HLS 19RS-463 REENGROSSED
2019 Regular Session
HOUSE BILL NO. 372
BY REPRESENTATIVES TALBOT, AMEDEE, BACALA, BAGLEY, BARRAS,
BERTHELOT, BISHOP, CARMODY, STEVE CARTER, CREWS, DAVIS,
DUBUISSON, EDMONDS, GAROFALO, LANCE HARRIS, HENRY,
HOFFMANN, HOLLIS, HORTON, HUVAL, IVEY, NANCY LANDRY,
MCFARLAND, MCMAHEN, MIGUEZ, PEARSON, SCHEXNAYDER,
SEABAUGH, SIMON, STOKES, THOMAS, TURNER, AND W RIGHT
Prefiled pursuant to Article III, Section 2(A)(4)(b)(i) of the Constitution of Louisiana.
INSURANCE/AUTOMOB ILE: Enacts the Omnibus Premium Reduction Act of 2019
1 AN ACT
2To amend and reenact Civil Code Article 3493.10, Code of Civil Procedure Article 1732(1),
3 and R.S. 22:1269, to enact R.S. 9:2800.25, and to repeal Civil Code Article 3492 and
4 R.S. 22:333(E), relative to civil liability for damages and procedures related to the
5 recovery thereof; to extend the general prescriptive period for delictual actions; to
6 prohibit the court from awarding a plaintiff the amount of medical expenses reduced
7 or paid by a collateral source; to provide with respect to jury trials; to repeal the
8 right of direct action against an insurer; to require annual rate filing with the
9 commissioner of insurance; to provide for an effective date; and to provide for
10 related matters.
11Be it enacted by the Legislature of Louisiana:
12 Section 1. The provisions of this Act shall be known as the "Omnibus Premium
13Reduction Act of 2019". Whereas motor vehicle accident claims comprise a major portion
14of the lawsuits filed in Louisiana's state courts, and whereas the enactment of civil justice
15reforms and their general applicability have a positive effect toward the reduction of the cost
16of motor vehicle insurance, the Omnibus Premium Reduction Act of 2019 is designed to
17achieve a significant reduction in the premium rate of motor vehicle insurance by legislating
18in regard not only to specific motor vehicle accidents and insurance suits, but also to civil
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1law issues of general applicability. A secondary purpose of the Omnibus Premium
2Reduction Act of 2019 is to further encourage all persons who own or operate motor
3vehicles on the public streets and highways of this state to comply with the Motor Vehicle
4Safety Responsibility Law by correcting the imbalances and abuses which are prevalent in
5Louisiana's current civil law and motor vehicle insurance systems thereby resulting in a
6direct cost savings to all citizens of the state of Louisiana.
7 Section 2. Civil Code Article 3493.10 is hereby amended and reenacted to read as
8follows:
9 Art. 3493.10. Delictual actions; two-year prescription; criminal act
10 Delictual actions which arise due to damages sustained as a result of an act
11 defined as a crime of violence under Chapter 1 of Title 14 of the Louisiana Revised
12 Statutes of 1950, except as provided in Article 3496.2, are subject to a liberative
13 prescription of two years. This prescription commences to run from the day injury
14 or damage is sustained. It does not run against minors or interdicts in actions
15 involving permanent disability and brought pursuant to the Louisiana Products
16 Liability Act or state law governing product liability actions in effect at the time of
17 the injury or damage.
18 Section 3. Code of Civil Procedure Article 1732(1) is hereby amended and reenacted
19to read as follows:
20 Art. 1732. Limitation upon jury trials
21 A trial by jury shall not be available in:
22 (1) A suit where the amount of no individual petitioner's cause of action
23 exceeds fifty five thousand dollars exclusive of interest and costs, except as follows:
24 (a) If an individual petitioner stipulates or otherwise judicially admits sixty
25 days or more prior to trial that the amount of the individual petitioner's cause of
26 action does not exceed fifty five thousand dollars exclusive of interest and costs, a
27 defendant shall not be entitled to a trial by jury.
28 (b) If an individual petitioner stipulates or otherwise judicially admits for the
29 first time less than sixty days prior to trial that the amount of the individual
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1 petitioner's cause of action does not exceed fifty five thousand dollars exclusive of
2 interest and costs, any other party may retain the right to a trial by jury if that party
3 is entitled to a trial by jury pursuant to this Article and has otherwise complied with
4 the procedural requirements for obtaining a trial by jury.
5 (c) Notwithstanding Subsubparagraphs (a) and (b) of this Subparagraph, if,
6 as a result of a compromise or dismissal of one or more claims or parties which
7 occurs less than sixty days prior to trial, an individual petitioner stipulates or
8 otherwise judicially admits that the amount of the individual petitioner's cause of
9 action does not exceed fifty five thousand dollars exclusive of interest and costs, a
10 defendant shall not be entitled to a trial by jury.
