Rep. Thompson: Miss. Katrina Ruling Will Prompt Probe of Insurers

January 15, 2007

A federal judge's ruling in favor of a Biloxi couple in a Hurricane Katrina insurance lawsuit will prompt a congressional investigation into insurance companies' denial of claims, Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., said Friday.

"This ruling is just the latest example of insurance companies engaging in a systematic effort to avoid paying Katrina victims for destruction caused by wind damage,'' Thompson, chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, said in a statement from his Washington office.

"Working with other committees of jurisdiction, I will be investigating the assertions that insurance companies are wrongfully passing the costs of Katrina onto an already-burdened federal flood insurance program,'' Thompson said.

U.S. District Judge L.T. Senter Jr. ruled Thursday that State Farm Fire and Casualty Co. owes a Biloxi couple $223,292 for their Katrina-demolished home and its contents. Senter ruled that even though the couple's policy excluded flood damage, the company did not prove during trial that the entire loss was caused by flooding