Hot Topic: New York's certificates of insurance law now in
effect
The new law addresses long-standing industry concerns and
codifies opinions issued by the New York Insurance Department's
(predecessor to the Department of Financial Services) Office of
General Counsel, dating back to 1995, which generally state that a
certificate of insurance may not provide obligations, conditions or
coverages not contained within the underlying insurance policy.
Article 5 takes a three-pronged approach to the issue, and empowers
the NY Department of Financial Services (DFS) to levy fines for
violations.
Special restrictions on personal injury and property damage
liability insureds
First, for certificates of insurance addressing personal injury
liability insurance or property damage liability insurance, Article
5 prohibits any person or governmental entity from "willfully
requir[ing]" the issuance of a certificate of coverage as a
condition for 1) awarding work, 2) commencing or
