BATON ROUGE – Though an attempt to introduce reforms to the way auto-insurance disputes are litigated in Louisiana recently failed in the state Senate, supporters who claim the measure will lower rates for motorists are suggesting they will try again.
The legislation, House Bill 372 sponsored by Rep. Kirk Talbot, R-River Ridge, was approved in the House but rejected by a Senate committee.
Advocates of the measure, which they claimed would lower what are the second highest insurance premium rates in the country, had hoped they could fold the language of the bill into separate proposed Senate legislation, but that attempt was defeated.
Central to the bill was a provision that would lower the threshold - or the amount in controversy – for a jury trial from $50,000 to $5,000. This, it was hoped, would deter individuals from filing suits and lead to more disputes being settled out of court. The reform measure also addressed medical costs.
Opponents of the proposed legislation argued it would bar individuals from access to the courts in disputes over insurance. They also claimed it would lead to increased court backlogs.
Jim Harris, coordinator for the Louisiana Coalition for Common Sense, which lobbied in favor of the bill and the amendment proposed in the Senate, said that after the House proposal, the Omnibus Premium Reduction Act, was rejected by the Senate Judiciary Committee, it was hoped that the wording could be included in Senate Bill 212.
The Senate bill, which centered on insurers reporting vehicle information, passed unanimously in both Houses but without the Talbot amendments.
"The bill that passed was stripped of the Talbot language on the House floor after being declared by the speaker as not germane," Harris told the Louisiana Record.
But he suggested supporters will try again. "So, we did not get the Talbot language passed this session," Harris said.
According to insure.com, average auto premiums in Louisiana are $2,298 annually, compared to the national average of $1,457. Michigan tops the list at $2,611 with Florida third at $2,219. Bill sponsor Talbot had argued Louisiana premiums are not affordable for many low-income citizens.
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