Louisiana Lawmakers Pass Auto Insurance Reform Bills to Boost Market Competition
Article 0 Comments Louisiana lawmakers passed a series of auto insurance reform bills that aim to bring availability and competition to the market by cutting down on excessive verdicts and settlements. Legislators passed four bills endorsed by Insurance Commissioner Tim Temple that he says will allow Louisiana to compete with other states in attracting insurance companies to write commercial and private auto business. HB 337, sponsored by Rep. Jack McFarland, prevents insurers from being named initially in lawsuits involving an injured person in a car wreck. Known as the Direct Action bill, the law would keep plaintiff attorneys from knowing how much liability insurance is involved in a case until a second lawsuit. The bill, which has already been enacted into law, will force juries to determine what the actual losses in a case are “without knowing that there’s a $2.5 million liability policy in the wing that could be claimed up to the max amount,” said Clyde Bohne, principal at Preferred Insurance Agency of Louisiana and chair of the Governmental Affairs Committee for PIA of Louisiana. Louisiana was one of only three states that allowed insurers to be named directly in initial lawsuits, said Temple. “What we’re trying to...