Louisiana Commissioner Directs Agents to Notify Citizens Policyholders of Less Expensive Policy Offers

A recent directive issued by Louisiana Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon orders agents to notify their Louisiana Citizen policyholders when they receive an offer to be placed with a significantly less expensive insurer in the private market.

Donelon issued Directive 222 on September 7, advising all property and casualty producers of the ongoing round of depopulation from Citizens, the insurer of last resort.

September 22 is the final date for agents to authorize Citizens policies for take-out during the current round of depopulation.

Commissioner Donelon also recently mailed notices to Citizens policyholders across the state who have received offers to be taken out of Citizens but who have not been authorized for take-out by their agents. The notice encourages these policyholders to contact their agent if they wish to have their policy taken out of Citizens, the Louisiana Department of Insurance (LDI) said in a statement.

“While there may be legitimate reasons to reject an offer for removal from Citizens, Citizens policyholders have the absolute right to make informed decisions about their insurance coverage,” Commissioner Donelon said. “They can’t do that if their agents don’t tell them about the opportunity to save significant dollars on their premium costs by getting out of Citizens.”

In the current round of depopulation, SafePoint Insurance Company identified more than 19,000 policies that were approved for take-out by Citizens, but agents authorized the take-out of fewer than 8,000 of those policies, LDI said.

Source: LDI

Photo: Dark clouds hang over Bradley Lane after a tornado destroyed several mobile homes in the area, Wednesday, Dec. 14, 2022, in New Iberia, La. (Leslie Westbrook/The Times-Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate via AP)

Topics Agencies Louisiana