Irresponsible Laws Proposed by La. Legislators

Thursday, April 11th, 2012
Baton Rouge, Louisiana

LOUISIANA’S “GIVE THE CRIMINALS PLENTY OF NOTICE” LAW!

There’s a great new edict that’s about to become law in my home state of Louisiana. It’s called the GTCPTG statute. Short for, “Give the Criminals plenty of time to get away.” Louisiana legislators and the state’s insurance department are working overtime to assure that the Bayou State continues to hold the title of the country’s most expensive state in which to buy insurance.

Two noble goals have been set in the state’s capitol in Baton Rouge. First, pass new laws to be absolutely sure that automobile insurance rates keep going up. And second, pass other laws that stop property owners from asserting legal claims against the state run property insurance company. There is certainly a great deal at stake, and it looks like state legislators and insurance officials will stop at nothing in order to maintain the state’s number one position of having the highest auto and property rates in America. Way to go, guys.

There’s a saying has been around the Baton Rouge state capitol for years -- “Hold on to your wallets…the legislature’s in session, and they’re about to stick it to you.” There has never been a more appropriate time for such an admonition. In the 40 years plus that I have spent around the legislative and regulatory process in Louisiana, as a legislator, a statewide official, an insurance regulator, and as a political observer, I cannot recall a time when policy holders have been so maligned, and the interests of the public at large have been so disregarded.

First up is the “give the law breakers notice” legislation that is simply incredible. The proposed law, which has already passed the House of Representatives, requires police agencies to alert the public and give advance notice before they can set up check points to stop and apprehend drunk drivers, uninsured drivers, and cars with expired inspection stickers. Can you imagine how fast the word would spread by social media, like Twitter, when other drivers see a check point being set up?

Drunk drivers are the cause of more than half the serious injuries and deaths on Louisiana roadways. Drinking and driving uninsured are major reasons for Louisiana having the highest insurance rates in the country. Where is the logic of alerting law breakers that a traffic stop is close at hand? One can just picture the drunk driver both laughing and weaving down the road as he takes a side street to avoid the check point.

And why give notice to drunks who can kill you and uninsured drivers who can send your insurance rates through the roof? How about the drug dealers in high crime neighborhoods? Do we give them notice that a bust is close at hand? How about the state giving advance warning before any criminal arrest is about to be made. Breaking the law is, well, breaking the law. Why give those who willfully violate the law plenty of advanced warning?

The merciless suffering being piled on Louisiana policy holders does not stop at the, “Give the Criminals Notice” legislation. Some 18, 000 Louisiana property owners, who put their trust in both the legislature and insurance officials are being denied legitimate claims by the very officials who were elected to protect them. It’s the long running and very sad saga of the Louisiana Citizens Property Insurance Company.

Citizens was supposed to be the insurer of last resort, the lifeline for homeowners living in high risk areas. Instead, it has become the most dysfunctional agency in state government. It was a disaster waiting to happen from its very inception. Created by the Louisiana Legislature at the behest of the Insurance Department, Citizens was one of the most poorly constructed business operations ever conceived by a state legislature. With no capital and no surplus available to get the company started on a sound financial footing, Citizens was broke from day one. Almost immediately it became obvious that no one at Citizens had the slightest idea of how to run an insurance company.

Just last week, the Louisiana Supreme Court ruled that Citizens will be stuck with a judgment approaching $125 million. Because state run Citizens is broke and well over one billion dollars in debt, every other property owner in the state is required, by Louisiana law to bail out the incompetent actions of this company, a company that never should have been formed in the first place. To add insult to injury, and rub more salt in the wounds of unpaid property owners, Citizens continues to drag out any settlement by filing a quixotic appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court that has absolutely no chance of even being granted a hearing. In the meantime, in pursuit of this totally futile appeal, there are lawyers to hire at a cost huge additional cost, that policy holders across the state will end up paying.

