A growing number of customers in Louisiana are seeking coverage elsewhere.
According to the homeowners insurance commissioner in Louisiana, there have been 6,877 policies that have now left Citizens and that are now being covered by private insurers.
Citizens homeowners insurance is currently facing a legal requirement which forces them to have to increase their premiums. By law, that insurer must now charge more. Therefore, the customers that have now moved their policies to private insurers are likely to have found coverage for a lower cost.
Commissioner Jim Donelon made homeowners insurance news when discussing the depopulation program.
According to Donelon, while he was announcing this homeowners insurance news, “With this Depopulation Program, homeowners now have a broader range of options for insurance and many policyholders have previously lowered their premiums by hundreds or even thousands of dollars after having their policy moved.”
The transfers that have been occurring have dropped the number of homeowners insurance policies to under 100,000. In February 2008, the number of policies had reached record levels when they broke the 174,000 mark.
There are four different homeowners insurance companies that have taken over the policies that have left Citizens. These are: Century Speciality Insurance Company, Access Home Insurance Company, Access Home Insurance Company, and Maison Insurance Company. These insurers have been the center of the Depopulation Program and have taken on the policies that have been leaving the state backed firm.
According to Deonelon, this marks the first time that Maison Insurance – a new player within this sector of the marketplace. The commissioner explained that “The increased competition we are currently experiencing along the coastal parishes is a win-win scenario for all Louisiana property insurance policyholders.”
It is hoped that this effort will not only keep the numbers at Citizens on the decrease, but it will also promote greater competition among the private insurers so that they will be able to offer lower homeowners insurance premiums and keep customers from having to move back to the state’s insurer of last resort.
