No notice of cancellation, reduction of limits, substitution of\npolicy form, elimination of coverages, conditioned renewal or of\nintention not to renew, or notice of the reasons therefor, that fails to\ninclude a provision required by this section shall be an effective\nnotice for purposes of this section.\n (3) A copy of every notice of cancellation, reduction of limits,\nsubstitution of policy form, elimination of coverages, conditioned\nrenewal or of intention not to renew, including the reasons therefor, or\na summary of such notice, shall be mailed, delivered or transmitted to\nthe insured's authorized agent or broker within seven days of the time\nsuch notice is mailed to the named insured. Electronic transmission or\nany other means of delivery or transmission of information commonly used\nby the insurer to communicate with agents or brokers shall be deemed\nsufficient for compliance with this paragraph. Failure to mail, deliver\nor transmit a copy of such notice to the insured's authorized agent or\nbroker pursuant to this paragraph shall not render any such notice\nineffective, provided that all of the other requirements of this section\nare met and shall not be considered failure to include a provision\nrequired by this section for purposes of paragraph two of this\nsubsection.\n (i) No insurer shall refuse to issue or renew a covered policy solely\non the ground of the advanced age of the applicant or insured.\n (j) (1) Where an insurer or an agent who is authorized by such insurer\nto accept lines of insurance from licensed agents or brokers notifies a\nlicensed agent or broker that its contract or account shall be\nterminated:\n (A) with respect to a personal lines insurance policy required to be\ncontinued by this section, the insurer shall offer to continue the\npolicy for any remaining part of the required policy period and any\nstatutory extension and the insurer shall offer to continue the policy\nthrough the terminated agent or broker for at least its next one year\npolicy period which commences within one year following the date of\nmailing or delivery to the terminated agent or broker of written notice\nof termination of such contract or account, and thereafter, at the\nspecific request of the insured, shall offer to continue the policy\nthrough such terminated agent or broker for any remaining part of the\nrequired policy period including statutory extension;\n (B) with respect to an automobile insurance policy subject to this\nsection, the insurer shall offer to continue the policy for any\nremaining part of the required policy period and, unless the policy is\ncancelled or non-renewed in accordance with the provisions of either\nsubsection (b), (c) or (f) of this section, it shall, at the specific\nrequest of the insured, offer to continue the policy through the\nterminated agent or broker for three successive one year policy periods\nwhich commence within the year following the date of mailing or delivery\nto the terminated agent or broker of written notice of termination of\nsuch contract or account;\n (C) with respect to all new personal lines and automobile insurance\nbusiness offered by such terminated agent or broker which is subject to\nthe provisions of this section, the insurer shall accept all such\nbusiness meeting the insurer's then current underwriting standards\nduring the period of one hundred twenty days next following the date of\nmailing or delivery to the agent or broker of written notification of\nsuch termination;\n (D) the terminated agent or broker shall be entitled to receive\ncommissions on account of all business continued or written pursuant to\nthis paragraph at the insurer's prevailing commission rate for such\nlines of insurance; and\n (E) the provisions of subparagraph (B) hereof in relation to\ncontinuation of coverage for three successive one year policy periods\nare subject to the rights of the insurer pursuant to subsection (b), (c)\nor (f) of this section to cancel or non-renew. The provisions of\nsubparagraph (D) hereof in relation to commissions shall not be\nmandatory after completion of the three one year policy periods provided\nfor in subparagraph (B) hereof.\n (2) This subsection shall not apply to an agent who agrees to\nrepresent exclusively one insurer or a group of insurers under common\nmanagement or an agent or broker whose license has been revoked by the\nsuperintendent or whose contract or account has been terminated for\ninsolvency, abandonment, gross and willful misconduct, or failure to pay\nover to the insurer moneys due to the insurer after receipt of a written\ndemand therefor.\n (k) The superintendent may, after public hearing, promulgate rules and\nregulations implementing and coordinating the provisions of this section\nand article fifty-three of this chapter.