Insurer to pay $92.8 million for Katrina claims

A Louisiana judge has ordered Louisiana Citizens Property Insurance Corp. to pay $92.8 million to 18,573 policyholders in the state whose claims from damage caused by Hurricane Katrina were not adjusted on time.

The state-sponsored insurer of last resort is expected to appeal the judgment by Jefferson Parish Judge Henry Sullivan, according to the Times-Picayune newspaper.

A company official said that if the judgment stands, it would probably not necessitate a special assessment to pay for it, but would probably require increasing the size of the emergency assessment issued after the hurricane to pay off the bond used to pay claims.