| Louisiana House Bills 1289 and 1302 Insurance Claims Deadline Extensions |
| Thursday, 13 July 2006 | |
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The Governor of Louisiana has signed into law HB 1289 and HB 1302. These bills allow for more time to file insurance claims or lawsuits associated with hurricanes Katrina and Rita. This legislation advanced even though many insurers were voluntarily complying with a directive from Louisiana Dept. of Insurance Commissioner Donelon not to strictly enforce the normal 12-month prescriptive period. HB 1289 provides that an insurance contract delivered or issued in the State of Louisiana cannot contain limitations on the right of action against the insurer of less than twelve months after the date of loss. The bill also provides that the right to file any insurance claims for damages arising from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita shall be extended until September 2007 and October 2007 respectively. HB 1302 provides for an extension of time
within which a lawsuit can be filed on a claim in connection with
Hurricanes Katrina and Rita for one additional year.
Any such claim for damages caused by Hurricane
Katrina will need to be
filed on or before August 30, 2007, and any such claim for damages
caused by Hurricane Rita will need
to be filed on
or before September 25, 2007. Any suit not filed within
that time and any claims relating to the suit will
be barred forever unless the contract or the
parties to the
contract provide for a later
date.
Please see the following comments regarding the above from Robert Wooley, the former Insurance Commissioner for the State of Louisiana. "These statutes are subject to
constitutional objections. In fact a declaratory action has been
filed by the Louisiana Attorney General to determine the
constitutionality of these statutes. I would advise people to
not rely on the statutes alone. I would file my suit within
the one year anniversary or obtain a written agreement from the
insured to protect my interest."
To view the texts of the bills, please click on the
following
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