Instead of calling for a full investigation and coming to the aid of the abused policyholders, some legislators, at the bidding of Citizens, are offering legislation to prohibit any judgment against this contemptible company, and showing even more contempt for the public by making such a law retroactive. That’s right. Draft this proposed law so as to stop cold any effort by those who have been ripped off by Citizens from receiving one penny. If the legislature will not come to the defense of these abused policyholders, hopefully there will be a courageous prosecutor out there who will say, “enough is enough,” and begin a criminal investigation.

One of the major problems facing Louisiana insurance policy holders is that, unlike most states, there is no independent consumer protection office to challenge regulators or legislators. In many states, such a policy protector is allowed to go into court and challenge the actions of companies like Citizens, as well as challenge regulators and legislators that act irresponsibly. But in Louisiana, as in the case of Citizens, the policyholder is not only on his own, but is forced to fight insurance regulators in court.

The high cost of insurance in Louisiana is a major reason why competing states are drawing ahead in so many economic sectors. Louisiana just cannot compete because of the high cost of insurance. Louisiana homeowners and businesses are paying some $3 billion more in insurance premiums than the national per capita average -- more than twice the amount paid by citizens in any other southern state. THREE BILLION DOLLARS MORE! Think what an additional $3 billion saved and poured back into the Louisiana economy would mean to the economic vitality and quality of life in the state.

Hopefully, there will be some legislators with the backbone to stand up to these bureaucrats who would seem to have little concern for, and even contempt for the public interest. If not, the Bayou State will continue to languish at the bottom, and its citizens can wear the pin that says: “Louisiana: We know how to Stick it to us!

*******

“It’s not hurricanes that are causing high insurance rates, but bad government policy,”

Policy analyst Michelle Minton

Peace and Justice

Jim Brown

Jim Brown’s syndicated column appears each week in numerous newspapers throughout the nation and on websites worldwide. You can read all his past columns and see continuing updates by Clicking here. You can also hear Jim’s nationally syndicated radio show each Sunday morning from 9 am till 11:00 am, central time, on the Genesis Radio Network, with a live stream at http://www.jimbrownusa.com.

Insurance Rates Skyrocket in Louisiana!

Thursday, March 15th, 2012
Baton Rouge, Louisiana

LOUISIANA -- WHERE BEING NUMBER ONE IS BAD NEWS!

My home state of Louisiana again has the distinction of having the most expensive auto insurance rates in the nation. Forbes magazine just released national figures indicating that not only do Louisiana’s drivers pay more than drivers in any other state in the country, but the costs are higher by a wide margin.

The figures that rank Louisiana number one show that the average cost to insure a car for a Louisiana driver is $2536. That’s almost $500 dollars more than Oklahoma, the next highest state, which comes in at $2047. In Alabama, drivers pay an average of $1345. In Arkansas, the figure is $1334. Our neighbors in Mississippi pay $1502. Texas comes in a little higher than the southern average at $1661, but it’s still considerably cheaper to drive a car there than in the Bayou State. Louisiana drivers pay double the average insurance cost throughout the south.

These rankings are nothing new. Louisiana has led the country in high rates for the past decade. And the root causes are the same. Too many drunk drivers, uninsured drives, unskilled drivers, poor roads and a lack of strong regulation. The Louisiana legislature kicked off its 2012 session just this week. One would think that with such an insurance cost drain on the state populace, there would be numerous proposals to address the long list of causation. But those paying the highest rates in the nation should not get their hopes up.

These rankings are nothing new. Louisiana has led the country in high rates for the past decade. And the root causes have not changed -- too many drunk drivers, uninsured drives, unskilled drivers, poor roads and a lack of strong regulation. The Louisiana legislature kicked off its 2012 session just this week. One would think that with such an insurance cost drain on the state populace, there would be numerous proposals to address the long list of causation. But Louisiana drivers should not get their hopes up.

