As previously reported here, on September 10, 2007, the New Jersey legislature enacted P.L. 2007, c. 163 (S-1666/A-3038), which banned the use of step-down provisions. Step-down provisions were included in motor vehicle liability insurance policies issued to businesses and implicated when an employee is not a “named insured” on the policy. In these situations, the step-down provisions allowed insurance companies to pay the claim under the lower uninsured and underinsured motorist limits of the employee’s personal liability policy instead of the higher limits of the business’ policy.
The legislation effectively overturned the New Jersey Supreme Court’s 2005 ruling in Pinto v. New Jersey Manufacturers Insurance Co., 874 A.2d 520, which imposed a duty on insurance producers to “inform employers about the necessity for [adding employees as ‘named insureds’ to avoid step-down provisions] so that employers may make informed decisions.”
One question that has arisen since the passage of the legislation is whether it applies retroactively to motor vehicle liability policies or only prospectively to new policies. The Office of Legislative and Regulatory Affairs of the New Jersey Department of Banking and Insurance has confirmed that the ban “was effective immediately upon its enactment and contains no retroactive provisions.”
