LA INSURANCE SPECIAL SESSION- Louisiana continues to be plagued by insurance woes, with insurers leaving or going out of business in the hurricane-stricken state. Appearing before the Joint Budget Committee last Friday, Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon explained the current state of Louisiana’s insurance marketplace to lawmakers.
“We’re experiencing the worst homeowners insurance market since hurricanes Katrina and Rita hit our state in 2005,” Donelon said. “Eight insurers have failed, three of those domiciled in Louisiana, four in Florida and one in the District of Columbia. Many others have stopped writing new business because of the 2020 and 2021 hurricane seasons and the man-made property insurance disaster in Florida that impact us significantly.”
Donelon recommended lawmakers convene for a special session to focus on solving the state’s property insurance crisis and wants the Legislature to re-establish insurance incentive programs as previously done in the past and to allocate at least $45 million into a newly created incentive fund aimed at luring insurance firms to the state.
Donelson said there are companies interested in providing insurance to Louisiana property owners if such an incentive program is funded and implemented. On Sunday Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards called for a special legislative session to address the state’s property insurance crisis. The gathering is set to begin Jan. 30th and end no later than Feb. 5th.