Drunk driving seems to be at an all time high. Louisiana is known worldwide for partying and drinking at all hours of the day and night. The local chant is le ze la bon ton roulette -- let the good times roll. A friend was visiting from out west and was astounded to see drive through daiquiri shops open all night long. The results of this lax “drinking and driving” attitude shows up in the accident statistics. Over 50% of all serious injuries and deaths in auto accidents involve drunk drivers.

Just days ago in the New Orleans area, a fellow was arrested for his 8th DWI. No, that’s not make a mistake. The 8th. What happened at 3 or 4 or 5 or 6 when one would expect that someone would say, “Hey, something’s wrong here. Enough is enough. Get this guy off the road.” And what about the driver just north of New Orleans who was charged with his 4th DWI in the past five months, alone?

The state police, to their credit, maintain a statewide data base for all criminal charges and convictions. But the data is only as good as its maintenance, and a number of local law enforcement jurisdictions do not keep the information current. Charges slip through the cracks, and this is why a driver can get multiple DWIs and still get behind the wheel to drive drunk again, and be a menace to us all.

State laws mandate jail time, the loss of license, and mandatory sale of the driver’s vehicle in the case of the third offense DWI. Unfortunately, these provisions are rarely enforced in many local courts. When the information is there, and the driver is convicted, under the law he should pay the price, but all too often, he doesn’t. It comes down to inconsistent enforcement.

Another factor contributing to Louisiana’s highest in the nation insurance rates: Louisiana has a large number of uninsured drivers. But Louisiana Insurance officials will tell you that only 10 to 15% of Louisiana drivers are uninsured. But the actual percentage of uninsured drivers is much higher according to the insurance industry authorities. And State troopers readily acknowledge that the number of uninsured drivers is above 30%.

That means that it is a necessity to carry uninsured motorist coverage that often is more than one third of the total premium cost. The legislature in Louisiana compounded the problem last year by passing a law stopping the impoundment of vehicles that are not insured. So the numbers of the uninsured continue to increase and will likely cause the Louisiana driver’s premium to increase even more.

Here’s another list where Louisiana is number one. The National Car Insurance Comparison guide was just released, and surprise, surprise --The Bayou State leads the nation in lousy drivers. There is an insubstantial early driver training system in place, with few high schools even offering driver’s education. Kids tell me that many of the private courses are a joke, with plenty of texting and playing video games, little training, and no final exam. The same study listed Louisiana in a tie with Montana as the most dangerous place to drive in the United States.

Road conditions? Still, yet, another first place prize. Reader’s Digest recently listed Louisiana as having the worst roads in America. Where we gonna’ store all these trophies? What about the state capitol in Baton Rouge, the home of all the legislators who have played the major roles in earning such a stellar record?

Lobbyists and close observers of the legislative scene do not expect any significant insurance reforms to come out of this current legislative session. So, for the time being, Louisiana is secure in holding down the number one spot in virtually every category of bad news for those who were hoping for insurance rates to come down. At the state capitol, there is definitely a way. But for now, there is just no will.

******
“If you think nobody cares if you're alive, try missing a couple of car insurance payments.“ ~Earl Wilson

Peace and Justice

Jim Brown

Jim Brown’s syndicated column appears each week in numerous newspapers and websites throughout the country. You can read past columns and see continuing updates at www.jimbrownusa.com. You can also hear Jim’s nationally syndicated radio show each Sunday morning from 9 am till 11:00 am, central time, on the Genesis Radio Network, with a live stream at http://www.jimbrownusa.com.

Huge Insurance Problems in Louisiana!

Thursday, December 22nd, 2011
Baton Rouge, Louisiana

LOUISIANA PROPERTY OWNERS FACE
ANOTHER STATE CREATED FINANCIAL DISASTER!

Merry Christmas Louisiana. Here’s your present from the public officials you sent to the state capitol. A big boost in your property insurance premiums! All from the same folks who have been sticking you with higher rates for years because of their poor oversight and downright incompetence. So get out your checkbook and enjoy your holidays. More increases are on the way.

