BILL NUMBER: AB 1179	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  APRIL 27, 2009

INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Jones

                        FEBRUARY 27, 2009

   An act to  add Section 758.3 to   amend
Section 1874.87 of  the Insurance Code, relating to motor
vehicle insurance.



	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 1179, as amended, Jones. Motor vehicle insurance: damage
assessments.
   Existing law generally regulates the conduct of motor vehicle
insurers relative to insureds or claimants. Under existing law,
 motor vehicle insurers are prohibited from requiring that
insureds or claimants use a specific automotive repair shop 
 insurers are required to provide each insured with an Auto Body
Repair Consumer Bill of Rights containing specified information
relating to the rights of insureds relative to covered auto body
repairs  .
   This bill would  , in addition, require insurers to
disclose in writing to claimants that any damage assessment, as
defined, made by the insurer is not a written estimate of repair
costs, as defined. This bill would also require insurers to disclose
that the actual cost of repair may be higher than the damage
assessment, as specified   require that information
regarding a consumer's right to seek and obtain an independent repair
estimate directly from a registered auto body repair shop for repair
of a damaged vehicle, even when pursuing an insurance claim for
repair of that vehicle, be included in the Auto Body Repair Consumer
Bill of Rights  .
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no.
State-mandated local program: no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

   SECTION 1.    Section 1874.87 of the  
Insurance Code   is amended to read: 
   1874.87.  (a) Each insurer subject to this article shall provide
each insured with an Auto Body Repair Consumer Bill of Rights either
at the time of application for an automobile insurance policy or
following an accident that is reported to the insurer. If the insurer
provides the insured with an electronic copy of a policy, the bill
of rights may also be transmitted electronically.
   (b) The bill of rights shall be a standardized form developed by
the department with the purpose of presenting easy-to-read facts for
auto insurance consumers. The content of the bill of rights shall be
determined by the department, and at a minimum, shall contain
information about all of the following:
   (1) A consumer's right to select an auto body repair shop for auto
body damage covered by the insurance policy and that an insurer may
not require this work to be done at a particular auto body repair
shop.
   (2) The consumer's right to be informed about auto body repairs
made with new original equipment crash parts, new aftermarket crash
parts, and used crash parts.
   (3) The consumer's right to be informed about coverage for towing
services, and for a replacement rental vehicle while a damaged
vehicle is being repaired.
   (4) Toll-free telephone numbers and Internet addresses for
reporting suspected fraud or other complaints and concerns about auto
body repair shops to the Bureau of Automotive Repair. 
   (5) A consumer's right to seek and obtain an independent repair
estimate directly from a registered auto body repair shop for repair
of a damaged vehicle, even when pursuing an insurance claim for
repair of that vehicle. 
   (c) The department shall consult with the Bureau of Automotive
Repair in determining the information to be contained in the bill of
rights. 
  SECTION 1.    Section 758.3 is added to the
Insurance Code, to read:
   758.3.  (a) For purposes of this section only, a "damage
assessment" is any communication presented to a claimant that is
intended to convey the cost of vehicle repair and that has been
prepared by an insurer or by an individual or entity associated with
the insurer and not registered as an automotive repair dealer
pursuant to Section 9884.6 of the Business and Professions Code.
   (b) For purposes of this section only, a "written estimate" is a
document prepared by an automotive repair dealer registered in
accordance with the requirements of Sections 9884.6 and 9884.9 of the
Business and Professions Code and Section 3353 of Title 16 of the
California Code of Regulations.
   (c) Any insurer who provides a claimant with a damage assessment
shall do so in writing, and the assessment shall contain the
following disclosure on the first page of the document in a minimum
of 16-point type:
   "THIS DAMAGE ASSESSMENT IS NOT A WRITTEN ESTIMATE OF REPAIR COSTS.
A WRITTEN ESTIMATE OF REPAIR COSTS CAN ONLY BE PREPARED BY AN
AUTOMOTIVE REPAIR DEALER REGISTERED WITH THE CALIFORNIA BUREAU OF
AUTOMOTIVE REPAIR. THE ACTUAL COSTS OF REPAIR MAY BE HIGHER THAN THE
COSTS CONTAINED IN THIS DAMAGE ASSESSMENT."