Motor Vehicle Accident Response Fees To Be Banned in Florida With Governor’s Approval of SB 2282

As many as two dozen Florida municipalities and counties that currently charge fees for costs incurred for services provided by first-responders to motor vehicle accidents will not be able to do so after the passage of CS/SB 2282, today, May 1, 2009, by a vote of 102 to 15 in the Florida House of Representatives.   

With approval from Florida Governor Charlie Crist, the bill will ban Florida counties and cities from imposing fees or obtaining reimbursement for costs incurred for services provided by first-responders to a motor vehicle accident beginning July 1, 2009. An exemption is made in the bill for transportation and treatment provided by ambulance services and, as previously amended during the committee process, for the clean-up of certain hazardous materials.

Originally sponsored by State Senator Mike Bennett, CS/SB 2282 defines “first-responders” as law enforcement officers, firefighters, emergency medical technicians, paramedics and volunteer first-responders. 

 

Background

Florida counties and municipalities are afforded broad constitutional and statutory home rule powers with expansive legislative and service delivery authority.  During 2008, Senate Committee on Banking and Insurance legislative staff studied the issue of local governments imposing fees for providing police and fire services to persons involved in motor vehicle accidents and published a report entitled: Cities and Counties Charging “Accident Response” Fees to Drivers and Insurers (Issue Brief 2009-303). 

This report found that, in an effort to balance budgets and continue vital services while not raising taxes, about two to three dozen Florida counties and cities had begun imposing “accident response fees” on drivers and their insurers for the delivery of police and fire services, which included personnel, supplies and equipment at the scene of auto accidents within their jurisdictions.

Local governments generally take the position that these fees are not taxes, but rather, “user fees” charged in exchange for services that benefit the party paying the fee, i.e., the driver involved in an accident, and are applied solely to pay for the cost of the services.

In Florida, average police response fees range from $180 to $200 per accident, while fees range from $600 to $800 for fire service responses.  The amounts collected are normally placed into a special fund used exclusively for the personnel, supplies, and equipment for the police or fire services provided.

Florida local governments either administer the billing and collection of accident response fees or utilize the administrative services of third-party vendors who may charge up to ten percent of the collections.  

Local governments in Florida imposing accident response fees justify the practice by stating that fire and police services provided for auto accidents are outside the scope of core law enforcement and fire duties, and that traffic crashes are civil situations caused by negligent drivers.  They further qualify this rationale by saying that the attendant services provided by fire and police do not benefit local taxpayers. Government officials assert that providing accident response services detracts from the ability of fire and police officers to serve and protect their own taxpayers or residents.

According to representatives with Cost Recovery Corp., a company specializing in police and fire department billing, 56 percent of auto insurers nationwide pay accident response fees.

In its 2008 Interim Project Report on the subject, the Florida Senate reported that, given the lack of statutory direction and the lack of clear case law, most auto insurers they contacted had not adopted a consistent approach on the issue.  Some insurers evaluate whether to pay the fees on a case-by-case basis based on the specific circumstances of the accident, the language in the local ordinance and the policy provisions.  Many large insurers question the validity of the fees and refuse to pay them, arguing they are improper user fees because local residents already pay for these services through property taxes.  Responding to, and investigating auto accidents has traditionally been handled by local police and fire departments and such responses have never been covered in insurance policies.

Under Florida’s no-fault law, personal injury protection (“PIP”), covers reasonable medical expenses, including ambulance transportation, but expenses related to accident responses are not covered.  Liability coverage pays for damages caused by the insured to another person’s vehicle or property (property damage liability), or for injury to others (bodily injury liability) if the insured is legally liable.  Insurers contacted by Senate professional staff generally assert that accident response fees are not covered under liability policies.  Company representatives argue that if insurers were to start paying these fees, insurance premiums will increase.

 

Overview

CS/SB 2282 creates s. 125.01045, F.S., by prohibiting counties from imposing a fee or seeking reimbursement for any costs or expenses (including personnel, supplies, motor vehicles, or equipment) incurred for services provided by a first-responder in response to a motor vehicle accident. 

This bill also creates s. 166.0446, F.S., by prohibiting municipalities from imposing a fee or seeking reimbursement for any costs or expenses (including personnel, supplies or equipment) incurred for services provided by a first-responder in response to a motor vehicle accident.

Analysis of CS/SB 2282 by Section

Section 1

• Creates s. 125.01045, F.S., which prohibits counties from imposing fees or seeking reimbursement for first-responder services, except for costs of materials to contain or clean up hazardous waste in quantities reportable to the Florida State Warning Point at the Division of Emergency Management, and costs for transportation and treatment provided by ambulance services licensed pursuant to s. 401.23(5), F.S.
• Defines “first-responder” as a law enforcement officer defined in s. 943.10, F.S., a firefighter defined in s. 633.30, F.S., or an emergency medical technician or paramedic defined in s. 401.23, F.S., who is employed by the state or a local government.  A volunteer law enforcement officer, firefighter or emergency medical technician or paramedic engaged by the state or a local government is also considered a first-responder of the state or a local government.

 

Section 2 

• Creates s. 166.0446, F.S., which prohibits municipalities from imposing fees or seeking reimbursement for first-responder services except for the costs of materials to contain or clean up hazardous waste in quantities reportable to the Florida State Warning Point at the Division of Emergency Management and costs for transportation and treatment provided by ambulance services licensed pursuant to s. 401.23(5), F.S.
• Defines “first-responder” as a law enforcement officer defined in s. 943.10, F.S., a firefighter defined in s. 633.30, F.S., or an emergency medical technician or paramedic defined in s. 401.23, F.S., who is employed by the state or a local government.  A volunteer law enforcement officer, firefighter or emergency medical technician or paramedic engaged by the state or a local government is also considered a first-responder of the state or local government.

 

Section 3 

• Provides an effective date of July 1, 2009.

 

Should you have any questions or comments, please contact Colodny Fass.

 

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