Just two weeks ago, State Farm policy holders were blindsided with a whopping rate increase of as much as 14% in some parts of the state. Many customers are wondering why there was such a rate increase was implemented. The economy has stagnated, there is little inflation, and prices across the board are down. Insurance rates are dropping in many other states, but Louisiana continues to have the highest premium costs in the nation. There have been no recent serious weather related damages throughout the state. So how can an insurance company justify a rate increase during this troubling economic climate? Simply put, they did it because they can.

In the majority of states throughout the U.S., insurance companies have to file a request to raise rates before the insurance department. Actuaries and other insurance officials scrutinize these requests to be sure the rate request is justified. But not in Louisiana!

The insurance industry did some heavy lobbying a few years back and poured hundreds of thousands of dollars into the coffers of willing legislators and insurance regulators. And Voila! No more prior approval to raise rates required. Such “sweetheart deals” do not exist in Texas, Mississippi, Arkansas and in virtually no other state throughout the south. And guess what? Property insurance rates are much lower outside Louisiana.

So that was the bad news two weeks ago. But now, if you own a home, here’s your New Year’s present. Every property owner in the state is about to be stuck with yet another assessment on their property because of the incompetence and outright fraud on the part of those who both formed and have run the state created Citizens Property Insurance Company.

Just last week, the Louisiana Supreme Court ruled that Citizens will be stuck with a judgment approaching $100 million for failing to pay claims to property owners following Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in a timely manner. Private sector companies followed the law and paid the money owed for damages appropriately. But the incompetence and tardiness of the public officials in charge rose to the level of mismanagement. The requirements that other companies complied with were ignored by Citizens.

Following the court’s ruling, Fred Herman, the New Orleans attorney for a large number of unpaid homeowners, blasted the public officials in charge by saying, “It demonstrates the utter and abject failure of Citizens to perform their statutory and contractual obligations to their insureds… Those are the types of things that people need to understand when they’re re-electing them.”

And the bad news for Louisiana homeowners could get much worse. There is a separate claim of incompetence against Citizens by 10,000 more homeowners that could cost property owners an additional $50 million. And this money, that could exceed $150 million, does not come out of the state treasury. It will come from an assessment on every Louisiana property owner, regardless of who his insurance company might be.

Citizens Insurance Company was a disaster waiting to happen from its very inception. Created by the Louisiana Legislature at the behest of the Insurance Department, Citizens had to be one of the most poorly constructed business operations ever conceived by a state legislature. The company was broke from day one, with no capital and no surplus available to get Citizens started on a sound financial footing. It became obvious early on that no one at Citizens had any idea of how to run an insurance company.

In addition, a mother’s mantra of any successful insurance company is that there must be adequate reinsurance. There must be a safety net in case a storm like Katrina comes along. The legislature and the insurance department failed to require that Citizens have sufficient reinsurance, and that single negligent decision stuck every policy holder in the state for a bill that will far exceed $1 billion. By virtually every standard that any private insurance company must measure up to, Citizens has failed miserably.

Citizens was a inauspicious cataclysm from day one. With these massive new assessments now being saddled on the backs of Louisiana property owners, the Citizens debacle continues to get even worse. The best solution would be to shut the company down completely. At a minimum, Citizens needs major restructuring with more requirements for both legislative and auditor oversight.

Unfortunately for those stuck with the bill, there seems to be little concern at the state capitol to straighten out this publically created disaster that continues to fester and grow.
*****
“It’s not hurricanes that are causing high insurance rates, but bad government policy,”
Policy analyst Michelle Minton

Peace and Justice.

Jim Brown

Jim Brown’s syndicated column appears each week in numerous newspapers and websites throughout the South. You can read all his past columns and see continuing updates at www.jimbrownusa.com. You can also hear Jim’s nationally syndicated radio show each Sunday morning from 9 am till 11:00 am, central time, on the Genesis Radio Network, with a live stream at http://www.jimbrownusa.com.

