NY Ins L § 2113 (2021)
2021 New York Laws ISC - Insurance Article 21 - Agents, Brokers, Adjusters, Consultants and Intermediaries 2113 - Title Insurance Agent Commissions; Disclosure.

§  2113. Title insurance agent commissions; disclosure. (a) No insurer doing business in this state,  and  no  agent  or  other  representative thereof,  shall  pay any commission or other compensation to any person, firm, association or corporation for acting as a title  insurance  agent in this state, except to a licensed title insurance agent.  (b)  At  the  time  of  the application, a title insurance agent shall provide to every applicant for insurance, a written good faith  estimate of the premium on the policy or policies to be issued and a breakdown of the  amount  of  all  fees and service costs, including all filing fees, recording charges,  and  closing  costs,  and  any  other  ancillary  or discretionary  charges  to be incurred, and the amount of any commission or other compensation to be paid to such agent by  the  title  insurance corporation.  If no title insurance agent is utilized, the title insurer shall provide the disclosures. If the applicant  is  represented  by  an attorney,  the  written  good  faith  estimate  shall be provided to the attorney.  (c) Nothing in this chapter shall be deemed to or be  construed  in  a manner  to authorize or permit any activity or practice, with respect to the business of title insurance, that  is  prohibited  by  section  four hundred eighty-four or four hundred ninety-five of the judiciary law, or otherwise prohibited by law, including the unauthorized practice of law.  (d) Except as provided in subsection (f) of this section, no person or entity  who  acts  as an agent, representative, attorney, or employee of the owner, lessee, or mortgagee, or of the prospective owner, lessee, or mortgagee of the real property or any interest therein and who or  whose spouse  also  is  a  member,  employee, or director of a title insurance agent, owns any interest in a title insurance agent, or is a  subsidiary or  affiliate of any title insurance agent, shall refer an applicant for insurance to such agent, and no such title insurance agent shall  accept any  such  referral  of title insurance business, unless the referral is made in accordance with section six thousand four hundred nine  of  this chapter  and  such  person  or entity, at the time of making a referral, provides,  at  a  minimum,  the  following  written  disclosure  to  the applicant:  (1)  the  nature  of the relationship between the person or entity and the title insurance agent;  (2) that the applicant is not required to  use  the  services  of  the title  insurance  agent  or the title insurance corporation to which the applicant is being referred;  (3) that any money or other thing of value directly or indirectly paid by the title insurance agent  or  title  insurance  corporation  to  the person  or  entity is based on the person or entity's financial interest in the title insurance agent, and is not related to the amount of  title insurance  business  the  person or entity refers to the title insurance agent;  (4) that the person or entity is not required  to  refer  a  specified amount of title insurance business to the title insurance agency;  (5)  the  amount  or value of any compensation or other thing of value that the person or entity expects to  receive  in  connection  with  the services  to  be  provided  by  the  title  insurance agent or the title insurance corporation to which the party is being referred; and  (6) any relevant disclosures  required  by  the  federal  real  estate settlement procedures act of 1974, as amended.  (e)  For  the  purposes of this chapter, an attorney or his or her law firm may represent a client in a matter and may  also  act  as  a  title insurance agent in such matter subject to applicable law.  (f) Where a licensed attorney represents an applicant in a real estate transaction  and  the  applicant  also retains the attorney as the title  insurance agent, the attorney shall not be required to make the  written disclosure  required  by  subsection  (d)  of  this section provided the attorney advises the client that the client is not required to  use  the attorney as the title insurance agent.  (g)  As  used  in  this  section,  "applicant" means the person, firm, limited liability company or corporation for whom the  purchase  of  the property  that  is the subject of the title insurance policy is financed or to whom a mortgage loan is made or who owns the  property,  or  to  a person who is an attorney-in-fact for such person.  (h)  The  superintendent  shall  promulgate regulations to enforce the disclosure requirements of subdivision (d) of this section and in  doing so  shall  consider  the  relevant  standards of the federal real estate settlement procedures act of 1974, as amended.