§ 335 — Security and proof required following accident

§ 335. Security and proof required following accident. (a) Not less\nthan ten days nor more than sixty days after receipt by him of the\nreport or notice of an accident which has resulted in bodily injury or\ndeath, or in damage to the property of any one person in excess of one\nthousand dollars, the commissioner shall forthwith suspend the license\nof any person operating, and the registration certificates and\nregistration plates of any person owning, a motor vehicle in any manner\ninvolved in such accident unless and until such operator (or chauffeur)\nor owner or both shall have previously furnished or immediately\nfurnishes security sufficient in the judgment of the commissioner to\nsatisfy any judgment or judgments for damages resulting from such\naccident as may be recovered against such owner or operator (or\nchauffeur) by or on behalf of any aggrieved person or his legal\nrepresentative, and unless and until such owner or operator (or\nchauffeur) or both shall immediately furnish and thereafter maintain\nproof of financial responsibility in the future. Where erroneous\ninformation with respect to insurance coverage of the owner or operator\n(or chauffeur) of any such vehicle is furnished to the commissioner, he\nshall take appropriate action as above provided within sixty days after\nthe receipt by him of correct information with respect to such coverage.\nThis section shall not apply: (1) to such owner or operator (or\nchauffeur) if such owner had in effect at the time of such accident with\nrespect to such motor vehicle a standard provisions automobile liability\npolicy in form approved by the superintendent of financial services and\nissued by an insurance company authorized to do business in this state\nor, if such motor vehicle was not registered in this state or was a\nmotor vehicle which was registered elsewhere than in this state at the\neffective date of the policy, or the most recent renewal thereof, an\nautomobile liability policy acceptable to the superintendent of\nfinancial services as substantially the equivalent of such standard\nprovisions automobile liability policy; (2) to such operator (or\nchauffeur), if not the owner of such motor vehicle, if there was in\neffect at the time of such accident such a policy with respect to his\noperation of motor vehicles not owned by him or, if such motor vehicle\nwas a private passenger motor vehicle, with respect to his operation of\nprivate passenger motor vehicles not owned by him or (3) to such owner\nor operator (or chauffeur) if the liability of such owner or operator\n(or chauffeur) for damages resulting from such accident is, in the\njudgment of the commissioner, covered by any other form of liability\ninsurance policy issued by an insurance company authorized to do\nbusiness in this state or by a bond, provided every such policy or bond\nmentioned herein is subject, if the accident has resulted in bodily\ninjury, to a limit, exclusive of interest and costs, of twenty-five\nthousand dollars or death to a limit, exclusive of interest and costs,\nof fifty thousand dollars, because of bodily injury to or death of one\nperson in any one accident and, subject to said limit for one person, to\na limit of fifty thousand dollars because of bodily injury to or one\nhundred thousand dollars because of death of two or more persons in any\none accident, and, if the accident has resulted in injury to or\ndestruction of property, to a limit of ten thousand dollars because of\ninjury to or destruction of property of others in any one accident or\n(4) to such owner or operator if the commissioner shall determine that\nthe failure to have liability coverage as described above was caused\nsolely by the negligence or malfeasance of a person other than the\nperson whose license or registration has been suspended or is subject to\nsuspension, and that the person seeking to avoid such suspension was not\naware of the lack of such liability coverage. However, with respect to\nthe provisions of (4) above, the burden of proof shall be upon the\nperson seeking to avoid such suspension action. Provided further, that\nsuch facts shall be established by clear and convincing evidence, either\nby the submission of affidavits or at a hearing called in the discretion\nof the commissioner.\n Upon receipt of notice of such accident, the insurance carrier or\nsurety company which issued such policy or bond shall furnish for filing\nwith the commissioner a written notice that such policy or bond was in\neffect at the time of such accident or shall notify the commissioner in\nsuch manner as he may require in case such policy or bond was not in\neffect at the time of such accident.\n In case any such operator (or chauffeur) or owner has no license to\noperate issued under this chapter or no motor vehicle registered in his\nname in this state, he shall not be allowed a license or registration\nuntil he has complied with this article to the same extent as would be\nnecessary if he had held an operator's or chauffeur's license and a\nmotor vehicle registration issued under this chapter at the time of the\naccident.