The current homeowners insurance market in Louisiana can be hard
to sort out. Post-Katrina, there are lots of claims still outstanding,
and premiums have risen astronomically. Workers at the Louisiana
Insurance Commission receive up to 15,000 complaint calls per month.
It's getting harder and harder for homeowners to find an insurance
broker that will insure them for Louisiana Home Insurance.
People who are looking for a new
house after the storm has destroyed their old ones are finding
that even after they've put down money, many companies refuse to
insure them. The insurance companies took a big hit from hurricane
damage, and they're hesitant to insure many buildings. Rates are
rising all over Louisiana as the insurance companies struggle to
spread out their losses over the whole state.
New homes are vital to keep any state growing and thriving. Because
the major companies and brokers that dominate the Louisiana insurance
market have raised premiums or even stopped writing new policies
in certain New Orleans neighborhoods, this kind of growth has slowed.
It could be in danger of stopping. For people already insured by
Louisiana insurance brokers, premiums have gone up any where from
10 percent to more than 50 percent. These increases have been called
devastating to the redevelopment of New Orleans and southern Louisiana.
Some people are still able to work
with insurance brokers. The companies have not stopped paying
claims in Louisiana. Many of them are now writing most of their
new policies in niche markets – homes
over a certain value, for instance. Louisiana residents who live
further away from the Katrina damage have an easier time getting
insurance. The choice of last resort, but still available if insurance
has been turned down elsewhere, is the state-sponsored Louisiana
Citizen's Plan. You can get your home insured through this insurance
plan if you can't find it elsewhere. But state law mandates that
it be more expensive than the marketplace average, so most people
prefer to look at private homeowners insurance first.
Looking for insurance on a new home in Louisiana right now is
difficult. If you need to do so, be sure that you can get insured
before you put down money on a house. The state plan is available
as insurance of last resort, but it can get expensive very quickly.
If you need to purchase a home in the state of Louisiana, areas
far away from New Orleans and the area affected by Hurricane Katrina
are better. You might be able to get cheaper rates there, although
the entire state has been affected by homeowners insurance rate
increases. Check with individual brokers to find out what their
policies are, so that you can avoid the trap of being unable to
get a Louisiana homeowners insurance policy. Rates are rising and
brokers are refusing to create new policies, so be careful and
make sure that you protect yourself.