Citizens Board Agrees to 10 Percent Rate Cut

BATON ROUGE — The board governing Louisiana's property insurer of last resort has agreed to drop rates by 10 percent across a dozen south Louisiana parishes, with the rate cut retroactive to June 7, when the reduction was signed into law.

The $16 million annual rate cut is for customers of the Louisiana Citizens Property Insurance Corp.

Citizens customers won't likely see a change on their bills until November, after the process for changing rates is complete. They'll get rebates for any money they paid above what they should have.

Citizens is supposed to charge rates that are 10 percent higher than private insurers in an area. But lawmakers agreed to waive that requirement in Calcasieu, Cameron, Vermilion, Iberia, St. Tammany, Orleans, Jefferson, St. Bernard, Plaquemines, St. Mary, Terrebonne and Lafourche parishes.