Major Insurance Problems on the Gulf Coast!

Thursday, April 28, 2011
Baton Rouge, Louisiana

LOUISIANA AND FLORIDA--
NIGHT AND DAY ON PROPERTY INSURANCE!

All this week, Florida’s largest newspaper, the Miami Herald, has been writing both feature articles and editorials about the problems facing Florida property owners in finding affordable insurance. Day after day, headlines conveyed the intensity of the struggle -- “Storm Warning: Prop up Insurance,” was a typical lead, along with, “Is Citizens Insurance ready for the big one?” and “Lawmakers still scrambling on wind insurance.” Florida, like all gulf coast states, has problems of both insurance affordability and availability. But here’s the difference between the Sunshine state and the Bayou state. Florida is giving the problem serious attention. It’s a front and center concern for the governor, the legislature, insurance regulators, and the news media. In Louisiana where I live, there is hardly a whisper.

When Florida Governor Rick Scott took office a few months ago, his first words of commitment were: “The lack of available and affordable property insurance is the biggest threat to our economy.“ Just this week, Scott began exploring how to sharply curtail or even shut down the state’s Citizens Property Insurance Company. The Miami Herald editorialized just last week that the Florida legislature should allow no more property insurance rates in the state. The Florida governor and the legislature are taking the insurance problem head-on.

Florida has significantly more hurricane exposure than does Louisiana. Ninety percent of all homeowners live within a few miles of the Gulf or the Atlantic Ocean. A hurricane crossing the Florida peninsula slows down, at best, only 15 miles per hour. Yet in spite of all this exposure, property insurance rates are cheaper in Florida than in Louisiana. In Perdido Key, on the Florida-Alabama border, many Louisianans have beach homes or condos. On average, they pay significantly less on these properties than they do on their homes in New Orleans, Baton Rouge and other Louisiana cities. Property insurance rates for commercial real estate have gone down, somewhere in the neighborhood of 30% to 40%, according realtor Steve Ekovich of the Tampa office of Marcus & Millichap, and insurance is more available.

Look at the figures released by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. In Louisiana, for every $100 of residential property insurance, the homeowner paid, on average, $1.006. In Florida, a similar homeowner paid only 69.3 cents. Louisiana has, hands down, the most expensive property insurance rates in the entire U.S. Yet Florida has much more exposure. Why?

Simply put, Florida officials, from the Governor on down, have made insurance affordability a front burner issue. In Louisiana, it has been little more than a blip on the radar. The Louisiana legislature began meeting just this week, and newspapers across the state ran stories listing the state’s top issues and concerns. Insurance wasn’t mentioned. Louisiana is a state with the highest automobile and property insurance rates in the entire comity, yet not one solution was suggested by Louisiana insurance officials or legislators.

Like Louisiana, Florida has a Citizens Property Insurance Company that is state created and sells to those homeowners who cannot find insurance anywhere else. The difference is in legislative support. From day one, the Florida Company has received state funds on a regular basis to build up reserves. By properly managing the company, Florida Citizens has almost $ 4 billion in cash in the bank to pay claims. There is also in place a bank line of credit and proceeds from municipal bonds that put total available funds at close to $7 billion.

Florida has also created a Hurricane Catastrophe Fund to back up and reinsurance losses for both Citizens and other private insurance companies operating in the state. This year, Citizens purchased nearly $9.8 billion in coverage. So all tolled, the Florida state created company has the ability to handle claims of up to $16.8 billion.

So how does Louisiana stack up? Well, for starters, due to inept and corrupt management before Katrina hit, no back up funds were arranged, and Katrina and Rita claims now exceed well over $1 billion. There was only minor reinsurance in place when the two major storms hit in 2005. The company was recently tagged with a $95 million legal judgment for failing to pay claims on time, and the former CEO is serving time in jail for misappropriating for his personal use hundreds of thousands of dollars. There is no wonder why the company, created by the legislature and overseen by the Insurance Department, has been called the biggest financial disaster in Louisiana history.

