BILLING GRACE PERIOD ENDS IN ALL BUT THREE COUNTIES

Some south Mississippians are returning to regular payment schedules to companies that offered billing grace periods to allow for hurricane recovery.

In response to a request from Insurance Commissioner George Dale, insurers suspended bank drafts, automatic electronic deductions from checking accounts, to give customers in affected counties time to assess their financial situations after Hurricane Katrina, Susan Lamey, a DOI spokesperson told the Hattiesburg American.

Bank drafts were reinstated and policyholders became responsible for back payments Nov. 1 in all but three devastated counties: Jackson, Harrison and Hancock.

State Farm notified policyholders via mail that back premiums were coming due, and at the insurance commissioner’s request extended the grace period for coastal counties an additional 30 days, Lamey said.

David McCullen, executive vice president of Community Bank said customers were confused about why insurance payments were not drafted. “They say, ‘My insurance didn’t draft and now I’ve got to pay three months of insurance. Why didn’t they just draft it when I had the money?'” he asked.

Even McCullen was in the same predicament, but advised insurance policyholders to follow his example if financially able. “I just had to write them a check to catch up on those couple months of payments, and get back on draft so I wouldn’t have to think about it again,” he said.