\n (l) (1) The superintendent shall monitor the operation of this\nsection. Every insurer subject to the provisions of this section shall\nfile in the office of the superintendent periodic reports in such form\nas the superintendent may prescribe.\n (2) The superintendent shall collect, analyze and compile such reports\nwith regard to the number of new insureds, non-renewed insureds and\nbusiness written by each insurer in each rating territory of each such\ninsurer and, in each case, the class of insureds (including age and sex)\naffected so that a statistical analysis of the results obtained pursuant\nto subsections (f) and (m) of this section, and the reasons in the\naggregate for the non-renewal of policies shall be provided to the\nspeaker of the assembly, the temporary president of the senate, the\nchair of the assembly insurance committee, and the chair of the senate\ninsurance committee on or before June thirtieth, two thousand twenty and\nevery two years thereafter.\n (m) (1) Paragraphs eight and nine of subsection (a), subsection (f)\nand subparagraphs (B) and (E) of paragraph one of subsection (j) of this\nsection shall not apply to any new covered policy of automobile\ninsurance voluntarily written on or after August first, nineteen hundred\neighty-five and prior to January first, nineteen hundred eighty-six, and\non or after August second, two thousand one and prior to the effective\ndate of the property/casualty insurance availability act, and on or\nafter June thirtieth, two thousand twenty-six, but the legal rights\ngranted to insurers or policyholders under such provisions shall not be\nextinguished or impaired thereby.\n (2) In lieu of such provisions, paragraph seven of subsection (a),\nsubparagraph (A) of paragraph one of subsection (j) of this section and\nparagraph three of this subsection shall apply to such automobile\ninsurance policies that are newly and voluntarily written to have an\neffective date on or after August first, nineteen hundred eighty-five\nand prior to January first, nineteen hundred eighty-six, and on or after\nAugust second, two thousand one and prior to the effective date of the\nproperty/casualty insurance availability act, and on or after June\nthirtieth, two thousand twenty-six.\n (3) On and after August first, nineteen hundred eighty-five and prior\nto January first, nineteen hundred eighty-six, and on or after August\nsecond, two thousand one and prior to the effective date of the\nproperty/casualty insurance availability act, and on or after June\nthirtieth, two thousand twenty-six, no notice of nonrenewal or\nconditional renewal of such covered automobile insurance policies\nreferred to in this subsection shall be issued to become effective\nduring the required policy period unless it is based upon a ground for\nwhich the policy could have been cancelled or unless it is based upon\none or more of the following grounds that occurred during the thirty-six\nmonth period ending on the last day of the fourth month preceding the\nmonth of the effective date of such notice of nonrenewal or conditional\nrenewal:\n (A) Where a named insured and/or any other person who customarily\noperates an automobile insured under the policy is convicted of any of\nthe following:\n (i) operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated or impaired by the\nconsumption of alcohol; or\n (ii) operating a motor vehicle while impaired by the use of a drug\n(within the meaning of section eleven hundred ninety-two of the vehicle\nand traffic law); or\n (iii) homicide or assault arising out of the use or operation of a\nmotor vehicle, or criminal negligence in the use or operation of a motor\nvehicle resulting in the injury or death of another person, or use or\noperation of a motor vehicle directly or indirectly in the commission of\na felony; or\n (iv) operating a motor vehicle in excess of the speed limit, or in a\nreckless manner, where injury or death results therefrom; or\n (v) operating a motor vehicle in excess of the speed limit, or\nreckless driving, or any combination thereof, on three or more\noccasions; or\n (vi) operating a motor vehicle insured under the policy without a\nvalid license or registration in effect (except when the person\nconvicted had possessed a valid license or registration which had\nexpired and was subsequently renewed), or during a period of revocation\nor suspension thereof, or in violation of the limitations applicable to\na license issued pursuant to article twenty-one or article twenty-one-A\nof the vehicle and traffic law; or\n (vii) operating a motor vehicle while seeking to avoid apprehension or\narrest by a law enforcement officer; or\n (viii) filing or attempting to file a false or fraudulent automobile\ninsurance claim, or knowingly aiding or abetting in the filing or\nattempted filing of any such claim; or\n (ix) leaving the scene of an incident without reporting; or\n (x) filing a false document with the department of motor vehicles, or\nusing a license or registration obtained by filing a false document with\nthe department of motor vehicles; or\n (xi) operating a motor vehicle in a race or speed test; or\n (xii) knowingly permitting or authorizing an unlicensed driver to\noperate a motor vehicle insured under the policy.