11 * * *
12 Section 4. R.S. 9:2800.25 is hereby enacted to read as follows:
13 §2800.25. Recoverable medical expenses; collateral sources; limitations
14 A.(1) Reductions in medical bills based upon the write-offs or write-downs
15 by insurance companies or Medicare are not collateral sources and are therefore not
16 recoverable as damages in civil litigation. In cases where a plaintiff's medical
17 expenses have been paid by a health insurance company or Medicare, the plaintiff's
18 recovery of medical expenses is limited to the amount actually paid to the healthcare
19 provider by the insurer or Medicare, and not the amount billed.
20 (2) If a plaintiff does not submit medical bills to an available health insurer
21 or Medicare for payment, plaintiff's recovery is limited to the amount that would
22 have been paid by the insurer or Medicare had the medical bills been submitted to
23 the insurer or Medicare for payment.
24 B.(1) In cases where a plaintiff's medical expenses are paid pursuant to the
25 Workers' Compensation Law as provided in R.S. 23:1020.1 et seq., a plaintiff's
26 recovery of medical expenses is limited to the amount payable under the medical
27 payments fee schedule of the Workers' Compensation Law.
28 (2) If a plaintiff chooses not to submit medical expenses for payment
29 pursuant to the Workers' Compensation Law, and the medical expenses were eligible
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1 for payment under the Workers' Compensation Law, then the plaintiff's recovery of
2 damages for medical expenses is limited to the amount that would have been payable
3 had the medical expenses been submitted for payment under the provisions of the
4 Workers' Compensation Law.
5 Section 5. R.S. 22:1269 is hereby amended and reenacted to read as follows:
6 §1269. Liability policy; insolvency or bankruptcy of insured and inability to effect
7 service of citation or other process; direct action against insurer
8 A. No policy or contract of liability insurance shall be issued or delivered in
9 this state, unless it contains provisions to the effect that the insolvency or bankruptcy
10 of the insured shall not release the insurer from the payment of damages for injuries
11 sustained or loss occasioned during the existence of the policy, and any judgment
12 which may be rendered against the insured for which the insurer is liable which shall
13 have become executory, shall be deemed prima facie evidence of the insolvency of
14 the insured, and an action may thereafter be maintained within the terms and limits
15 of the policy by the injured person, or his survivors, mentioned in Civil Code Art.
16 2315.1, or heirs against the insurer.
17 B.(1) The injured person or his survivors or heirs mentioned in Subsection
18 A of this Section, at their option, shall have a right of direct action against the insurer
19 within the terms and limits of the policy; and, such action may be brought against the
20 insurer alone, or against both the insured and insurer jointly and in solido, in the
21 parish in which the accident or injury occurred or in the parish in which an action
22 could be brought against either the insured or the insurer under the general rules of
23 venue prescribed by Code of Civil Procedure Art. 42 only; however, such action may
24 be brought against the insurer alone only when at least one of the following applies:
25 (a) The insured has been adjudged bankrupt by a court of competent
26 jurisdiction or when proceedings to adjudge an insured bankrupt have been
27 commenced before a court of competent jurisdiction.
28 (b) The insured is insolvent.
29 (c) Service of citation or other process cannot be made on the insured.
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1 (d) When the cause of action is for damages as a result of an offense or
2 quasi-offense between children and their parents or between married persons.
3 (e) When the insurer is an uninsured motorist carrier.
4 (f) The insured is deceased.
5 (2) This right of direct action shall exist whether or not the policy of
6 insurance sued upon was written or delivered in the state of Louisiana and whether
7 or not such policy contains a provision forbidding such direct action, provided the
8 accident or injury occurred within the state of Louisiana. Nothing contained in this
9 Section shall be construed to affect the provisions of the policy or contract if such
10 provisions are not in violation of the laws of this state.
11 C. It is the intent of this Section that any action brought under the provisions
12 of this Section shall be subject to all of the lawful conditions of the policy or contract
13 and the defenses which could be urged by the insurer to a direct action brought by
14 the insured, provided the terms and conditions of such policy or contract are not in
15 violation of the laws of this state.
16 D. B. It is also the intent of this Section that all liability policies within their
17 terms and limits are executed for the benefit of all injured persons and their survivors
18 or heirs to whom the insured is liable; and, that it is the purpose of all liability
19 policies to give protection and coverage to all insureds, whether they are named
20 insured or additional insureds under the omnibus clause, for any legal liability the
21 insured may have as or for a tortfeasor within the terms and limits of the policy.
22 Section 6. Civil Code Article 3492 and R.S. 22:333(E) are hereby repealed in their
23entirety.
24 Section 7. Pursuant to the provisions of this Act, every motor vehicle insurer
25authorized to transact business in the state of Louisiana shall make a motor vehicle policy
26rate filing with the Department of Insurance at least once every twelve months for the thirty-
27six-month period following the effective date of this Act and shall reduce rates when
28actuarially justified.
