The insurance departments of Connecticut and New
York recently issued directives regarding the treatment of spouses in
same-sex marriages.
A
bulletin in
Connecticut notes that the state supreme court recently ruled that the
Connecticut law limiting marriage to heterosexual couples violates the
state constitutional guarantee of equal protection for all. The effect
of the ruling, according to the Connecticut Insurance Department, is to
require same-sex spouses to be treated the same as opposite-sex spouses
for all purposes, including insurance.
Since the term "spouse" in currently approved forms
in Connecticut can now be applied to same-sex spouses, the Connecticut
ruling does not require any new filing action. The bulletin adds that
the department will not approve any policy forms that attempt to exclude
coverage for same-sex partners.
The bulletin also reminds insurers of their existing
obligation to provide coverage to same-sex partners in a licensed civil
union on the same basis as spouses in a legal marriage. AAIS has
mandatory endorsements filed and approved in Connecticut to meet this obligation.
A
circular
letter from the New York Insurance Department states that same-sex
spouses to marriages legally performed outside of New York must be
treated the same as opposite-sex spouses for insurance purposes.
This directive arises from a state supreme court
ruling, which in this case required a New York employer to provide
spousal benefits to a same-sex spouse married in Canada. As in
Connecticut, this directive is not expected to require any new filing
action; existing references to spouses will simply be extended to
same-sex spouses.
A recent
circular
letter from the New York Insurance Department specifies that
insurers cannot cancel a homeowners' policy simply on the basis that a
property is not occupied or has gone into foreclosure proceedings. (The
wording of this last sentence was clarified after the initial posting of
this Advisory.)
According to the letter, the department had received
numerous complaints that insurers were interpreting lack of occupancy as a
"physical change" in the premises that would justify cancellation under
New York law. The letter states that, under New York insurance law,
"physical change" is deemed to occur only when a dwelling or property
has been altered or changed in some manner.
Similarly, the letter states that initiation of
foreclosure proceedings does not constitute "willful or reckless acts or
omissions increasing the hazard insured against," which would otherwise
allow an insurer to cancel a homeowners policy.
Some recent and upcoming notices provide additional
information on topics discussed in previous AAIS Advisories:
-
A recent
circular letter provides authoritative instructions regarding a
New York law implementing the "actual prejudice" standard for
liability insurance;
-
An AAIS bulletin to be issued Friday, Dec. 5,
announces the countrywide filing of
revised water damage exclusions under the AAIS Farmowners
Program that are essentially equivalent to
similar exclusions filed under other
lines; and
-
An AAIS bulletin to be issued Friday, Dec. 5,
announces the filing of additional named insured, loss payee, and
state amendatory endorsements in Florida to address
new legal requirements for residential
condominium insurance in that state.
Recordings of two recent AAIS web seminars and
another slide presentation are available at
www.AAISonline.com, AAIS's
public website. The three presentations include:
-
The recording of an
October
web seminar featuring Pam Nykaza, senior product development
specialist for inland marine, describing the latest revision to the
AAIS Boatowners Program.
-
A
slide presentation,
with audio commentary by Robert Guevara, AAIS vice president of
inland marine.
on the latest revision to the Builders' Risk section of the AAIS
Inland Marine Guide.
-
The recording of a
November web seminar
featuring Sherry Taylor, manager of farm and agribusiness, and
Deborah Summerlin, vice president of insurance lines, describing the
new AAIS Agricultural General
Liability (AgGL) Program.
Companies interested in using the AgGL can get a link to this
recording by contacting Joyce Tignino, vice president of marketing
and industry relations, at
joycet@AAISonline.com, or by calling 800-564-AAIS.
For each of these presentations, you will need a computer with speakers to hear the audio
commentary.
AAIS is now
evaluating topics for its 2009 Main Event conference, April 26-28 in
Half Moon Bay, Calif.
This executive
conference focuses on product-related issues of strategic importance to
property/casualty insurers.
To that end, AAIS is seeking speakers on
trends in science, technology, law, economics, and other fields that
will impact property and liability risks and, consequently,
the design and development of P/C insurance products.
There are two ways to submit ideas for topics:
-
Use the
AAISalert online
submission form. This web page asks users to describe new exposures they are concerned
about, indicate how they address the exposure or plan to address it, and
how it is likely to affect property/casualty insurance.
-
Contact Joseph
Harrington, AAIS director of corporate communications, at
joeh@AAISonline.com, or by
calling 800-564-AAIS.
