NY Liability Insurance Coverage Protocols: What Lawyers and Insurers NEED to Know About Coverage Letters

New York coverage letters present special problems and challenges for liability insurers, for policyholders and for litigants on all sides of the aisle.  The purpose of this program is to protect insurance companies from inadvertent losses of important policy defenses and to provide guidance to policyholders and litigants alike on how to read, understand and evaluate coverage letters received from liability insurers.

Accordingly, every couple of years, Hurwitz Fine presents this New York coverage tutorial for those who handle New York policies and claims. Failing to follow the rules, which have timeliness and copying requirements can lead to challenges for liability insurers, including a loss of the right to rely upon policy exclusions and breaches of policy conditions, and opportunities for policyholders and litigants.

If you handle New York coverage work or if you represent civil litigants in personal injury or property damage cases, either as a claim professional or as a lawyer, this training is for you. 

New York coverage rules  differ significantly from those in other states, primarily because of the statutory requirements set forth in Insurance Law §3420(d).  When must a coverage letter be sent?  Who is required to receive a copy?  Are there different standards for bodily injury, wrongful death, and property damage cases?  What is a “courtesy defense”?  Is there “magic language” that needs to be included in the letter?  What happens if you don’t follow the rules? Do the rules only apply to policies issued in New York?

If you an insurer are preparing to write a reservation of rights letter on a New York loss, you may be shooting yourself in the foot, or heart, or wallet. There may be – and often are – very  dangerous consequences if one fails to send out a timely, properly copied, coverage letter or if it does not contain a high degree of specificity. If you are the recipient of a coverage letter from an insurer, it requires close review, to confirm compliance with New York rules, in order to evaluate its effectiveness.

Whether you are an insurer, a policyholder, an attorney representing an insured party, or one handling a case on behalf of an injured party, insurance coverage training is a critical resource.

This program is sponsored by the Torts, Insurance and Compensation Law Section and co-sponsored by the Trial Lawyers Section

Program Presenter:

Dan D. Kohane, Senior Member/Educator, Hurwitz Fine PC, Buffalo, New York