MATTER OF CASE v. State Ins. Fund
This opinion addresses the strict observance required for workers' compensation insurance cancellation, noting that failure to prove strict compliance does not automatically renew a policy indefinitely if both parties demonstrate an intent not to renew. In the instant case, the employer, Mattituck, had not paid premiums since September 1972 and received actual notice of policy cancellation years prior to a decedent's death, making no effort to renew or acquire a new policy. Although the State Insurance Fund could not prove strict service of the cancellation notice due to file destruction, the uncontroverted evidence of non-renewal rendered the Fund's lack of strict compliance without effect. Consequently, the Appellate Division's decision that the carrier is not liable was affirmed.