Annually, the New York Property Insurance Underwriting Association (NYPIUA) calculates a participation percentage for each member company based upon that company's premium writings in New York State for the prior year relative to the writings of other voluntary insurers. This participation percentage allows member companies to incorporate their proportionate share of NYPIUA financial results as "direct business" as required by the Insurance Department of the State of New York.
Article 54 of the New York Insurance Law provides that any member company voluntarily writing a policy or coverage which replaces a current policy written through NYPIUA may apply for a credit against its participation in NYPIUA writings. Legislation enacted in June 2008 required NYPIUA to also develop an incentive program to encourage voluntary insurers to write policies in New York's coastal territories. To fulfill this mandate, NYPIUA has developed a Voluntary Writing Credit Program. This program, authorized by NYPIUA's Board of Directors and approved by the Superintendent of insurance of the State of New York, makes premium writing "credits" available to voluntary insurers that write policies in coastal territories which will enable them to reduce their participation in NYPIUA. By reducing their participation in NYPIUA, voluntary insurers will be able to better manage their exposure to the potential of a catastrophe assessment made by NYPIUA subsequent to a significant hurricane or other insured event.
Participation in the Voluntary Writing Credit Program is not mandatory. An insurer may elect to apply for premium writing credits if it deems participation in the program is beneficial to its business plan in light of the volume of policies it issues replacing those written through NYPIUA. Insurers may apply for both credits for a single policy that they issue in those cases where a new voluntary policy issued by an insurer is eligible for both the replacement policy credit and the coastal writing credit.