State Farm seeks change of venue for Katrina cases

[rodeodance]

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N11415657.htm

State Farm seeks change of venue for Katrina cases
11 Oct 2006 18:18:51 GMT
Source: Reuters


NEW YORK, Oct 11 (Reuters) - Claiming nearly half of southern Mississippi residents believe insurance executives are on a par with child molesters, State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. said on Wednesday it's seeking a change of venue for lawsuits stemming from damage caused by Hurricane Katrina.

Mississippi has been a hotbed for lawsuits against insurers following the Aug. 29. 2005 hurricane, which destroyed coastal Mississippi and damaged homes as far as 100 miles inland. All told, Katrina caused more than $38 billion in destruction in four states.

State Farm is the largest homeowners' insurer in Mississippi. Other major carriers include Allstate Corp. <ALL.N>, Nationwide Financial Services Inc.'s <NFS.N> parent Nationwide Mutual, Zurich Financial Services <ZURN.VX> and St. Paul Travelers Cos. Inc. <STA.N>.

[BOSSHOG]

1. I believe they have a point

I'm surprised there hasn't been any agents attacked down here. Hardly a day goes by that insurance companies aren't being butchered in the papers and on the radio shows.

[Jacobin]

16. Well, they have been exceedingly corrupt

I've been working on a Katrina claim for 9 months and have been provided with flatly fraudulent 'engineering reports' from the insurer, promised funds 'within two week's for six months and believe that sticking a hot poker up their asses would be too kind.

[Gormy Cuss]

2. Bummer that people actually expect payouts on their insurance claims.

The nerve.:sarcasm:

[MadMaddie]

3. Especially people that have had their insurance policies for

years and have never used them.....simply amazing....

[damntexdem]

10. Yeah, if they haven't had an interest in collecting before, ...

they shouldn't expect to suddently be able to simply because they've lost everything.

[MadMaddie]

13. I was being serious not sarcastic..

The insurance companies are screwing these people over...especially longtime customers who probably never thought that they would have to fight the insurance companies because they were loyal customers...

[Doremus]

4. Yeah, I'll never forget the story of the older man who had paid his

homeowner's insurance faithfully for 50 years. Katrina destroyed his house.

State Farm gave him $1500.

Evil bastards.

[alarimer]

5. Insurance companies have to be some of the most evil

corporations on the planet. They take premiums from people for years, amounting to hundreds of thousands of dollars and then refuse to payout. Hopefully State Farm will lose the farm and go out of business.

[intheflow]

6. K&R'd because these rats should not be allowed to get away with this!

State Farm had employees on the ground advising people that they didn't need flood insurance as long as they had hurricane insurance, and then denied them based on the fact that they didnt' have flood insurance!

State Farm has had whistleblors step forward and testify that State Farm told them to deny everyone accross the board, regardless of how it looked the storm damage came about!

BTW, good luck with moving it upstate. More people died from Katrina in upstate Mississippi due to tornados than died on the Coast. And a lot of people upstate have family and friends on the Coast who got screwed. I really do pray justice is served and State Farm has to pay up what it owes the people of Mississippi.

[gratuitous]

7. State Farm farts in a closed room

Then complains that the air is unbreatheable. Nifty bit of work there. "We can't go to trial in Mississippi! People hate us there because we've been screwing them over for decades."

If that fails, they can always go by the old insurance company stand-by that they're not in business to pay claims, but only to collect premiums.

[iamjoy]

8. Let Em Change The Venue

We'd be happy to take it down here in Florida!

:evilgrin:

[RamboLiberal]

14. Wonder where they think there isn't a venue that hearing

this case the jury won't rule against them?

Send it to Pittsburgh - I'd love to sit on that jury. :evilgrin:

[damntexdem]

9. Insurance executives on a par with child molesters? Ridiculous!

What an insult to child molesters!!!!

;-)

[pitohui]

17. i'm with you damntexan

the child molestor's association is up in arms

[sarcasmo]

11. Insurance is one crooked scam. Pay each month and then when you file

a claim they either raise your rates or deny your claim. Kick and Nom

[robinlynne]

12. lets' see. people live in mississippi. pay insurance in mississippi. lose

their homes in missippi. sounds like a change of venue is in order here.

[Megahurtz]

15. Insurance Companies are a Total Corporate Racket.

That's the U.S. today. The Total Corporate Racket.:puke:

[Ecumenist]

18. Tell StateFarm to bring it out here to the west

We'd give them what they deserve...:evilgrin: