Bill > A4251

Introduced Session

This bill establishes the "Automobile Accident Injury Fund" in the Department of Banking and Insurance. Over the past several years, there has been a rise in automobile thefts in the State, with 14,320 vehicles reported stolen in 2021, a 22 percent increase compared to 2020. In a number of these thefts, unsuspecting individuals have sustained physical injury from being hit by a stolen automobile. With almost 700,000 residents without health insurance, and with one in every eight drivers in the State without automobile insurance, there are individuals in this State who, if injured by a stolen automobile may incur the full cost of a medical bill. The purpose of the "Automobile Accident Injury Fund" is to cover the medical costs of eligible individuals injured in an automobile accident in which the automobile was stolen at the time of the accident and the medical costs of the eligible individual are not covered by the individual's health insurance policy or automobile insurance policy, if any. The bill requires the department to establish by regulation a procedure for payments from the fund. In addition, the department is required to establish regulations that provide for the process for eligible individuals to apply for payment pursuant to the bill and the criteria by which the commissioner shall determine the value of the payment provided to each eligible applicant. Finally, the department will be required to issue payments pursuant to the bill without regard to whether the stolen automobile was adequately insured pursuant to State law.

AI Summary

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Shanique Speight (D)*, 

Introduced, Referred to Assembly Financial Institutions and Insurance Committee (on 02/19/2026)

Official Document