The Insurance Department is responsible for supervising and regulating all insurance business in New York State. The Department's mission is to:

• Ensure the continued sound and prudent conduct of insurers' financial operations;
• Provide fair, timely and equitable fulfillment of insurer obligations;
• Protect policyholders from financially impaired or insolvent insurers;
• Eliminate fraud, other criminal abuse and unethical conduct in the industry; and
• Foster growth of the insurance industry in the State.

The Department carries out its supervisory function by issuing licenses to agents, brokers, consultants, reinsurance intermediaries, adjusters, and bail bondsmen; conducting examinations of insurers to determine their financial condition, treatment of policyholders and claimants, and underwriting practices; and auditing each company's annual reports.

The Department carries out its regulatory function by determining qualifications of insurers; regulating rates, certain retirement systems and pension funds; reviewing policyholders' complaints; supervising the liquidation, rehabilitation, and conservation of insolvent insurers; and approving corporate formations, mergers, and consolidations.

Until 1849, insurance companies doing business in New York State were chartered by special acts of the Legislature. A law passed that year requiring prospective insurance companies to file incorporation papers with the secretary of state. The law also vested regulatory power over insurance companies with the state comptroller, who was authorized to require the companies to submit annual financial statements and to deny a company the right to operate if capital securities and investments did not remain secure.

The Insurance Department was created in 1859 by the New York State Legislature and assumed the functions of the comptroller and secretary of state relating to insurance. The Department began operations in 1860. The Department is headed by a Superintendent appointed by the Governor. The agency continued unchanged after the 1925 constitutional reorganization of State Government."

The New York Liquidation Bureau, a separate office under the jurisdiction of the Superintendent, charged with rehabilitating or liquidating insurance companies, is located in New York City.

Contact the NY Department of Insurance

New York Department of Insurance - NYC
25 Beaver Street
New York, NY 10004

Website: http://www.ins.state.ny.us
Consumer Services: 212-480-6400
Insurance Fraud: 212-480-6074

In addition to its main office in Manhattan, the agency has staff in Albany, Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse, Oneonta and Long Island.

The Department's main Web site and the ones with which it is affiliated, covering programs such as Healthy NY, Captive Insurers and Caregivers, continued to play a vital role in communicating with and providing services to the Department's diverse constituencies during 2005. The Department's broad range of activities and applications are reflected on these sites. During 2005, there were 3,396,310 visits to the Insurance Department's Homepage, a 32% increase over the previous year. In October 2005, Superintendent Mills announced that the Department's redesigned Web site was officially online, offering visitors to www.ins.state.ny.us a fresh look and enhanced navigational tools.

"The Insurance Department's Web site draws more than three million visitors annually and the improvements we've made will make it easier for them to find what they're looking for, whether they are consumers seeking information about auto or health care insurance rates, or agents and brokers looking to renew their licenses online," said Superintendent Mills.

There were 143 life insurance companies licensed to transact business in New York State as of December 31, 2005. The total admitted assets of licensed life insurers amounted to approximately $2.08 trillion at December 31, 2004 a ten-year gain of 86.9%. Bonds totaled $957.2 billion; stocks $61.1 billion; mortgage loans $159.6 billion; real estate $12.3 billion; policy loans $56.1 billion, and short-term holdings $14.8 billion. Other admitted assets totaled $819.5 billion.

Domestic life insurance companies had admitted assets of $772.8 billion on December 31, 2004, an increase of 93.1% since 1994. Insurance in force at December 31, 2004 of $4.58 trillion represents an increase of 81.6% since December 31, 1994.