Reduction in No-Fault loss of earnings benefits for qualified wage continuation plans.

January 26, 1982 SUBJECT: INSURANCE (eff. 12/4/04) DATED: January 26, 1982 SUPPLEMENT NO. 1 TO CIRCULAR LETTER NO. 16 (1981) WITHDRAWN TO: ALL INSURERS AND SELF-INSURERS WRITING AUTOMOBILE INSURANCE IN THIS STATE RE: Reduction In No-Fault Loss of Earnings Benefits for Qualified Wage Continuation Plans. Section 671(1) of the Insurance Law contains a provision which requires insurers to reduce gross loss of earnings from work by benefits paid under what has become known as "qualified wage continuation plans" when calculating no-fault first party benefits payable for loss of earnings. In order to provide for consistent application of this provision the Insurance Department has undertaken to review plans submitted and classify them as either "qualified" or "non qualified". Circular Letter No. 16(1981) dated August 20, 1981 contained the results of our initial review. The following revised lists contain five additional plans (identified with a double asterisk**) which have been subsequently reviewed. QUALIFIED PLANS EMPLOYER COVERED EMPLOYEES & BENEFITS New York City * Employees in the uniformed services of Police, Fire, Correction and Sanitation Departments. Village of Mamaroneck * Police Officers. City of Yonkers * Police Officers. Manhasset Union Free School * All professional personnel District including teaching and administrative staff. Greenwich Fixture Co. * Officers of the company not covered by the union plan. ** Niagara Mohawk Power Corp. All employees. Benefits are payable for up to 26 weeks at 100% of salary. Depository Trust Co. Professional, administrative, supervisory employees, Guards and confidential secretaries are entitled full salary for up to 180 days. Stauffer Chemical Co. All employees. Benefits are payable for up to 6 months (3 months for employees with less than one year's service) at 100% of salary. U.S. Armed Forces * All members of the Armed Forces. Federal District Court * Justices only. General Electric Co. All employees. Benefits are equal to 60% of employee's weekly salary up to a maximum weekly benefit of $ 175 for up to 26 weeks. However, part of this benefit is in satisfaction of N.Y.S. Disability Benefit Law (50% of salary, up to $ 95 per week). Only the excess over N.Y.S. Disability Benefits qualifies as wage continuation benefits. For Example: A B Weekly Salary $ 150 $ 300 G.E. Benefit: 60% with $ 175 Maximum $ 90 $ 175 Less N.Y.S. DBL: 50% with $ 95 Maximum 75 95 Qualified Wage - Continuation Benefit $ 15 $ 80 ** Chevrolet, Inc. All employees represented by the & U.A.W. with one year or more of ** Ford Motor Co. service are entitled to benefits for 52 weeks equal to approximately 60% of the employee's weekly salary, as set forth in schedule of benefits as contained in U.A.W. contract. Insurers must calculate the Qualified Wage Continuation benefit in the same manner as shown above for General Electric Co. * Unlimited sick leave plans providing full salary for the duration of disability. NON-QUALIFIED PLANS International Telephone and Telegraph Corp. (ITT) Celanese Corp. University of New York Con Edison Associate Metals and Minerals Corp. I.B.M. So. Huntington Schools U.F.S.D. # 13 Sperry Rand Dobbs Ferry U.F.S.D. Eastman Kodak ** Bristol Labs a.k.a. Bristol Meyers ** New York Telephone Company Note: If an employee covered by a non-qualified plan is eligible for New York State Disability Benefits, the insurer is entitled to an offset pursuant to Section 671(2)(b) of the Insurance Law. Insurers are again requested to submit for approval, to the address shown below, details of any other plans which they believe may qualify. All plans submitted will be reviewed and, periodically, the Department will issue revised lists of qualified and non-qualified wage continuation plans. Sandra Molina Siegel Supervising Examiner New York State Insurance Department Two World Trade Center New York, New York 10047 Very truly yours, [SIGNATURE] ALBERT B. LEWIS Superintendent of Insurance ABL/