Class Action Lawsuit Targets AIG Over Katrina Claims
Liability & Insurance Week
October 10, 2005

A class action lawsuit, backed by the group Americans for Insurance Reform, has been filed against AIG charging that the company failed to provide Louisiana FAIR Plan policyholders with any effective means by which to file claims in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.

The lawsuit, which was filed in Orleans Parish in Louisiana, charges that AIG did not respond in a timely or adequate manner to the needs of the policyholders following Katrina. In addition, the lawsuit charges that the company did not provide temporary disaster relief, as called for under the FAIR Plan policy.

The class represents all FAIR plan policyholders in Louisiana, which is estimated to be about 400,000 people.

The named plaintiff, Toni Swain Orrill, is a New Orleans resident who claims her home was severely damaged by Hurricane Katrina. However, the complaint says, following Katrina, AIG failed or refused to provide any effective means of access by which insured class members could contact the company to obtain any form of immediate hazard or disaster relief.

In addition, the complaint charges, AIG offered its policyholders no means of initiating a claim or of receiving emergency funding.

AIG’s inaction, the complaint alleges, violated the company’s duty as prudent administrators, agents, insurers and fiduciaries of the monies of the class members, and as a result the company is liable for both special and general damages, including attorneys’ fees and penalties.

For a copy of the complete article, contact AIR.