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Murkowski Lightens Bookkeeping Burden
HB 150 Modifies Trust Accounts for Rental Car Insurance

(JUNEAU) - Rental car agencies in Alaska will be free from unnecessarily strict insurance accounting requirements under House Bill 150, which passed the House unanimously today.

Rep. Lisa Murkowski (R-Anchorage) said her bill, would under certain conditions, free vehicle rental firms from a requirement established in a 1999 law to hold insurance premiums received from rental customers in separate trust accounts.

Under HB 150, rental car agencies are not required to maintain such premiums in separate trust accounts, provided the insurance fees are itemized and the insurance company receiving the funds agrees that a separate trust fund is not necessary, she said.

"These companies aren't in the insurance business, they're in the car rental business," Murkowski said. "House Bill 150 lets rental agencies streamline their bookkeeping they don't have to have a separate trust account for the insurance products that they sell as an adjunct to their main business."

Consumers will see no change in how they buy add-on insurance products from rental agencies, but the bill balances the protection of the consumer with the benefits of reasonable compliance costs, she said.

HB 150 moves next to the Senate for consideration.

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Attachments:

• Sponsor Statement for SB 150
  
• Print Friendly Version
  requires Adobe Acrobat Reader - 1 page(s) - 108 K

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