Full story in QNS
By Eduardo Giraldo
Most New Yorkers don’t think twice about car insurance – until the renewal bill lands. But for small-business owners across the Downstate region, including New York City, Long Island, and the Northern suburbs, skyrocketing premiums have quietly created an economic crisis that is choking commercial activity.
The ability to move goods and people is the core engine of our regional economy. Whether it’s a Queens plumber, a Long Island landscaper, or a Brooklyn caterer, every local business relies on vehicles. When insurance costs surge, the entire regional supply chain is thrown into instability, threatening our neighborhood businesses and the jobs they provide.
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The root cause of this explosion in rates is systemic fraud and regulatory complacency. The region’s major arteries have become hunting grounds for organized, cynical networks specializing in staged car accidents, inflated medical claims, and legal abuses. These rackets leverage systemic loopholes to generate massive fraudulent payouts that are inevitably passed down as premium hikes on ratepayers. Every honest business and working family with a car in the Downstate region is effectively paying a “fraud tax.”
This crisis demands immediate action. Governor Kathy Hochul and state lawmakers in Albany can no longer afford to delay. We need comprehensive action that treats organized staged-accident fraud as the severe economic crime it is, ensuring swift and severe penalties. Furthermore, Albany must aggressively close the numerous legal loopholes that allow inflated, bad-faith lawsuits to continue to drain our economy. To provide essential relief, the state must mandate greater transparency in how insurance companies calculate and justify their premium increases.
Affordable auto insurance is not a luxury. It is essential infrastructure for the entire New York Metropolitan Area to function. If Albany fails to act now, the deterioration of neighborhood services and the loss of vital, good-paying jobs will be inevitable. The State must stop stalling and secure the future of our economy now.