Louisiana State Senator Julie Quinn has been a champion for homeowners dealing with toxic Chinese drywall, and the Louisiana Senate has passed a bill she sponsored that would provide certain insurance protections for homeowners dealing with Chinese drywall.   S.B. 565 would prohibit insurance companies from canceling or failing to renew a homeowner’s policy based on the homeowner having made a claim involving Chinese drywall.

Last week, the Louisiana Senate Insurance Committee unanimously approved the bill and sent it to the floor of the senate.  Baron & Budd attorney Burton LeBlanc testified before the committee, along with Baron & Budd client Shannon Schulz.  See related story.  On Monday, the Louisiana Senate unanimously approved the bill as well.

In addition to prohibiting canceling or non-renewing policies based on the presence of Chinese drywall, the bill also requires that, if it becomes law, insurers must reinstate policies that were canceled or non-renewed.

These issues are critically important to Louisiana homeowners with Chinese drywall because, if their policies are cancelled or non-renewed, they aren’t able to get alternative coverage.  And without insurance, the mortgage goes into default.  On top of the terrible struggles they are facing to get their homes cleaned up, residents who have lost their insurance face the very real danger of losing their homes altogether.

So far, insurance companies have uniformly refused to cover claims for Chinese drywall.  And some residents are so afraid of losing their insurance that they are afraid to make a claim with their insurance company for Chinese drywall.

You can read the text of the S.B. 565 at http://www.legis.state.la.us.

Aspects of this story have also been reported by the New Orleans Times Picayune, the Daily Comet and WXVT.com.