Only one group benefits from blocking Kathy Hochul’s NY plan to cut auto insurance — LAWYERS

Gov. Kathy Hochul’s plan to lower auto-insurance rates by cracking down on fraud is one of the hurdles keeping Albany from passing a budget, which is now nearly a month late.

Yet why is such a plan even controversial?

Clearly, lower rates benefit all New Yorkers; even those who don’t own vehicles stand to gain, since businesses that save on auto or truck insurance can pass along the savings to customers.

Under the state’s obscene status quo, motorists are shelling out an average of $4,000 a year on premiums, $1,500 (38%) more than the national average.

In Brooklyn, they pay $6,677 a year for full coverage.

That’s outrageous, but there’s an obvious explanation: Last year, insurers reported a jaw-dropping 43,811 — 43,811! — suspected fraud claims.

Paying off those claims, and often-sky-high awards, costs a bundle, and insurers simply pass the costs to motorists via premiums.

Hochul’s plan cracks down on the fraud by helping prosecutors target criminal rings, shady lawyers, and fake “victims” who stage accidents.

It also limits payouts for criminals involved in accidents while breaking the law (such as driving drunk); prevents drivers who are primarily at fault from collecting damages; and more narrowly defines what qualifies as a “serious injury” to curb huge awards for minor injuries.

These steps can go a long way toward holding down rates.

Of course, there is one group that loves the current system: trial lawyers (and the criminals they represent).

It’s easy to see why: The lawyers get a third of awards in auto-accident cases and make a mint from the business. Good for them — bad for motorists.

Worse, the lawyers have bought off the Legislature: Between 2015 and 2025, the New York State Trial Lawyers Association spent more than $16 million on lobbying and showered $7.6 million on elected officials and candidates.

Lawmakers like Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie are desperate to keep the gravy train rolling.

The whole arrangement is a case study in how special interests rule the roost in Albany, even when the ask is diametrically opposed to the interests of lawmakers’ own constituents (not to mention common sense).

Voters should pay close attention to who’s on which side; legislators who oppose Hochul’s reforms should be held directly responsible for the sky-high premiums.

We don’t often agree with Gov. Hochul, but this is one area where she really is trying to make New York more affordable.

If Heastie & Co. block her, New Yorkers should remember that when they pay their auto-insurance bills — and at the voting booth.