It is no surprise that on February 26, 2021, the Louisiana Insurance Commissioner has admonished insures to act in good faith when it comes to claims settlement of 2020 Hurricane Claims and policyholder service. The Commissioner warned:
- some insurers are resisting requests from policyholders to obtain a complete copy of their policy. Insurers are reminded that the Policy Holder’s Bill of Rights La.R.S. 22:41 entitles a policyholder to receive a duplicate or replacement copy of their complete policy. To that end, insurers should make efforts to expeditiously comply with any policyholder requests for copies of their policy;
- some insurers are refusing to communicate with their policyholders if the policyholder has hired a public adjuster. This is not allowed. Insurers must always maintain an open line of communication with their policyholders, and the presence of a public adjuster is irrelevant to that obligation;
- Insurers are reminded that they must attempt, in good faith, to effectuate prompt, fair, and equitable settlements of claims4 and that they owe their insureds a duty of good faith and fair dealing.
No question this admonishment is directed at some of the greatest offenders found in the most recent complaint index. Those insurers with the larger complaint index have the most complaints per market share.
| Company/Group | Market Share | Number of Complaints | Complaint Index |
| State Farm Group | 26% | 163 | 0.90856 |
| FedNat Holding Company Group | 3.9% | 93 | 3.48228 |
| GeoVera Specialty Insurance Company | 1.8% | 66 | 5.25358 |
| United Insurance Holdings Group | 4% | 52 | 1.87236 |
| Allstate Insurance Group | 10.8% | 51 | 0.68065 |
| Allied Trust Insurance Company | 0.9% | 40 | 6.32678 |
| TWIMG Group | 3.1% | 23 | 1.08225 |
| USAA Group | 6.2% | 23 | 0.53878 |
| Liberty Mutual Group | 5.6% | 18 | 0.46819 |
| Progressive Group | 3.9% | 18 | 0.67448 |
| Centauri National Insurance Company | 1.6% | 15 | 1.389 |
| American Bankers Insurance Company of FL | 1.4% | 14 | 1.43079 |
| IAT Reins Co Grp | 0.9% | 13 | 2.17708 |
| Aegis Security Insurance Company | 0.4% | 10 | 3.77807 |
| Munich Re Grp | 0.1% | 10 | 1.09704 |
| Total for 15 Insurers with the most hurricane complaints | 609 | ||
| Total Hurricane Homeowners Complaints | 691 | ||
| Total Hurricane Complaints as of Jan. 11 | 873 |
Sources:
Louisiana Insurance Commissioner’s Hurricane Claims Complaint Index.
GOOD FAITH CLAIM SETTLEMENT PRACTICES AND POLICYHOLDER SERVICE OBLIGATIONS