Department of Motor Vehicles

Uninsured Vehicles

We examined the actions taken by the Department of Motor Vehicles to ensure that vehicles registered in New York State are covered by liability insurance, as is required by law. We found that a number of actions could be taken by the Department to reduce the risks posed by uninsured vehicles. For example, even though the Department must be notified by the insurer when a vehicle's insurance coverage is terminated, the Department does not routinely try to identify insurers who do not comply with this requirement. We identified 80 insurance companies that reported no terminations over a period of one year, even though they sold a total of about $77 million in vehicle liability policies during that year. We also determined that most of the insurers reporting terminations did not always notify the Department within 30 days of the termination, as required by law. We recommend that the Department be more active in its efforts to identify and follow up on uninsured vehicles.

For a complete copy of Report 98-S-4 click here.
For a copy of the 90-day response click here.
For a copy of the associated follow-up report click here.