Pursuant to the authority of and provisions set forth in the
Public Laws of 1978, Chapter 184, no insurance company authorized to issue fire insurance policies in this state shall pay any claims in excess of $2,500 on any property located within the Township of Jackson, unless or until the insured person submits an official certificate of search for municipal liens pursuant to N.J.S.A. 54:5-12, certifying that all taxes, assessments or other municipal liens or charges levied and assessed and due and payable against said property have been paid, or the Township of Jackson submits to said insurance company a certified copy of a resolution adopted pursuant to §
198-6 of this chapter.
The Township of Jackson hereby prohibits the payment to a claimant by any insurance company of any claim in excess of $2,500 for fire damages on any real property located within the Township of Jackson pursuant to any fire insurance policy issued or renewed after the effective date of this chapter and after the filing of this chapter with the State Commissioner of Insurance, until such time as all taxes and assessments and all other municipal liens or charges, due and payable, appearing on the official certificate of search shall have been paid, either by the owner of such property or by the insurance company pursuant to the provisions of §
198-5 of this chapter, or the Township of Jackson submits to the insurance company a copy of a resolution adopted pursuant to §
198-6 of this chapter.
It is hereby provided that no change in this chapter shall take
effect until filed with the Commissioner of Insurance of the State
of New Jersey.
The official certificate of search may, from time to time, be
altered by the bonded official responsible for preparing such certificates
in order to correct any errors or omissions or to add any municipal
liens or related charges due and payable subsequent to the preparation
of the official certificate.
Unless a resolution is received in accordance with §
198-6 of this chapter by an insurance company writing fire insurance policies in the Township of Jackson, such insurance company is hereby authorized and required, prior to the payment of any claims for fire damages in excess of $2,500, to pay to the Township of Jackson the amount of the liens appearing on the official certificate and such other recorded liens or related charges as may be certified to the insurance company; provided, however, that if an appeal is taken on the amount of any lien or charge, other than an appeal on the assessed valuation of real property pursuant to N.J.S.A. 54:3-21, the insurance company shall withhold 75% of the full amount of the lien or charge being contested pending termination of all proceedings, at which time such moneys and all interest accruing thereon at a rate paid on interest-bearing accounts in banking institutions or savings-and-loan associations in the state shall be disbursed in accordance with the final order or judgment of the court.
The Township Committee of the Township of Jackson may enter
into an agreement with the owner of any fire-damaged property authorizing
such owner to pay in full all delinquent taxes, assessments or other
municipal liens by installments pursuant to N.J.S.A. 54:5-19, or for
the redemption of the tax sale lien by installment payments pursuant
to Article 7 of Chapter 5 of Title 54 of the New Jersey Revised Statutes, if the Township Committee is satisfied that the claim
for fire damages is to be used to restore and improve the fire-damaged
property. An insurance company receiving a certified copy of a resolution
of agreement from the Township Committee of the Township of Jackson
is authorized to make full payment on the claim to the insured person.
A claim of the Township of Jackson made in accordance with the
provisions of this chapter and the aforesaid Public Laws of 1978,
Chapter 184, shall be paramount to any other claims on the proceeds
of the fire insurance policy, except the claim of a holder of a mortgage
on the fire-damaged property, where the fire insurance policy at the
time of the loss listed the mortgagee as a named insured, in which
event the claim of the mortgagee to the proceeds shall be paramount
to the municipal lien under this chapter and aforesaid public law
only to the extent of the amount due and payable to the mortgagee
under the mortgage contract.
Nothing in this chapter shall be construed:
A. To obligate an insurance company for any amount in excess of the
value of the fire insurance policy of the property or the amount of
the liability of the insurance company thereunder.
B. Except as provided in the case of appeals under §
198-5 of this chapter, to obligate the insurance company for any liens not appearing on the official certificate or any certified changes submitted by the bonded official.
C. To affect the authority of the Township of Jackson to enforce a municipal
lien under any other law of this state.
In addition to the standard provisions for fire insurance policies
set forth in Section 6 of P.L. 1954, c. 268 (N.J.S.A. 17:36-5.20),
every fire insurance policy issued on property situated in the Township
of Jackson shall be subject to the provisions of this chapter and
the aforesaid Public Laws of 1978, Chapter 184.