Why is Louisiana car insurance so pricey? Gov. Landry, Attorney Morris Bart sound off

SHREVEPORT, LA. (KTAL/KMSS)—Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry is aiming at insurance companies and personal injury attorneys, who he said are reaping record profits while costing residents through higher car insurance rates.

“I travel around Louisiana more than anyone else. I don’t see an insurance company or plaintiff lawyer going broke. But I sure do see way too many people and their businesses struggling because of both,” said Governor Jeff Landry (R), Louisiana.

Governor Landry said lawmakers previously passed dozens of bills aimed at lowering car insurance rates.

“Yet we stand here today seeing very little improvement. While some of those changes may take time, the profits continue to go up while the amount in our citizens’ pockets go down,” Landry said.

The governor called out a household name.

“I’m just as tired of seeing Morris Bart as I am of seeing the lizard,” Landry said.

Louisiana’s longtime and well-known personal injury attorney Morris Bart said the companies are not going to budge.

“Give me the name of one automobile insurer of Louisiana that will stand up and say, yes, people of Louisiana, if you pass any of these laws, we agree to reduce your premiums. We agree to that right now as soon as this law is passed. They are not going to do it,” said Morris Bart, Personal Injury Attorney, Louisiana.

Landry said research shows a disproportion between the actual injuries people file claims for after a wreck.

“This next data point shocked even me because, contrary to what we’ve been told, our injury claim severity is less than the national average. Less than the national average. The amount of severe injuries that Louisianians receive in automobile accidents is less than the national average. That, I’ll be honest, was a shock even to me,” Landry said.

The governor pointed to minor injury claims taking up the majority.

“The only outlier is minor injury claims. Under which, Louisiana is almost double the national average. So when you look at data and see that as an outlier, and see that is a problem. We should focus on that problem,” Landry said.

The governor wants to regulate how personal injury attorneys promote their work.

“To me, that points to a cultural problem that many of our citizens believe is driven by lawyer advertising, and corrections are needed to our tort law,” Landry said.