N.Y. Grieving Families Act could impact auto & general liability
Governor Hochul is now considering the legislation, which could have a significant impact on the cost of liability insurance in the state.
In early June 2022, Senate Bill S74A, also known as the Grieving Families Act, passed the New York Senate Assembly and would immediately become law if signed by New York Governor Kathy Hochul.
Surviving family members in New York currently have the right to seek compensation through a wrongful death lawsuit. Still, the current law, which was established in the 1800s and has not been significantly modified since, often doesn’t consider the full impact of an untimely loss of a family member. Currently, families can only obtain compensation for financial losses directly related to the death of a loved one, such as lost wages and funeral expenses.
The Grieving Families Act would amend the current statute to allow grieving families to recover more than just monetary damages from the person or entity responsible for their family member’s death. Currently, the law does not allow family members of people killed to recover compensation for emotional losses they suffered in the wake of their loved one’s death. Family can recover pecuniary damages, which are monetary losses such as funeral expenses, burial costs, lost income, medical expenses incurred by the deceased prior to death, and other financial damages. The current statute does not account for nonfinancial losses such as pain and suffering.
Current law also devalues and sometimes ignores the contributions of family members who may not have been high-wage earners, such as children or disabled elders, treating high-wage earners as more valuable because they made significant financial contributions to the family before death. The new law would recognize other, nonfinancial contributions the victim made to the family unit.
Lastly, the current statute only permits certain family members to recover compensation and does not always recognize other close loved ones, including unmarried partners, even if they were a close loved one to the deceased. The bill would expand the family members who could sue to include spouses and domestic partners, as well as children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, parents, grandparents, stepparents, and siblings. A jury could define who is a close family member.
The Act would also extend the current two-year statute of limitations to three years and six months.
Impact on auto, general liability
According to chambers of commerce and more than 30 industry groups representing insurance and several other sectors, the new settlements could translate into a burden on the state’s economy. In response, the groups signed a letter to Hochul urging her to veto the bill. The letter asserted that the bill would endanger economic recovery, and radically expand the kinds of recoverable damages in wrongful death actions, resulting in increased liability insurance premiums for public and private entities across the state.
New York already has higher liability insurance premiums than almost anywhere else in the country. An actuarial analysis by Millman cited in the letter, states that the bill could potentially increase medical professional liability costs by nearly 40%, and automobile liability and general liability insurance would increase by as much as $2.2 billion. The bill could have a chilling effect on new companies coming to the state, and could discourage local entrepreneurs from remaining in New York. Increased liability costs would lead to price increases, pay cuts, and potential layoffs.
Insurance Coverage Law Center editor’s note: In the recent past, Hochul has been hesitant to enact any new legislation that could have a negative impact on the New York economy, hospitals, and state and local governments, because all of those entities are already under great economic stress due to the COVID-19 pandemic. She has not yet indicated whether she will sign the measure.
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