[{"_1":2,"_88":-5,"_89":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6632094,"mediaKeyId","2675893-14d08e41362bfda666096ca7f06e3ff7","parentId",2675893,"title","Senators press Insurance Department on ability to curb high auto rates; advocates point to road safety and pedestrian fatalities","audioSeconds",3905,"startMs",4110000,"endMs",8015000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2675893-14d08e41362bfda666096ca7f06e3ff7&start=4110&end=8015","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2675893-14d08e41362bfda666096ca7f06e3ff7/thumbnail_4110000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6632094/Louisiana/Senators-press-Insurance-Department-on-ability-to-curb-high-auto-rates-advocates-point-to-road-safety-and-pedestrian-fatalities","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6632094-9b44652ce6364b95899fa39fb1bfe85c/orig.mp4?Expires=1770980263&Signature=H3Lg3DtXAwmKbtQGLE4Frm3-fODkjYHtxCAamnWRc4LS7TZmghZ3DskOvJ~Glvcl75iPH35-5r7H9HJ~p7dlNV9g~BWsXWMPwUauV6l9K9AP0PlzI1oKZIT1Xc2ibAzboLTwbwhARSrW2V5o0rHL92B0D86Tpx8arS1SrwuQ4WnVv-i2xfSeGZaiUAxtVMMh0KfIo3qXB8M0-DW112GwfDeIzuKVFze6qbVTv~lsTpo54HjNPa3z9~wkGtG4ucTGRaYeoByDhsiO0mx7dAdStODsfziwOZmPXAvRY5B~yn8OUG9LoFH2AJPhDkFeotrgPAf36E1or1zZ5YsVSsE9SQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","State of Louisiana","date","2025-03-14T00:00:00Z","article","Lawmakers at a Senate Insurance Committee meeting pressed the Louisiana Department of Insurance over whether the commissioner can deem auto insurance rates \"excessive,\" and how the department evaluates actuarial filings. Public witnesses and researchers urged the committee to treat road design, pedestrian safety and urbanization as part of any strategy to reduce premiums.

Authority and actuarial review: the central dispute

Nicole Torblett, the department's chief actuary, walked the committee through the rate‑filing and actuarial review process, underscoring that filings include detailed actuarial support and that department actuaries use nationally accepted standards. \"The actuary reviews the filing and sends any questions to the insurance company by submitting written objections in SERF CERF that ultimately become part of the public record,\" Torblett said. She described how most disputes are resolved through requests for additional documentation or amended filings and noted that the department rarely outright disapproves a filing after dialogue with the insurer.

Legal authority and the word \"excessive\"

Senators repeatedly asked whether Commissioner Tim Temple can declare a rate \"excessive\" under state law. Claire Lamoine, deputy general counsel for the Department of Insurance, told the committee: \"The commissioner does have the legal authority to deny rates in a competitive market when they're unfairly discriminatory.\" Lamoine said the statutory framework replaced the vague term \"excessive\" with objective actuarial criteria (\"actuarially justified\") in 2007 to reduce subjectivity and provide consistent standards.

Commissioner Temple said his statutory charge is to ensure rates are \"adequate, actuarily justified, and not unfairly discriminatory,\" and described a tension in balancing consumer protection and preserving a market in which companies will write business. \"I don't want to do is dissuade companies ... from doing business because of a discount that their actuaries say is not justified,\" he said about proposals to require a minimum insurer discount in return for state grant funds.

Public commenters: road safety and pedestrian risk as a factor

Outside of the statutory debate, public witnesses urged lawmakers to consider infrastructure and public‑safety interventions. Carol Fradland of the LSU AgCenter described statewide wind‑loss and home resilience work but noted broader mitigation priorities. Speakers from Louisiana Progress urged lawmakers to consider non‑litigation and non‑underwriting drivers of rate differences. Eli Levinson, a student researcher, presented national data showing Louisiana's pedestrian fatality rate (3.94 per 100,000 in 2022) and cyclist fatality rates (0.98 per 100,000) are higher than neighboring Mississippi (2.76 and 0.58 per 100,000). Levinson recounted a recent incident in which his father was struck crossing a Baton Rouge street and urged investments in lighting, lower speeds in pedestrian zones, and engineered street improvements.

What senators asked for next

Senators asked the department for more granular files and for analyses comparing actuarial outcomes with other states, and several members pushed for the department to identify data showing whether insurers are making outsized profits in Louisiana. The department said actuaries follow national actuarial statements of principles and actuarial standards of practice and that the NAIC profitability reports are a historical look that cannot be used alone to determine whether current rates are adequate for future costs. Department officials pledged to provide additional documentation and highlighted that many rate filings are public after the review process and that disputed documents labeled confidential are subject to department review under the public records law.

