Tesla’s attempt to bring its auto insurance program to New York has hit a regulatory roadblock.

Tesla General Insurance filed to establish a new auto program in New York, with a requested effective date of December 31, 2026. The filing was submitted July 17 and disapproved on August 3.

The proposed program was built around Tesla’s telematics approach. Premiums could change monthly based on annualized mileage, Safety Score and use of FSD (Supervised). Tesla proposed using actual driving behavior in place of traditional proxies such as violations and accidents.

The problem was eligibility.

At launch, Tesla planned to restrict the program to qualified Tesla vehicles, primarily vehicles delivered directly by Tesla, with other Tesla vehicles in the household eligible to be added to the policy. Tesla argued that its experience showed a meaningful pure-premium difference between vehicles tied to a new Tesla delivery and standalone used Teslas.

New York rejected that structure. DFS said it does not approve insurance programs specific to a vehicle manufacturer or vehicle type. It also objected to Tesla’s telematics system because it was capable of collecting driving information only from Tesla vehicles. According to the regulator, a program using manufacturer vehicle data must also provide a way for owners of other vehicles to participate, such as through a smartphone app or plug-in device. DFS also said the proposal conflicted with New York’s prohibition on tie-in sales.

Tesla Insurance is currently available in 15 states — Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Minnesota, Nevada, Ohio, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas, Utah and Virginia — with its real-time telematics program offered in every market except California.

Bottom Line: The regulatory fix isn’t straightforward: New York is objecting to two features at the core of Tesla Insurance — Tesla-only eligibility and Tesla-native telematics.