\n (b) Such security, where ordered, shall be in such form and in such\namount as the commissioner may require, but in no case in excess of the\namount of proof required by section three hundred forty-one of this\narticle. The commissioner may reduce the amount of security ordered in\nany case within six months after the date of the accident, if, in his\njudgment, the amount ordered is too large. In case the security\noriginally ordered has been deposited, the excess deposited over the\nreduced amount ordered shall be returned to the depositor or his\npersonal representative forthwith, notwithstanding the provisions of\nsubdivision (c) of this section.\n (c) Security furnished in compliance with the requirements of this\nsection shall be placed by the commissioner in the custody of the\ncommissioner of taxation and finance and shall be applicable only to the\npayment of a judgment against the depositor for damages arising out of\nthe accident in question in an action at law begun not later than one\nyear after the date of such accident or, upon assignment of the\ndepositor, made not later than one year after the date of such accident,\nto the settlement of a claim arising out of such accident, or upon\nassignment of the depositor, made after the expiration of one year after\nthe date of such accident, to the settlement of an action at law begun\nnot later than one year after the date of such accident. All of such\npayments made out of the deposited security shall be made as follows:\nPayment shall first be made to each of the judgment creditors and to\neach of the claimants who have agreed to settle their claims, whose\ndamages were evaluated by the commissioner, in an amount not greater\nthan the amount fixed in their respective evaluations. Whenever the\ncommissioner shall be given evidence, satisfactory to him, that the\namounts of all claims for damages against the depositor arising out of\nsuch accident are fixed, either by judgment or settlement agreement,\npayment shall be made out of any balance remaining after the first\ndistribution to each of those persons whose judgments or settlement\namounts have not been fully paid but whose damages were evaluated by the\ncommissioner, in proportion to the amounts of their respective\nevaluations unless there is sufficient to make payment in full; and any\nbalance remaining after the first and second distributions are completed\nshall be paid to those judgment creditors and those claimants who have\nagreed to settle their claims but whose damages were not evaluated, in\nproportion to the amounts of their respective judgments or settlement\namounts unless there is sufficient to make payment in full. Such\ndeposit, or any balance thereof, shall be returned to the depositor or\nhis personal representative whenever after the expiration of such year,\nthe commissioner shall be given evidence, satisfactory to him, that\nthere is no such action pending and no such judgment unsatisfied or\nwhenever, before the expiration of such year, the commissioner shall be\ngiven evidence, satisfactory to him, that there is no such judgment\nunsatisfied and that there is no existing cause of action against the\ndepositor for damages arising out of such accident.\n (c-1) After security, furnished in compliance with the requirements of\nthis section, has remained on deposit for five years, the commissioner\nshall make a determination as to whether the deposit, or any balance\nthereof, is returnable to the depositor or the person entitled thereto.\nIn the event that such deposit, or any balance thereof, is determined to\nbe returnable, but remains unclaimed by the depositor or the person\nentitled thereto for a period of one year following the date of such\ndetermination, such unclaimed deposit, or any balance thereof, shall be\ndeemed abandoned property subject to the provisions of the abandoned\nproperty law.\n (d) The provisions of subdivision (a) of this section shall not apply\nto the owner of a motor vehicle operated by one having obtained\npossession or control thereof without the expressed or implied consent\nof such owner, to a police officer or member of the state police who is\ncompelled to assume the custody and operation of a motor vehicle of\nanother because such motor vehicle was (1) stolen from or lost by the\nowner, (2) abandoned, either by the owner or any other person with or\nwithout the owner's consent, (3) is being operated by a person disabled\nso as not to be able to operate it properly, or (4) is being operated by\nan intoxicated person; or to either the owner or operator of a motor\nvehicle involved in an accident wherein no damage or injury was caused\nto other than the person or property of such owner or operator.\n (e) In lieu of deposit of security when required pursuant to the\nprovisions of this section the commissioner may accept a written\nagreement, executed and acknowledged by the person required to deposit\nsecurity and any person who has sustained bodily injury, including\ndeath, or damage to his property, or his legal representative, providing\nfor the payment of an agreed amount in installments, with respect to the\nclaims of such person for injuries or damages resulting from the\naccident. In the event of default in payment of any installment under\nsuch agreement, then upon notice of such default the commissioner shall\nforthwith suspend the license and registration certificates and\nregistration plates of the person in default until release has been\nfiled with the commissioner indicating that the entire agreed amount has\nbeen paid. But in no case shall such agreement be used in lieu of proof\nof maintenance of financial responsibility in the future required\npursuant to the provisions of this section.\n