Declarations – South Central

Homeowners, Hurricanes

“I respectfully request that you utilize your existing authority to ensure that homeowners receive the insurance proceeds that they are entitled to.”

—U.S. Senator Mary L. Landrieu, D-La., in a letter to HUD, urged that federal agency to use its influence to keep mortgage lenders from withholding insurance proceeds from hurricane survivors. Following Hurricane Katrina, there were incidents where several mortgage lenders withheld insurance proceeds from hurricane survivors, according to Sen. Landrieu. The Louisiana senator wants HUD to use its existing authority to curb this issue among FHA mortgage lenders.

Who Are They?

“We don’t know who these employees are. Do they really work in a home office or do they count agents and other employees?”

—Rep. David Dank, R-Oklahoma City, questions the validity of the home office tax credit, which he said is granted to insurance companies based in the state that employ a certain number of workers. The home office tax credit grew from about $8.5 million in 2006 to almost $17 million in 2012, acccording to Dank. He said there is no pre-approval for companies that take advantage of the tax credit. “We basically take their word for it in many respects,” Dank said.

Cover the Dog

“We believe that policyholders will benefit from having an independent agent review their insurance coverages to ensure they have adequate protection against the alarming increase in lawsuits over bites by family dogs.”

—Mark Desrochers, president of The Hanover’s personal lines business. Dog bite claims accounted for over one-third of all homeowners insurance liability claim dollars in 2011. The cost of dog bite claims rose 53.4 percent from 2003 to 2011, according to the Insurance Information Institute. The Hanover recommends checking to see if the breed the insured is planning to add to the household can be covered.