There have been eight major hurricanes that have hit Florida since their legislature created Citizens. Yet 40 new companies have come into Florida to sell property insurance, and ten of their companies sell windstorm coverage right along the most exposed areas of the Florida coast. But to qualify for the available insurance in these storm-prone areas, strict building code requirements are in place. The roofs of such insured homes must have been updated since 1996. And all window protection, including required shutters, must meet specific state and local regulations.
Has Florida solved its property insurance problems? Hardly. Increasing costs and continuing hurricane exposure makes any effort to control insurance rates all the more challenging.

The difference between Florida and Louisiana is one of effort and priorities. The Florida Insurance Commissioner is lobbying hard for a national catastrophic program for gulf coast states. Florida congressmen are pushing a number of programs in Washington. The legislature meets regularly to discuss insurance issues, and Governor Scott makes no bones about the fact that insurance issues will be at the top of his legislative agenda.

There is a proactive effort in Florida to protect consumers. Here’s what the Miami Herald said this week about current Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty: “He has not hesitated to take on the insurance industry when he thought consumers were being scalped.” The new House Speaker said this week that property insurance issues are of huge concern to Florida legislators. “This is a very complex issue and I hope we see some solid solutions come forth, but it won’t be easy,” he said.

No, it won’t be easy, but there seems to be a major good faith effort by Florida officials to keep affordable insurance front and center. In Louisiana, property insurance issues have faded away and are barely a blip on the perennial screen, with little comment or concern expressed by any public official. So is it any wonder why Louisiana property owners continue to pay the highest rates in the nation?

Louisiana business and homeowners, when you look across the board at all the higher insurance costs they are absorbing, are paying some $3 billion more than if they were paying the national average of such costs. Think what an additional $3 billion in the Louisiana economy would mean to the economic vitality of the state. So why isn’t more being done by Louisiana officials? A good question to be asking as election season approaches.
*****

“It’s not hurricanes that are causing high insurance rates, but bad government policy,”
Policy analyst Michelle Minton
Peace and Justice.

Jim Brown

Jim Brown’s syndicated column appears each week in numerous newspapers and websites throughout the South. You can read all his past columns and see continuing updates at www.jimbrownusa.com. You can also hear Jim’s nationally syndicated radio show each Sunday morning from 9 am till 11:00 am, central time, on the Genesis Radio Network, with a live stream at http://www.jimbrownusa.com.

Not Insurance Relief from Louisiana Legislature

Thursday June 11, 2009
New Orleans, Louisiana

LOUISIANA HURRICANE SEASON
DO YOU FEEL LUCKY? WELL DO YA?

A dangerous hurricane season this year? Forecasters are predicting nine to 14 named tropical storms with four to seven of them expected to be hurricanes. And three could be major. Or as Dirty Harry would say: 44 Magnum hurricanes, the most powerful hurricanes in the world. So what is the Louisiana Legislature doing to give homeowners protection and relief? Nothing. It’s every homeowner for themselves. So the only question you can ask is, do you feel lucky?

Thought out the gulf south, other states are scurrying to develop legislative strategies to hold the line on rising property insurance costs. In South Carolina, a number of new initiatives passed the legislature including the establishment of catastrophe savings accounts that are tax free, allowing new self-insured procedures for homeowners, and giving tax credits to those who make their homes more storm resistant. Georgia has beefed up its state property insurance association of last resort with the purchase of reinsurance to cover any major disaster.

Alabama is following the South Carolina model mandating companies to give cheaper premiums in exchange for structural improvements to homes. Mississippi is using federal funds to bolster their state run insurance company of last resort, so as to keep insurance rates down. Some $25 million in federal dollars were also obtained in initial funding for the state‘s wind damage mitigation program. Homeowners can get up to 75% of the cost of such improvements, and once the work is done, a significant reduction in premium costs, as much as 50%, is the immediate result.

