Hood to Discuss State Farm

Jun 11, 04:07 PM

Current Headlines: By Anita Lee, The Sun Herald, Biloxi, Miss.

Jun. 11--Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood will hold a news conference at 1 p.m. today to talk about State Farm.

Hood announced the news conference Monday morning but did not offer details. Fraser Engerman, a State Farm spokesman in Bloomington, said the company does not know what the news conference is about.

However, Hood has said he intends to file a lawsuit against State Farm because he believes the insurer has failed to live up to their agreement filed in Hinds County Chancery Court.

Hood agreed to drop a civil suit and end a criminal investigation into State Farm's Katrina claims-handling practices if the company would work out a fair class-action settlement for policyholders through U.S. District Court in Gulfport. Hood's agreement further says settlement offers to State Farm policyholders must be based on guidelines approved in U.S. District Court.

But State Farm and policyholders' attorneys in January failed to win approval from U.S. District Court Judge L.T. Senter Jr. for the agreement. Senter said the proposed agreement failed to protect policyholders' rights.

Mississippi Insurance Commissioner George Dale then stepped into the breach and worked out a separate compromise with State Farm.

Hood says the process established through Dale's office fails to meet the guidelines set out in his agreement with State Farm. Senter refused to allow Hood to intervene in the federal case, but Hood has said he would seek to enforce his agreement through other legal action.

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