\n (B) Where a named insured or any other person who operates a motor\nvehicle insured under the policy is individually or are aggregately\ninvolved in three or more vehicle accidents while operating a motor\nvehicle insured under the policy, resulting in either personal injury,\nor in property damage in excess of two hundred dollars. For the purpose\nof this paragraph any of the following occurrences involving a motor\nvehicle operated by a named insured or such other person shall not be\nconsidered an accident:\n (i) such motor vehicle was struck in rear; or\n (ii) such motor vehicle was struck while legally parked; or\n (iii) only the operator of another motor vehicle involved in the\naccident was convicted of a crime, offense or violation contributing to\nthe accident; or\n (iv) the named insured or other operator of the motor vehicle insured\nunder the policy, or the insurer thereof, was reimbursed by or on behalf\nof a person responsible for the accident or has a judgment against such\nperson.\n Where more than one motor vehicle in a household is insured by the\nsame insurer, the number of accidents which would permit conditional\nrenewal or non-renewal shall, as for the aggregate, be increased by two\nfor each additional motor vehicle insured. For the purposes of this\nparagraph accidents occurring as a result of the use or operation of a\nmotor vehicle in response to an emergency, where the operator was\nresponding to a call of duty as a paid or volunteer member of any police\nor fire department, first aid squad, or of any law enforcement agency;\nor was performing any other governmental function in a public emergency,\nshall not be accidents which afford an insurer the right to cancel or to\nrefuse to renew.\n (C) Where there is a material change in the type of motor vehicle\ninsured which so substantially increases the hazard insured against as\nto render the motor vehicle uninsurable in accordance with the insurer's\nobjective, uniformly applied underwriting standards in effect at the\ntime the policy was issued or last voluntarily renewed and which are\ncurrently in effect; provided, however, that if the insured motor\nvehicle is uninsurable for physical damage coverages only, the insurer\nmust offer to renew the policy without the physical damage coverages.\n (D) Where such other objective, uniformly applied standards for\ncancellation or non-renewal exists, as may be prescribed by regulation\npromulgated by the superintendent.\n * (n) Notice of cancellation/real property escrow accounts. With\nrespect to all covered policies for which the insurer submits bills for\nreal property insurance premiums directly to a mortgage investing\ninstitution, or such other institution or agent as designated in writing\nby the mortgage investing institution, under a real property insurance\nescrow account, the insurer must send copies of a notice of cancellation\nfor nonpayment of premiums to both (i) the insured mortgagor of the real\nproperty and (ii) the mortgage investing institution, or such other\ndesignated institution or agent. Failure to send this notice to both\nparties in paragraph (i) and paragraph (ii) shall render the notice of\nno force and effect.\n * NB There are 2 sb§(n)'s\n * (n) Withdrawal from writing automobile and homeowners' insurance. In\nthe event of a determination by the superintendent that an insurer's\nelimination of premium installment plans, reduction in commission, or\nany other marketing action was implemented to effectuate a withdrawal or\nsubstantial withdrawal from writing automobile insurance:\n (1) an agent shall be permitted to terminate its contract with the\ninsurer, or that portion of the contract authorizing the agent to accept\nautomobile insurance, and the insurer shall be required to accept new\nbusiness and issue renewals in accordance with paragraph one of\nsubsection (j) of this section;\n (2) notwithstanding the provisions of subparagraph (D) of paragraph\none of subsection (j) of this section, where an agent's contract is\nterminated or a portion thereof is terminated pursuant to this\nsubsection, commissions for automobile insurance shall be