Robert and Merryl Weiss v. Allstate Insurance Co.
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In a case reminiscent of one reported in the February '07 issue of 'X-Pro News', a federal jury has decided that the Allstate Insurance Co. must pay a Louisiana man who lost his home to Hurricane Katrina more than $2.8 million in damages and penalties. The similarities to the Broussard case earlier reported were remarkable in that both hinged largely on whether it was Katrina's winds or storm surge that wiped out the respective properties.
The jury sitting at the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana found that Allstate did not pay Robert Weiss enough money to cover wind damage to his home. The verdict includes a $1.5 million penalty for the company's failure to pay damages quickly enough.
Allstate Insurance Co.'s lawyer argued in closing arguments that the winds that hit Weiss' home were not strong enough to do the damage. She said Weiss already had received more than $400,000 in insurance payments - including $350,000 in federal flood insurance.
The lawyer for Weiss, whose home was northeast of New Orleans on the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain, told the jury in closing arguments that Weiss' house was too high above sea level to have been destroyed by Katrina's storm surge. Clearly the jury accepted this.
© X-Pro 2007
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