29 Section 8. This Act shall become effective on January 1, 2020.
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HB NO. 372
DIGEST
The digest printed below was prepared by House Legislative Services. It constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument. The keyword, one-liner, abstract, and digest do not constitute
part of the law or proof or indicia of legislative intent. [R.S. 1:13(B) and 24:177(E)]
HB 372 Reengrossed 2019 Regular Session Talbot
Abstract: Creates the Omnibus Premium Reduction Act of 2019 which increases the
general one-year prescriptive period for delictual actions to a two-year prescriptive
period, reduces the threshold for a jury trial to $5,000, provides for reduced damages
for amounts paid or payable from collateral sources, and repeals the right of direct
action against an insurer.
Proposed law creates the Omnibus Premium Reduction Act of 2019, which has as its general
purpose the reduction of the cost of motor vehicle insurance by legislating in regard to civil
law and insurance policies.
Present law provides a general one-year liberative prescriptive period for delictual actions
(C.C. Art. 3492), and a two-year period for delictual actions for damages arising from an act
defined as a crime of violence, except for any act of sexual assault which is subject to a
liberative prescription of three years. (C.C. Art. 3493.10).
Proposed law increases the general one-year prescriptive period for delictual actions to a
two-year prescriptive period and retains the liberative prescription of three years for any act
of sexual assault.
Present law (C.C.P. Art. 1732) authorizes a jury trial when the amount in controversy
exceeds $50,000.
Proposed law reduces the threshold for a jury trial to $5,000.
Proposed law (R.S. 9:2800.25) provides that reductions in medical bills based upon the
write-offs or write-downs by insurance companies or Medicare are not collateral sources and
are therefore not recoverable as damages in civil litigation.
Proposed law provides that when a plaintiff's medical expenses have been paid by a health
insurance company or Medicare, plaintiff's recovery of medical expenses is limited to the
amount actually paid to the healthcare provider by the insurer or Medicare, and not the
amount billed.
Proposed law provides that if the plaintiff pays the medical expenses directly to the
healthcare provider when health insurance is available, recovery is limited to the amount that
would have been paid by the insurer or Medicare.
Proposed law provides that payment for medical expenses is limited to the amount payable
pursuant to the fee schedule of the present law Workers' Compensation Law when that
present law is applicable, and provides that if the plaintiff pays those expenses directly to
the healthcare provider, the plaintiff's recovery for medical expenses is limited to the amount
that would have been paid pursuant to the Workers' Compensation Law fee schedule.
Present law (R.S. 22:1269) provides that the insolvency or bankruptcy of an insured shall
not release an insurer from the payment of damages for injuries sustained or loss occasioned
during the existence of a policy. Present law further provides that any judgment rendered
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against the insured for which the insurer is liable which has become executory shall be
deemed prima facie evidence of the insolvency of the insured, and an action may thereafter
be maintained within the terms and limits of the policy by the injured person or his survivors
or heirs against the insurer.
Proposed law retains present law.
Present law authorizes an injured person or his survivors or heirs to sue the liability insurer
either alone or jointly and in solido with the insured who caused the injury. Present law
further provides that a direct action may be brought against the insurer alone if one of the
following occurs:
(1)The insured has been adjudged bankrupt by a court of competent jurisdiction or
proceedings to adjudge an insured bankrupt have been commenced before a court of
competent jurisdiction.
(2)The insured is insolvent.
(3)Service of citation or other process cannot be made on the insured.
(4)The cause of action is for damages resulting from an offense or quasi offense
between children and parents or between married persons.
(5)The insurer is an uninsured motorist carrier.
(6)The insured is deceased.
Proposed law repeals present law.
It is the intent of present law that any action brought pursuant to present law shall be subject
to all of the lawful conditions of the policy or contract and the defenses which could be
urged by the insurer to a direct action brought by the insured, provided the terms and
conditions of the policy or contract are not in violation of the laws of this state.
Proposed law repeals present law.
It is also the intent of present law that all liability policies within their terms and limits are
executed for the benefit of all injured persons and their survivors or heirs to whom the
insured is liable. Present law further provides that it is the purpose of all liability policies
to give protection and coverage to all insureds, whether they are named insured or additional
insureds under the omnibus clause, for any legal liability the insured may have as or for a
tortfeasor within the terms and limits of the policy.
Proposed law retains present law but makes a technical change.
Present law (R.S. 22:333) provides that the transacting of business in this state by a foreign
or alien insurer pursuant to a certificate of authority issued pursuant to present law shall
constitute a consent to being sued by the injured person or his heirs in a direct action,
whether the policy of insurance sued upon was written or delivered in the state of La. or not,
and whether or not the policy contains a provision forbidding a direct action, if the accident
or injury occurred within La.
Proposed law repeals present law.
Proposed law requires every motor vehicle insurer authorized to transact business in La. to
make a motor vehicle policy rate filing with the Dept. of Insurance at least once every 12
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HB NO. 372
months for the 36 months following the effective date of proposed law and to reduce rates
when actuarially justified.
Effective Jan. 1, 2020.
(Amends C.C. Art. 3493.10, C.C.P. Art. 1732(1), and R.S. 22:1269; Adds R.S. 9:2800.25;
Repeals C.C. Art. 3492 and R.S. 22:333(E))
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