B.R. insurer among 3 firms taking on more Louisiana Citizens policies

Published Sep 19, 2012 at 10:00 am (Updated Sep 19, 2012)

Access Home Insurance Co. of Baton Rouge, which a year ago took over 3,158 policies from the state's property insurer of last resort, is one of three private insurers set to take over more Louisiana Citizens Property Insurance Corp. policies in the coming weeks, The Times-Picayune reports. Citizens has shed 67,662 policies to private insurers in the last four years, and company officials estimate that it may lose another 5,000 in the next few weeks, says Chief Operating Officer Vijay Ramachandran. Aside form Access Home Insurance Co., the firms that will pick up policies are: Lighthouse Property Insurance Co. of Orlando, Fla., which has assumed more than 18,000 policies since 2008; and Centauri Insurance, which took over 948 policies last year. The three companies, Ramachandran says, "know the process, they know the rules" and want to take over more policies. Citizens embarked on the "de-population" program beginning in 2008 as a way to reduce the potential financial burden on the state insurer and on taxpayers. The program also aims to lower the annual premiums that policyholders pay. By law, premiums for Citizens must be 10% higher than the highest private carrier in an area. Ramachandran believes private companies will want to assume at least another 10,000 Citizens policies beyond the 5,000 expected to be shed soon, which would reduce its total volume to between 90,000 and 95,000. Click here for the full story.