[StBernard] Parish Pushes for Quicker Insurance Adjustments

[Westley Annis]

Parish Pushes for Quicker Insurance Adjustments

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

 

CONTACT:  steve cannizaro

St. Bernard Parish Government

Public Information Officer

504.278.4221 OR 504.259.3395

St. Bernard Parish officials are continuing to encourage state Insurance
Commissioner Robert Wooley and insurance companies to speed up adjustments
of claims in the parish.

Parish officials have proposed the parish be divided into 24 grids to help
insurance companies better schedule the adjustment activity. Council
Chairman Joseph DiFatta, and Council members Craig Taffaro Jr., Judy
Hoffmeister and Kenny Henderson, as well as Chief Administrative Officer
Danny Menesses met Wednesday in Chalmette with Wooley and insurance
officials.

The companies have estimated it could take a week to do each grid of roughly
1,000 properties each, meaning it could take nearly 6 months to finish the
adjustment process in the parish.

Council members objected to that time frame, saying it shouldn't take that
long because many areas of St. Bernard are devastated and could quickly be
determined to be totaled at the maximum policy limit.

Wooley said he didn't like hearing "six months either'' but said there isn't
a precedent for the large-scale devastation brought by Hurricane Katrina.
"There aren't any playbooks or manuals for this,'' Wooley said, calling it
the largest natural disaster ever to strike the United States.

After the meeting Wooley said companies might be able to do two grids a
week.

Several insurance companies are taking part in a centralized adjuster
location at the new Super Wal-Mart site on West Judge Perez Drive in
Chalmette, where they can meet with returning parish residents who have
claims.