Plaintiffs Failed to Support Claims for Penalties Against Insurer, La. Federal Judge Rules

NEW ORLEANS — A Louisiana federal judge has awarded an insurer summary judgment on claims for sanctions and attorney fees, ruling that the policyholders failed to prove that the insurer’s failure to pay their claim for hailstorm damages was arbitrary, capricious, or without probable cause.

On Jan. 28, Judge Ivan L.R. Lemelle of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana found that the policyholders’ claims are merely “fleeting efforts to recover additional funds without providing any supporting evidence or law.”

Adrien and Rachel DuBois allege that their Louisiana properties were extensively damaged during a hailstorm in February …