Louisiana Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon and Department of Revenue (LDR) Director of Customer Service Kent LaPlace are reminding property insurance policyholders that time is running out to claim a rebate for the Louisiana Citizens Property Insurance Corporation (Citizens) Assessment charged on their 2008 insurance policy.
The option to claim the 2008 assessment expires Dec.31, 2012. More than half, 52 percent, or $52 million of the $100 million Citizens Assessment for 2008 remains unclaimed.
Property owners having property/casualty insurance during any of the last four years should also claim the rebate for the Citizens Assessment charged on their property insurance policy. Currently, more than $287 million or 61 percent of the total rebate amount available for 2008 through 2012 is unclaimed.
“It’s a simple process,” said Commissioner Donelon. “Just fill out the Louisiana Department of Revenue R-540INS tax form for the year in which you paid the Citizens Assessment and mail it in with your insurance declaration page showing the assessment has been included in the insurance premium. It takes only a few minutes to fill out the very short form.”
Policyholders can also visit www.revenue.louisiana.gov/fileonline, register as a user, and follow the links to LDR’s new web application designed to help individuals claim their Citizens rebate. Policyholders can choose to receive the rebate by direct deposit, paper check or a pre-loaded debit card. Individual policyholders may also claim the rebate by amending a prior-year tax return.
Businesses may claim the Citizens Rebate only by filing Department of Revenue Form R-620INS or by filing a current-year or amended tax return. A copy of the insurance policy declaration page showing proof of the assessment amount must be attached to any claim form.
You can choose to claim the rebate as soon as you pay the insurance premium that includes the Citizens Assessment or when filing your Louisiana state income tax return. Be careful not to claim the rebate on both the INS form and the tax return since this will delay your refund. LDR reminds taxpayers not to claim the total insurance premium, only the Citizens Assessment. Claiming the total premium will delay the processing of the refund as well.
LDR recommends that those who pay the Citizens Assessment on more than one property send in a single INS form for all properties each year rather than a separate INS form for each property. An R-INS Supplement form should be used for more than one property. Otherwise the second claim will automatically be delayed for review.
Below is a chart showing the available unclaimed rebate amounts listed by year:
Louisiana Department of Insurance Available Citizens Assessments Unclaimed as of Nov. 1, 2012
| Year | Assessment Amount Collected | Dollar Amount Claimed with LDR | Dollar Amount Left Unclaimed | Percent Dollar Amount Unclaimed |
| 2008 | $100,234,934 | $48,085,980 | $52,148,954 | 52.0% |
| 2009 | $107,958,525 | $51,444,224 | $56,514,301 | 52.3% |
| 2010 | $102,472,710 | $45,121,588 | $57,351,122 | 56.0% |
| 2011 | $91,171,891 | $38,390,323 | $52,781,568 | 57.9% |
| 2012* | $68,986,291 | $561,761 | $68,424,530 | 99.2% |
| Total | $470,824,351 | $183,603,876 | $287,220,475 | 61.0% |
*Assessments for 2012 are still being collected
The tax forms are available from the Department of Insurance home page at www.ldi.la.gov by clicking on the newsreel link, “Louisiana Citizens Insurance Rebate.”
Source: Louisiana Department of Insurance
Was this article valuable?
Here are more articles you may enjoy.
How California’s Huge Raises for Fast-Food Workers Will Ripple Across Industries 
Vintage Ferrari Owners’ Favorite Mechanic Charged With Theft, Fraud 
California Sees Two More Property Insurers Withdraw From Market 
Progressive Records Five-Fold Increase in Q1 Net Income 