paid at the\nrate in effect applicable to the agent for the longest duration during\nthe twelve-month period immediately preceding the action which is\ndetermined by the superintendent to have been implemented to effectuate\na withdrawal or substantial withdrawal from writing automobile\ninsurance;\n (3) premium payment installment options shall be maintained in a\nmanner substantially similar to options offered by the automobile\ninsurance plan established pursuant to article fifty-three of this\nchapter;\n (4) paragraphs one and two of this subsection shall not apply to an\nagent who agrees to represent exclusively one insurer or group of\ninsurers; and\n (5) with respect to homeowners' insurance, in the event that an\ninsurer intends to materially reduce the volume of policies written\npursuant to paragraph two of subsection (o) of this section, any\ncommissions payable pursuant to an agent contract shall be mandatory for\nan additional one year period beyond the completion of the required\npolicy period specified in paragraph seven of subsection (a) of this\nsection. The provisions of this paragraph shall not apply to policies\ncancelled or nonrenewed by the insured or policies not renewed or\ncancelled pursuant to subparagraph (A), (B), (C), (D) or (E) of\nparagraph two of subsection (c) of this section.\n * NB There are 2 sb§(n)'s\n (o) (1) An insurer that intends to materially reduce its volume of\npolicies written, covered by this section, shall submit to the\nsuperintendent, at least thirty days in advance of implementing such\nactions, a plan for orderly reduction that: (i) describes the\ncontemplated actions; (ii) sets forth the reasons for such actions;\n(iii) describes the measures such insurer intends to take in order to\nminimize market disruption; and (iv) provides such other information as\nthe superintendent may require.\n (2) (A) An insurer that writes homeowners insurance policies as\ndefined in subsection (a) of section two thousand three hundred\nfifty-one of this chapter, who intends to materially reduce its volume\nof such policies written, shall submit to the superintendent, at least\nsixty days in advance of implementing such actions, a plan for the\norderly reduction of the number of policies written. Such plan shall:\n(i) describe the contemplated actions; (ii) set forth the reasons for\nsuch actions; (iii) describe the measures such insurer intends to take\nin order to minimize market disruption; and (iv) provide such other\ninformation as the superintendent may require.\n (B) The superintendent after receiving such plan shall have thirty\ndays in which to approve it or disapprove it. The superintendent shall\napprove such plan if the applicant demonstrates that such material\nreduction is accomplished in a manner that minimizes market disruption\nin areas of material reduction. In the review of each plan submitted\nprior to the submission of the report required by subparagraph (E) of\nthis paragraph, the superintendent shall assess the impact of the\nplanned withdrawal in the counties of Nassau and Suffolk; areas within\none mile of a saltwater shoreline, canal or bay in the counties of\nQueens, Kings, Richmond, Bronx or Westchester; and areas where policies\nissued by the New York property insurance underwriting association have\nincreased by an amount deemed significant by the superintendent since\nJanuary first, nineteen hundred ninety-two. For plans filed subsequent\nto the submission of the report required by subparagraph (E) of this\nparagraph, the superintendent shall assess the impact of the planned\nwithdrawal on such areas as the superintendent may identify pursuant to\nsubparagraph (E) of this paragraph. In the event that the plan is\ndisapproved, the superintendent shall state the points of objection with\nsuch plan and any amendments to such plan that the superintendent may\nrequire consistent with the provisions of this section, including, but\nnot limited to, amendments designed to accomplish such material\nreduction in a manner that minimizes market disruption. The insurer\nshall file an amended plan within fifteen days from the date of return.\nAny intended withdrawal pursuant to the plan is prohibited until such\ntime as the original or any amended plan is approved by the\nsuperintendent.