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Under new law pit bull ownership cannot automatically end homeowner coverage

Nov 03, 2021 5:45 am

MidHudson News is reporting Gov. Kathy Hochul has signed legislation that prohibits Insurance companies from canceling a homeowner policy just because the property owner has a pit bull, rottweiler, or other breeds of dog viewed as dangerous. Brian Shapiro of Woodstock, state director of the Humane Society of the United States, supports the measure. “This legislation would ensure that there is no discrimination against people who have pit bulls or German shepherds or dogs that might look like that and an insurance company saying you can’t have a homeowner’s policy; we’re going to discriminate against you. It is totally not found in science the basis for that. This is a good bill and we are pleased the governor has signed that,” he said. Owners of dogs that have been declared dangerous based on behavior are not covered by the bill, making it possible for insurance companies to base their decisions on actual risk rather than outdated stereotypes, Shapiro said. The next step, he said, will be to introduce legislation with the same protections for renters’ policies. Read the full story at MidHudsonNews [dot] com.