New Jersey Developments

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On February 11, New Jersey Banking and Insurance Commissioner Zimmerman issued Bulletin 25-03 regarding the use of artificial intelligence systems (AIS) in insurance, applicable to all insurers authorized or admitted in New Jersey. New Jersey becomes the 23rd state to adopt the bulletin based on the NAIC Model Act on the Use of AIS by Insurers.

On May 12, 2021, New Jersey adopted a law requiring insurers ‎issuing policies covering loss or damage to property, including the loss of use and occupancy ‎and business interruption, to provide their insureds with a one page summary of common ‎insurance clauses in such commercial property policies. The summary, which was developed by the New Jersey Department of Banking and Insurance (“DOBI”), was posted on their website on August 16, 2021 and must be provided to all existing policyholders within 90 days of its posting (which is November 13, 2021). The summary is also required to be provided to any potential purchaser, or to any policyholder seeking renewal.…

The New Jersey Assembly is currently considering legislation that would authorize property ‎insurers offering coverage for loss of use and occupancy and business interruption to provide ‎their insureds a rider covering global virus transmission or pandemic. The bill provides that the ‎Commissioner of Banking and Insurance must review and approve, on an expedited basis, any ‎such rider offered by an insurer. ‎…

On May 12, 2021, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy signed into law a bill requiring insurers issuing policies covering loss or damage to property, including the loss of use and occupancy and business interruption, to disclose to policyholders whether their policy provides coverage for “global virus transmission or pandemic.”…

Both the New Jersey Assembly and Senate recently passed identical legislation that would ‎require insurers offering commercial coverage for loss or damage to property, including business ‎interruption, to provide insureds with a general summary of common insurance clauses in policies ‎for loss of use and occupancy of a commercial property, along with a disclosure relating to ‎pandemic and virus losses.‎…

COVID-19 is impacting all facets of the insurance industry, and while the surplus lines market is somewhat inoculated from the impact of various state orders and emergency regulations, many states as well as the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (“NAIC”) are subjecting surplus lines insurers and brokers to their mandates.  This article provides a sample of various state and NAIC requests and orders in recent weeks with applicability to the surplus lines industry, including but not limited to moratoriums on cancellation/nonrenewal, orders to return premium with respect to insurance policies where COVID-19 has altered the nature of the underlying risk, and various data calls.…

The NJ Assembly Homeland Security and State Preparedness Committee (“AHS” or ‎‎“Committee”) met on Monday, March 16, 2020 to consider draft bill A3844 that would require ‎Business Interruption (BI) insurers to provide coverage for economic losses due to the COVID-‎‎19 crisis. Coverage for business or business interruption losses would be required despite a ‎‎“virus” exclusion in the current policies.‎…

All eyes have been focused on the federal mid-term elections and the impact on the U.S. House and Senate. Post-mortems by the pundits have begun. See Locke Lord’s take on the mid-terms. The divided government in Washington, D.C. may well stymie efforts to regulate the insurance industry at the federal…

A bill was recently introduced in the New Jersey Senate that would prohibit the use of education and occupation as rating factors in automobile insurance underwriting. This leads to taking a closer look at the debate over the years and insurance industry’s contention that accurate premium rates require a comprehensive…

As further analyzed in our QuickStudy, available here, New Jersey has enacted a new law (P.L. 2014, c. 88, codified at N.J. Stat. Ann. §§ 56:8-196 – 56:8-198) effective August 1, 2015, requiring health insurance carriers authorized to issue health benefit plans in New Jersey to encrypt personal information…