2 years ago i wrote to Cohen asking for something to happen for this.. alot of other people wrote too.... i am so glad it got heard and passed
http://www.courierpostonline.com/apps/p ... 1/60622044
Thursday, June 22, 2006
By LAUREN O. KIDD
GANNETT STATE BUREAU
TRENTON - Insurance companies could not raise homeowners' insurance bills or deny coverage based on the breed of dog they own, under a bill the Assembly passed today by a vote of 65 to 10 with six abstentions.
"All this says is you cannot terminate or nonrenew or cancel simply because this animal is part of a larger breed of animals," said Assemblyman Neil Cohen, D-Union, the bill's sponsor.
"The alternative to that is to kill your dog," Cohen said. "If you have to sell your house to move somewhere else and you can't get coverage elsewhere, you have to kill your dog or put the animal up for adoption - and if no one picks up the dog, they kill your dog."
Assemblywoman Jennifer Beck, R-Monmouth, who has a German shepherd, voted against the bill. The legislation "assumes that all dogs are created equal, which they are not."
The bill forbids insurers from considering "a real, actual, documented risk of loss," said Assemblyman Richard Merkt, R-Morris.
There is "a slight difference between a Yorkie and a mastiff, a slight difference between a dachshund and a rottweiler, especially when you consider the amount of damage they can inflict," said Merkt, who also voted against the bill.
The bill does not prohibit an insurance company from raising the price of a homeowner's policy if an individual dog has a history of dangerous behavior, Cohen said.
The bill was one of the few debated as the Senate and Assembly moved quickly through lists of bills today. More than 50 bills were approved, including nine that gained final approval and now head to Gov. Jon S. Corzine.