\n (C) The superintendent shall promulgate rules and regulations to\nestablish standards for the definition of "materially reduce its volume\nof policies" as used in this paragraph. Such definition shall require\nthat a plan be filed with the superintendent if the insurer plans to\nreduce the net number of homeowners insurance policies as defined in\nsubsection (a) of section twenty-three hundred fifty-one of this chapter\nby twenty percent or more, or plans to reduce the net number of such\npolicies it writes by five hundred, whichever is greater, within a five\nyear period of time; provided, however, that if an insurer is not\notherwise required to file a plan pursuant to this subparagraph, a plan\nshall be filed if the insurer plans to reduce the net number of such\npolicies it has in force in a twelve month period by four percent or\nmore or the net number of such policies it writes by one hundred,\nwhichever is greater.\n The provisions of this subparagraph shall not apply to policies\ncancelled or nonrenewed by the insured or policies not renewed or\ncancelled pursuant to subparagraph (A), (B), (C), (D) or (E) of\nparagraph two of subsection (c) of this section.\n (D) The superintendent shall promulgate rules and regulations to\nestablish standards to approve such an application and to define\n"minimizes market disruption."\n (E) The superintendent shall conduct a study of market dynamics and\nhomeowners insurance policies written as defined in subsection (a) of\nsection twenty-three hundred fifty-one of this chapter, cancelled or\nnonrenewed in geographic regions as he designates, including but not\nlimited to coastal regions, urban regions and rural areas and shall\nreport such findings to the governor and legislature on or before\nFebruary fifteenth, nineteen hundred ninety-eight.\n (p) Notwithstanding the provisions and limitations of this section or\nany other provision of law, the superintendent may, for a stated period\nnot to exceed three months (which the superintendent may thereafter\nextend another three months), declare a moratorium precluding policy\ntermination, or suspend or otherwise adjust the provisions and\nlimitations of this section, for any area of the state that has been\ndeclared by the president of the United States or by the governor to be\nin a state of emergency due to disaster or catastrophe.\n (q)(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, a covered\npolicy shall not be subject to a required policy period if the policy\nis:\n (A) a policy issued to an insured for a seasonal purpose;\n (B) a policy issued to cover a specific event or particular project\nthat will be performed in less than one year;\n (C) a new policy where the specific term is made to coincide with the\nterm of an insured's already existing covered policy with the same\ninsurer; with any insurer, at the insured's written request; or, in the\ncase of a personal umbrella policy, with different insurers. The new\npolicy shall have the same required policy period as that of the\nexisting policy, except where one policy is an automobile insurance\npolicy and the other policy is a personal lines insurance policy; or\n (D) a new policy issued pursuant to a mass merchandising program where\nthe specific term is made to coincide with the term of all other\npolicies in the program.\n (2) In regard to a policy subject to subparagraphs (A) and (B) of\nparagraph one of this subsection, the insurer shall not be required to\ngive the notice of nonrenewal or conditional renewal required by\nsubsection (d) of this section if:\n (A) the policy provides coverage for sixty days or less;\n (B) the policy contains a prominent and explicit notice of expiration,\nspecifying the date the policy will expire and stating that no notice of\nnonrenewal will be issued; and\n (C) the policy is accompanied by a conspicuous notice in bold type,\nexplaining that the policy provides short-term coverage for the policy\nperiod as specified on the declarations page.\n (3) Subsection (f) of this section shall not apply to an automobile\ninsurance policy subject to subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph one\nof this subsection.\n (r) An insurer that has no more than seven hundred fifty automobile\ninsurance policies in-force at last year-end and intends to non-renew\nall of the policies shall submit to the superintendent a plan for the\norderly nonrenewal of the policies. The proposed plan shall not become\neffective without the approval of the superintendent. The plan shall:\n (1) describe the contemplated action;\n (2) set forth the reasons for the action;\n (3) describe the measures the insurer will take or has taken to\nminimize market disruption as set forth in subsection (o) of this\nsection;\n (4) explain why the action would not be detrimental to the interests\nof the people of this state; and\n (5) provide any other information as the superintendent may require.\n (s) With respect to automobile insurance, no insurer shall refuse to\nissue or renew a covered individually-owned private passenger policy\nsolely on the ground that the motor vehicle to be insured under such\npolicy shall be used for volunteer firefighting.\n