IVAN COSTS NEARLY $7.9M IN LA.:

The Louisiana Department of Insurance’s final estimate of Hurricane Ivan damage in Louisiana is $7,868,750. That figure is based on a reported 3,760 claims paid following a survey of the major insurance carriers in the state. “In my frequent meetings with insurance company executives, I use Hurricane Ivan as a prime example of why Louisiana is a good place for insurers to do business,” Commissioner of Insurance Robert Wooley said. “Unlike our neighboring coastal states with millions of dollars worth of beach-front residential and commercial developments, Louisiana has about 80 miles of marsh before you reach a highly populated area. So we have a cushion that other coastal states don’t have when a hurricane strikes.” Wooley also recently honored 16 employees with LDI’S Property and Casualty Consumer Affairs Division who took turns working 12-hour shifts, seven days a week through October, helping the Florida Insurance Department in the hurricane-ravaged areas near Pensacola. Louisiana DOI employees helped Floridians contact their insurance companies when needing to make a claim.