A hearing on the following Auto Regulations will take place in June
The Division of Insurance has scheduled a Notice of Hearing regarding proposed amendments to three different auto regulations. The public hearing will take place at 10:00 a.m. on June 16, 2017, at the Division of Insurance (“Division”), Hearing Room 1-E, 1000 Washington Street, Boston, Massachusetts, 02118-6200.
The purpose of the hearing to permit the interested individuals as well as the general public the opportunity to comment on the proposed amendments to the following regulations:
Docket No. G2017-11
211 CMR 79.00 
. Private Passenger Motor Vehicle Insurance Rates. The amendments simplify the regulation by removing references to procedures that applied only to the transition period from a market in which the Commissioner fixed-and-established private passenger motor vehicle insurance rates to a competitive market. The proposed changes do not make substantive changes to the regulation as it applies to the competitive market.
Docket No. G2017-12
211 CMR 88.00 . Procedures for the Appeal of Insurer At-Fault Accident Determinations and the Conduct of Hearings on Insurer At-Fault Accident Determinations. The current regulation explicitly establishes procedures for the filing, review, and conduct of hearings on appeals of an insurer’s determination that an operator was at fault in a private passenger motor vehicle accident pursuant to the Safe Driver Insurance Plan approved in a fixed-and-established market. It does not address procedures for appeals arising in a competitive market. The proposed amendments establish procedures that will govern the filing, review, and conduct of hearings on appeals of an insurer’s determination that an operator is at fault in an accident, either in accordance with the insurer’s Merit Rating Plan or with the Safe Driver Insurance Plan. The proposed changes also improve the readability, organization, and ease-of-use of the regulation.
Docket No. G2017-13
211 CMR 134.00 Safe Driver Insurance and Merit Rating Plans. 211 CMR 134.00 was promulgated to implement the Safe Driver Insurance Plan approved by the Commissioner as part of the process to fix-and-establish private passenger motor vehicle insurance rates and later amended to reflect the shift to a competitive market and the adoption by insurers of their own Merit Rating Plans. The proposed changes reflect the effect of 2015 legislation requiring the Merit Rating Board, the administrator of data reported pursuant to 211 CMR 134.00, to adopt new parameters for classifying motor vehicle accidents as “major” or “minor.” Additional changes clarify the regulation and its application in a fixed-and-established rating market and in a competitive market.
The deadline to submit a notice of intent to comment is June 14th
For those interested individuals, the regulations which are the subject of the June hearing can be inspected at the Division’s offices during its normal business hours. The redlined version of the proposed regulations can be viewed on the DOI website by clicking on the links beside each of the regulation names above.
The Division asks that anyone interested in presenting unsworn oral or written statements to inform the Division of its intent via a notice of intent to comment by June 14, 2017. According to the Division, any other persons who wish to speak will be heard after those who notify the Division in advance. After the hearing, the official hearing record will remain open for another week after the conclusion of the public hearing in order to accept and incorporate any additional written statements.
How to submit a notice of intent to the Division
The Division has provided the following information on how to contact its office:
All notices and submissions must refer to the Docket Number for the particular regulation that the person intends to address. Notices and submissions in hard copy may be sent by mail to the Docket Clerk, Hearings and Appeals, Division of Insurance, at the address above or by electronic mail to doidocket.mailbox@state.ma.us.
