After
complaints
from
a
gay
legal
group,
insurance
provider
GEICO
Direct
said
this
week
it
would
reverse
a
decision
made
earlier
this
month
to
deny
a
married
gay
couple
in
New
York
the
same
joint
coverage
offered
to
married
straight
couples.
GEICO,
the
Government
Employees
Insurance
Company
recognizable
by
its
green
gecko
mascot,
will
extend
spousal
automobile
coverage
to
the
husband
of
Thomas
Hronrich,
according
to
Christine
Tasher,
a
spokesperson
for
GEICO.
“We
are
processing
the
change,”
Tasher
said
in
a
written
statement
issued
June
16.
“The
papers
are
going
out
in
the
mail
in
the
morning,
and
we
spoke
to
the
policyholder
this
afternoon.”
Lambda
Legal,
the
gay
legal
organization
that
approached
GEICO
on
June
14
to
represent
Hronrich
and
his
partner
and
to
pursue
spousal
rights
for
all
gay
couples
at
GEICO,
had
not
received
notification
from
GEICO
concerning
the
policy
change
at
press
time
Wednesday.
“We
commend
GEICO
in
respecting
the
Hronrich’s
marriage,
but
we
still
need
to
review
their
statement
to
determine
if
it
will
respect
marriage
for
all
similarly
situated
same-sex
couples,”
said
Alfonso
David,
staff
attorney
for
Lambda
Legal.
GEICO
should
have
initially
accepted
the
Canadian
marriage
license
issued
to
the
couple
when
they
asked
in
May,
David
said.
“The
law
in
New
York
is
a
recognition
law
and
it
is
pretty
clear
that
if
you
are
married
in
a
jurisdiction
where
gay
marriage
is
legal,
it
must
be
respected
in
New
York,”
David
said.
New
York
Attorney
General
Elliot
Spitzer
gave
credence
to
that
argument
in
a
March
opinion,
stating
that
New
York
law
recognizes
gay
marriages
legally
performed
in
other
jurisdictions.
Lambda
Legal
set
a
deadline
of
June
28
for
GEICO
to
change
Hronrich’s
policy,
as
well
as
direct
employees
to
offer
matrimonial
policies
to
same-sex
couples
in
New
York
with
marriage
licenses
from
Canada
or
Massachusetts.
GEICO’s
policy
includes
gay
couples,
according
to
a
statement
issued
by
the
company
on
Wednesday.
“If
the
individuals
are
legally
married
and
their
resident
state
recognizes
that
marriage
as
valid,
then
GEICO’s
policy
is
to
treat
the
couple
as
married,”
the
statement
said.
Earlier
this
month,
GEICO
treated
two
gay
couples
differently.
The
company
denied
spousal
rates
and
coverage
to
Hronrich
and
his
husband,
who
asked
to
remain
anonymous.
But
another
same-sex
couple
married
in
Canada
and
residing
in
New
York,
Martin
and
Andrew
Farach-Colton,
received
policies
and
benefits
similar
to
those
granted
to
straight,
married
couples.
Customer
service
representatives
with
GEICO
provided
the
two
couples
with
mixed
messages
when
they
initially
asked
about
spousal
coverage
in
May,
David
said.
Martin
and
Andrew
Farach-Colton
had
to
submit
Spitzer’s
legal
opinion
at
least
five
times
before
GEICO
expanded
their
coverage,
David
said.
Lambda
has
not
received
complaints
about
insurance
companies
from
gay
couples
married
in
Massachusetts
who
reside
in
another
state,
he
said.
As
a
result
of
strict
insurance
regulations
in
the
state
of
Massachusetts,
several
large
providers
do
not
offer
auto
insurance
in
the
state,
including
GEICO,
Allstate
and
State
Farm
Insurance.
Allstate
and
State
Farm
—
two
of
the
largest
auto
insurers
in
the
nation
—
both
comply
with
applicable
state
laws,
according
to
company
officials.
State
Farm
is
in
the
process
of
reviewing
the
impact
of
same-sex
marriage
laws
on
the
company’s
policies,
Supple
said.
Allstate
is
not
reviewing
policies
at
this
time,
said
Laura
Margolis,
a
company
spokesperson.
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