Insurance Dispute Lawyer Blog
Catching up on June happenings, it is important for those individuals affected by Hurricane Katrina to know that the timeline in which they may file for claims involving damage from the epic storm has been reset.
From NOLA.com
The class action allegations against insurers in the consolidated levee breach litigation have been dismissed, restarting the clock for anyone who is dissatisfied with the results of their Katrina claim and allowing them to file a lawsuit against their insurer nearly four years after the storm.
Home and business owners and renters had two years to file lawsuits against insurers over claim disputes after the Aug. 29, 2005, storm. Class action lawsuit filings stop the legal clock by covering the rights of all potential members of a class, but if that petition fails to get certified as a class or individual defendants get cut from the proceedings, plaintiffs’ individual legal rights to pursue similar claims are restored.
On Tuesday (June 16), U.S. District Court Judge Stanwood R. Duval Jr. granted a request by insurers to be severed from the Katrina Canal Breaches Consolidated Litigation, saying that disputes against insurers were individual, and not suitable to be handled as part of a class action.
It is important for Louisiana homeowners to work immediately to look for legal action should they not have already and hold insurers responsible in the event their homes were damaged. Late answers to policy claims and frivolous delays or demands should
be answered by demanding the rights promised to them by the country’s judicial system and contacting an attorney should working through their agent be stonewalled is the most definitive and proper action.