New York lawmakers want to force every motor vehicle insurer in the state to show their financial cards to the public.
Assembly Bill A. 11155, introduced on April 28, 2026, by Assembly Member Nily Rozic and referred to the Assembly Committee on Insurance, proposes to amend New York's insurance law by adding a new Section 346. The legislation, titled the "Automobile Insurance Sunshine Act," would require all insurers authorized to issue motor vehicle policies in New York to file detailed annual financial statements and closed claim data with the Superintendent of Financial Services.
The bill's premise is straightforward. Auto insurance is the only coverage most New Yorkers are legally required to buy, yet the factors behind how premiums are set have remained largely opaque. The legislation aims to change that by mandating a level of public financial disclosure that goes well beyond what is currently required.
Under the proposed law, every motor vehicle insurer would need to submit a detailed financial statement to the superintendent by April 1 each year, covering the most recently concluded calendar year. The filing would need to break down data across six specific lines: private passenger automobile other liability, personal injury protection, and physical damage, as well as the same three categories for commercial automobile coverage. The reporting would cover not just the insurer's direct New York operations but also any business conducted outside the state that has a connection to policies insuring persons or risks within New York.
The financial statements would need to be detailed enough to allow for an actuarially sound analysis of all income sources, including premiums, investment income, and profit from sale of assets. On the expense side, insurers would have to disclose salaries, commissions, consulting fees, legal expenses, advertising costs, and other business expenses. One provision that is likely to draw attention in the industry is the requirement for each insurer to itemize the salary of its twenty most highly compensated employees, with salaries defined to include all other forms of compensation, though the names of those employees need not be disclosed. The financial statement would also need to include a synopsis of claims or settlements paid, with that information identified and categorized separately for each zip code in the state.
The bill also requires insurers to submit detailed closed claim information by the same April 1 deadline. For private passenger auto claims, the data would initially be collected using the Insurance Research Council's Auto Injury Survey forms, until the superintendent promulgates its own data collection forms and procedures. Rather than requiring data on every claim, the superintendent may opt for a statistically valid sample, with a minimum of five percent of private passenger claims and ten percent of commercial auto claims.
Perhaps the most significant element for insurance professionals is the accountability mechanism built into the bill. Chief executive officers would be required to personally sign and attest to the accuracy of both the financial statements and the claim data filings. The bill states that the CEO would be held personally responsible for the accuracy of these submissions. For insurers that fail to comply, the superintendent could impose civil penalties of up to $50,000 per violation, temporarily suspend the insurer's right to issue additional policies or contracts, or order an audit of the insurer's records at the insurer's own expense. The signing officer could also be personally penalized to the same extent.
All of this information would be made publicly available, both in written form and on the department's website in spreadsheet format. Aggregated claim data would be published without identifying individual insurers, defendants, or plaintiffs. The filings would be designated as public documents, meaning no formal freedom of information request would be needed to access them. The superintendent would also be required to issue annual summary reports by July 1, with copies sent to the temporary president of the senate, the speaker of the assembly, and the chairs of both the senate and assembly insurance committees.
The bill is currently in its earliest legislative stage. It has been read once and referred to the Assembly Committee on Insurance. It has not yet been scheduled for a committee vote, nor has it been taken up by the state senate. If enacted, it would take effect immediately.
For insurers doing business in New York, this is a bill worth watching closely. The combination of granular financial disclosure, zip-code-level claim and settlement reporting within the financial statement, executive compensation transparency, and personal CEO liability for filing accuracy would represent a significant shift in regulatory expectations, and the penalties for non-compliance are designed to have teeth.