The hearing left unresolved the political question of whether the legislature should change statute to reintroduce clearer language or floors on discounts or profit expectations; senators indicated they plan more follow‑up hearings and requested written materials and actuarial exhibits from the department.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Senate Insurance Mar 14, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","Lawmakers at a Senate Insurance Committee meeting pressed the Louisiana Department of Insurance over whether the commissioner can deem auto insurance rates \"excessive,\" and how the department evaluates actuarial filings.","taxTitle","2025 Legislature LA, Louisiana","taxId",78558,"location","Louisiana","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6632099,"Audit: Fortified‑roof grants produce net savings for many recipients but gaps remain for low‑income homeowners",1192,71000,1263000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2675893-14d08e41362bfda666096ca7f06e3ff7&start=71&end=1263","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2675893-14d08e41362bfda666096ca7f06e3ff7/thumbnail_71000.jpg","/articles/6632099/Louisiana/Audit-Fortifiedroof-grants-produce-net-savings-for-many-recipients-but-gaps-remain-for-lowincome-homeowners","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6632099-6601c8202915f86af644c286fd0c120b/orig.mp4?Expires=1770980263&Signature=EvU0wNqJkSBArGxDJ3UkbxUdtcZZLDlUYfu3BHHy4C5Lm4e65R5H4HtKBQeIsAxbWxHTxZ~yIbdOarYnr2fgb1BSK0dsXPQR8M~p4NwHWjXHF8di2MNYJE--hcycwfPU6ZTTc2NivVoelXGU4YpsrG9uCxrjOhv8chEfMDeewAfb4xXyW5tFVbjQn2D-nseYou-gUeKmprQXEVz4Lo8h9CyiZTABHWG0osaNzbPwvUhvF5-IxwOp0NO1SNyVOUOUhdFoCLyMzPso4ZsVwuP6EBo8OEMoIl68SVevBEuhU6hcsDpxoFBdINCLUZmBSwRUm7oAusTehC3F-EUWAwI3kw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Legislative Auditor staff told the Senate Insurance Committee that Louisiana's Fortify Homes grant program (LFHP) yields net economic benefits for many participants, but legislators raised concerns about uneven insurance discounts and access barriers for lower‑income homeowners.

Auditor presentation: what it found

Ed Seiler of the Legislative Auditor's office presented the report and said the program was designed to encourage homeowners to install roofs meeting the Fortified standard developed by the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS). \"What is the Louisiana Fortify Homes program? This is a grant ... of up to $10,000 to, a homeowner to put a fortified roof on their home and it's administered by the Louisiana Department of Insurance,\" Seiler said during the committee briefing. The auditor's team found recipients reported a median annual insurance premium savings of $1,250 (about 22 percent), and a median installed cost of $16,229 before the $10,000 grant. The auditors estimated the 15‑year present value of insurance premium discounts and reduced uninsured losses at $17,879 for the median participant, exceeding the program's median present‑value cost in the study.

Who benefits and where

Seiler emphasized the program has seen rapid growth since 2023 but is concentrated geographically: 82 percent of surveyed participants were in Orleans, Jefferson and St. Tammany parishes. The auditors found fortified roofs are more cost‑effective in coastal and near‑coastal ZIP codes where hurricane exposure is greater and insurers provide larger discounts; in inland ZIP codes the up‑front extra cost often exceeds expected insurance savings. Seiler said the median additional cost solely attributable to Fortified upgrades (beyond a code‑compliant roof replacement) was about $3,248, and the typical evaluator fee ranged $300'$600.

Legislative concerns: discount floor and access for low income homeowners

Sen. Jacky DuPlessis and other legislators pressed the Department of Insurance about cases where grant recipients reported small discounts that made repayment times long: \"We're putting state money into this program but not providing a guarantee on a minimum premium discount,\" DuPlessis said, asking whether the state should require a floor (she mentioned 20 percent) if it funds upgrades. Commissioner Tim Temple responded that discounts are filed by insurers and noted the department posts company discount information online so applicants can check expected discounts before proceeding: \"We always encourage everybody, look and see what that discount is before you... don't get in a situation where we've got the grant, we did the roof, we don't like the discount.\" Temple added he did not want to force a discount floor that would dissuade companies from writing business in Louisiana.

Access barriers for lower‑income homeowners

Sen. Barrow and others highlighted that the LFHP structure (a $10,000 maximum grant with homeowners responsible for overages and evaluator fees) can leave lower‑income homeowners unable to participate. Barrow described constituent cases where homeowners secured awards but could not meet short windows for evaluation, bidding and contractor payments. Commissioner Temple and the auditors said the department is piloting partnerships with nonprofits to ","Legislative Auditor briefed the Senate Insurance Committee on a report finding Louisiana's Fortify Homes grant gives many homeowners net economic benefit from fortified roofs, while lawmakers and the commissioner pressed the department on discount consistency and access for lower‑income residents.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Senators press Insurance Department on ability to curb high auto rates; advocates point to road safety and pedestrian fatalities

Audit: Fortified‑roof grants produce net savings for many recipients but gaps remain for low‑income homeowners