A package of tort reform bills designed to help lower property and auto insurance rates in Louisiana remains in a holding pattern as the state legislative session enters its final days, The Center Square reports.
In a recent statement, Commissioner Tim Temple urged Gov. Jeff Landry and lawmakers to act on the package.
“Our state remains mired in a crisis of availability and affordability in the auto insurance market,” Temple says. “With only a few days left in this legislative session, there has not been significant legislation enacted to address this issue.
“My package of auto insurance reform legislation was designed as a substantial first step to promote competition in the private passenger and commercial auto markets by creating more transparency and balance in our legal system. This will allow Louisiana’s legal system to operate more like the states we are competing with to attract insurance companies on a daily basis.”
Will Green, president and CEO of the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry, cites the state’s litigation climate as one of the top obstacles to not only encouraging new businesses to relocate to Louisiana, but also for existing ones wanting to expand.
“We’re not necessarily a stable market and so we can’t keep trying to tackle our insurance crisis with watered-down, siloed versions of bills and if we keep doing that, it’s like I say it’s like treating a bullet wound with a Band-Aid,” Green told The Center Square.
