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Quadrino Schwartz Asks New York’s Legislature to Respond to Governor Spitzer’s Veto of a Bill On Late Filing of Insurance Claims


WEBWIRE

NEW YORK, Sept. 7, 2007 -- Governor Spitzer issued a veto on a long-awaited bill that would no longer allow insurance companies in New York to deny claims based upon the alleged late filing of an insurance claim. Denials of insurance claims for “Late Notice” have been a tremendous problem in New York for policyholders who have legitimate claims but did not notify their insurers as promptly as possible. All other 49 States in the country have a rule allowing late notice in many circumstances, so New York stands out as the last place that remains a safe haven for insurance companies on this issue.

“Companies and individuals in New York with legitimate and serious insurance claims are routinely turned away by their insurance companies,” said Richard J. Quadrino, Partner at Quadrino Schwartz. In many other States, an insurance company that denies a claim based upon late notification must establish that the passage of time caused harm to the insurance company, such as the disappearance of evidence or the death of a witness. In New York, however, an insurance company can simply declare the filing of a claim as “late” and issue a denial. “The bill sent to the Governor would have provided much needed relief from the routine denials of legitimate claims,” said Quadrino.

Indeed, the Governor noted in his veto message that: “The late notice provisions of the bill are an important reform, because they would prevent insurers from denying coverage to insureds based on a technicality, thereby eliminating the extreme hardship that is brought to bear on those who pay their premiums religiously only to find at a time of need that their policy is not available.” The Late Notice reform was linked in the bill, however, with another insurance reform measure that the Governor believed needed further study. Since the veto of the entire bill killed the Late Notice reform, Quadrino Schwartz has urged the Legislature to send the Late Notice reform to the Governor as a separate bill so he can sign it into law and provide long-awaited relief to New York policyholders.

About Quadrino Schwartz: Quadrino Schwartz is a nationally recognized law firm that obtains recoveries from insurance companies on behalf of policyholders. The firm’s Insurance Law Group provides services ranging from claims management and investigation, through and including litigation, settlement, trial and appeal.

For more information about the firm, visit us at www.quadrinoschwartz.com and www.disabilityinsurancelawyers.com

CONTACT: Quadrino & Schwartz
Kim Reiter
(516)745-1122
ksr@quadrinoschwartz.com



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