[Adopted 9-8-1994 as Ord. No. 1994-8]
No insurance company authorized to issue fire insurance policies in this state shall pay any claims in excess of $2,500 on any real property located within the Township of Chesterfield unless or until the insured person or entity 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, including any and all demolition costs incurred by the municipality, levied and assessed and due and payable against said property have been paid, or secures a certified copy of a resolution adopted pursuant to §
126-4 of this article.
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 §
126-4 of this article by the insurance company writing the fire insurance policy on property in the Township of Chesterfield, such insurance company is hereby directed and required, prior to the payment of any claims for fire damages in excess of $2,500, to pay to the township 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 in the state shall be disbursed in accordance with the final order or judgment of the court.
The governing body of the Township of Chesterfield
may enter into agreement with the owner of any fire-damaged property
to pay in full all delinquent taxes, assessments or other municipal
liens or charges 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 VII, Chapter 5, Title 54, of the Revised Statutes if the
governing body of the Township of Chesterfield is satisfied that the
claim for fire damages is to be used to restore or improve the fire-damaged
property. An insurance company receiving a certified copy of a resolution
of agreement from the governing body is authorized to make full payment
on the claim to the insured person or entity.
A municipal claim made in accordance with the
provisions of this article shall be paramount to any other claims
on the proceeds of the fire insurance policy, except the claim of
the 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 article only to
the extent of the amount due and payable to the mortgagee under the
mortgage documents.
This article is adopted under and in accordance
with P.L. 1978, c. 184, Section 1 et seq. (N.J.S.A. 17:36-8 et seq.),
and any amendments and supplements thereto and any regulations promulgated
pursuant thereto, and anything herein contained to the contrary shall
be controlled by said legislative enactment and regulations.
[Adopted 12-29-2022 by Ord. No. 2022-19]
This section implements the provisions of P.L. 2022, c. 92,
requiring business owners, owners of rental units, and owners of owner-occupied
multifamily units to maintain certain liability insurance minimums,
and requiring the creation of a municipal business insurance registry.
Upon satisfaction of the registration requirements in §
126-9, the Township Clerk shall issue a certificate of registration to the owner. This certificate of registration shall act as proof of compliance with this article. A certificate of registration shall be valid for one calendar year from the date of issuance.
If an owner fails to maintain the required level of insurance
or fails to file annual registration, the Township may impose a fine
against the owner of not less than $500 but no more than $5,000 by
way of summary proceeding pursuant to N.J.S.A. 2A:58-10.