HORACE MANN ORDERED TO STOP CANCELLATIONS

Louisiana insurance commissioner Jim Donelon has ordered Illinois-based Horace Mann Insurance Cos to halt improper cancellation and non-renewal of property insurance policies in 23 hurricane-vulnerable coastal parishes and to reinstate policies that have been cancelled since it adopted the risk-reduction plan in July. Mr Donelon rejected the company’s contention that the cancellations were justified by the “material change in risk” with the deterioration of levees, coastal erosion and other storm-related factors. The commissioner said that the material change must relate to the insured property, not the surrounding levees and barrier islands. Horace Mann was also ordered to provide 30 days advance written notice of plans to cancel or not renew any other policies. Horace Mann covers around 10,000 homes in the state and writes around $10m in annual premium, for a market share of almost 1%.