Texas has adopted a long list of changes in recent years, and recently bolstered its windstorm insurance program to cover damages exceeding one billion dollars. What this means is that Bermuda reinsurers pay the bill instead of Texans. Taxpayers in Texas don’t get stuck like they do in Louisiana. Just last week, Texas legislators became so incensed at the lack of effort by the Texas Insurance Department to lower rates that they voted to abolish the entire department. A special session will have to be called by the governor, but lawmakers made no bones about their desire to get property rates reduced.

Florida Governor Charlie Crist, who has made insurance reform a front burner issue since the day he took office, continues to push an aggressive insurance agenda. Several years ago, Florida formed a Hurricane Catastrophe Fund that offered cheap backup coverage or reinsurance to private insurers. Since then, 40 new companies have flocked to Florida. Louisiana legislators keep hands off any such changes. The result? Just last week, the AAA Insurance group announced they were pulling out of Louisiana, becoming the latest company to do so.

Florida also brought in Warren Buffett’s company Berkshire Hathaway to develop a plan for responding to a massive hurricane hit. Buffett’s firm has pledged up to $ 4billion in state bonds if such a disaster would take place. Florida too has a Citizens Property Insurance Company. But while Louisiana’s similar company continually has raised their rates to the highest in the country, Florida legislators has frozen any such rate increase for at least the next three years.

What can be seen here is an aggressive approach by legislators and insurance departments all along the gulf coast to mitigate exposure, provide back up for private companies, and offer reinsurance to the private insurance market. But there is one exception, and that’s here in Louisiana. The legislature in the Bayou state is now in session, and so far, only two insurance proposals of any significance are making their way through the process. First, there exists a fund of some $100 million to attract new insurance companies to the state. The idea has proven to be a mistake and the present law says the leftover money, some $70 million, is to be refunded to policyholders. Paid back to you as a homeowner. Not so say current legislators. They are diverting this money back to the general fund, breaking their promise to the policy holders of the state.

The other proposal working its way through the process involves complicated legislation affecting take out companies that sell property insurance in south Louisiana. Bottom line is that under this new proposed law, many homeowners will see their yearly premiums rise by as much as 20%. So the best you can expect in Louisiana is to lose your promised refund and see your insurance rates go up. That’s it. Nothing else. NO creative thinking or even an effort to copy a number of good, working proposals in other gulf coast states.
So how do rates compare along the gulf coast when data is rev

iewed that is supplied by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners? In the latest figures available, Louisiana policyholders paid 3.31 percent of the state’s household median income for a homeowner’s insurance policy, the most expensive in the country. This was almost 40% higher than the nationwide average. Along the gulf coast, Florida pays 3.16%, Mississippi pays 2.81%, Alabama is at 2.31%and South Carolina comes in at 2.05%

When you look at the comparisons figures or cost per $100 of residential property insurance, Louisiana property owners again lead the nation by paying an average $1.006. Texas comes in second highest at 93.9 cents, Mississippi paid 79.8 cents, Alabama paid 71.5 cents and Florida paid only 69.3 cents. That’s right. Florida, the state that Louisiana insurance officials and legislators dismiss as being too pro active, is at the bottom of the gulf south list while continuing to attract new insurance companies to the Sunshine state.

Louisiana continues to have the highest property insurance rates in the country, and makes less effort by far than any other gulf coast state to get skyrocketing premiums under control. If another major hurricane hit the state, affordable rates would become, for most homeowners, nonexistent. About the best you can hope for during this hurricane season in Louisiana is to keep your fingers crossed and ask the basic question: “Do I feel lucky?”

Well do ya?
********

“The threat of hurricanes and the Ku Klux Klan; those two things made me decide not to build on the Alabama coast.” Writer Shelby Foote

Peace and Justice
Jim Brown

Jim’s syndicated column appears weekly in numerous newspapers and websites throughout the south. You can read all his back columns by going to www.jimbrownla,.com.