Section 134.09 - Posting of At-fault Accidents, Traffic Law Violations and Claims(1)Posting of At-fault Accidents. Upon receipt of a Surcharge Notice or Notice of At-fault Accident Determination sent by an Insurer in accordance with 211 CMR 134.04, the Merit Rating Board shall post the At-fault Accident to the account of the Involved Operator.(2)Posting of Traffic Law Violations. Upon receipt of a citation for a traffic law violation which is listed on the schedule of violations posted on the Division's website at www.mass.gov/doi and for which payment has been made pursuant to M.G.L. c. 90C, or for which payment is legally in default, or for which the court either has found the Involved Operator guilty or responsible, or has assigned the operator to an alcohol education program or controlled substance abuse treatment or rehabilitation program, the Merit Rating Board shall post the traffic law violation to the account of the Involved Operator, unless the violation was deemed to be an owner violation, in which case the Merit Rating Board shall post the traffic law violation to the account of the owner of the vehicle.(3)Determination of the Incident Type. When posting an At-fault Accident claim or traffic law violation to the account of an Involved Operator or a Policyholder, the Merit Rating Board shall assign it an incident type. (a)Major Accident. For accidents occurring before July 1, 2015, an At-fault Accident wherein the claim payment under either: 1. Property Damage Liability Coverage;3. Limited Collision Coverage; or4. Bodily Injury Liability Coverage if there is neither a surchargeable Property Damage Liability Coverage claim nor a surchargeable Collision Coverage claim pursuant to 211 CMR 134.09(3)(a)1. or 2. as a result of the incident with the Bodily Injury Liability Coverage claim; exclusive of any deductible, exceeds $2,000.
For accidents occurring on or after July 1, 2015, a Major Accident is an At-fault Accident wherein the claim payment under the coverages listed in 211 CMR 134.09(3)(a), exclusive of any deductible, exceeds $5,000.
(b)Minor Accident. For accidents occurring before July 1, 2015, an At-fault Accident wherein the claim payment under either: 1. Property Damage Liability Coverage;3. Limited Collision Coverage; or4. Bodily Injury Liability Coverage if there is neither a surchargeable Property Damage Liability Coverage claim nor a surchargeable Collision Coverage claim pursuant to 134.09(3)(b)1. or 2. as a result of the incident with the Bodily Injury Liability Coverage claim; exclusive of any deductible, exceeds $500 but is no more than $2,000.
For accidents occurring on or after July 1, 2015, a Minor Accident is an At-fault Accident wherein the claim payment under the coverages listed in 211 CMR 134.09(3)(a), exclusive of any deductible, exceeds $1,000 but is no more than $5,000.
(c)Major Traffic Law Violation. Those traffic law violations so designated by the Commissioner and posted on the Division's website at www.mass.gov/doi.(d)Minor Traffic Law Violation. Those traffic law violations so designated by the Commissioner and posted on the Division's website at www.mass.gov/doi.(4)Posting of Comprehensive Coverage Claims. Upon receipt of a Comprehensive Coverage claim notice from an Insurer in accordance with 211 CMR 134.05, the Merit Rating Board shall post a Comprehensive Coverage claim to the account of the Policyholder. In the case where two individuals are listed as the Policyholders and joint owners of the insured vehicle(s), the first person listed on the Policy shall be considered to be the Policyholder for the purpose of 211 CMR 134.09(4).(5)Posting of Personal Injury Protection Coverage Claims. Upon receipt of a Personal Injury Protection Coverage claim notice from an Insurer in accordance with 211 CMR 134.05, the Merit Rating Board shall post a Personal Injury Protection Coverage claim to the account of the Involved Operator.(6)Multiple Incidents. In a Fixed-and-established Market, if an Involved Operator or Policyholder has two or more At-fault Accident claims or traffic law violations on file at the Merit Rating Board, all of which arose from the same incident, the Merit Rating Board shall assign a point value to the At-fault Accident claim or traffic law violation with the greatest number of points as specified in 211 CMR 134.13 and shall assign zero points to the remaining At-fault Accident claims or traffic law violations arising from the same incident.Amended by Mass Register Issue 1355, eff. 12/29/2017.