2006 Louisiana Laws - RS 22:1386 — Nonduplication of recovery

§1386.  Nonduplication of recovery

A.  Any person having a claim against an insurer under any provision in an insurance policy, other than a policy of an insolvent insurer which is also a covered claim, shall be required first to exhaust his rights under such policy.  Such other policies of insurance shall include but shall not be limited to liability coverage, uninsured or underinsured motorist liability coverage, or both, hospitalization, coverage under self-insurance certificates, coverage under a health maintenance organization or plan, preferred provider organization or plan, or similar plan, and any and all other medical expense coverage.  All entities that are prohibited from recovering against the association, as specified in R.S. 22:1379(3)(b), shall  also be considered insurers for purposes of this Subsection.  As to the association, any amount payable by such other insurance shall act as a credit against the damages of the claimant, and the association shall not be liable for such portion of the damages of the claimant.  In the case of a claimant alleging personal injury or death caused by exposure to asbestos fibers or other claim resulting from exposure to, release of, or contamination from any environmental pollutant or contaminant, such claimant must first exhaust any and all other insurance available to the insured for said claim for any policy period for which insurance is available before recovering from the association, even if an insolvent insurer provided the only coverage for one or more policy periods of the alleged exposure.

B.  Any person having a claim which may be recovered under more than one insurance guaranty association or its equivalent shall seek recovery first from the association of the place of residence of the insured except that if it is a first party claim for damage to property with a permanent location, he shall seek recovery first from the association of the location of the property, and if it is a workers' compensation claim, he shall seek recovery first from the association of the residence of the claimant.  A claimant alleging personal injury or death caused by exposure to asbestos fibers or other claim resulting from exposure to, release of, or contamination from any environmental pollutant or contaminant, asserted against the association must either be a domiciliary of the state of Louisiana at the time of the exposure or allege that his exposure to asbestos or other environmental hazard, which is a substantial contributing factor to the physical impairment upon which the claim is based, occurred in Louisiana.  Where more than one claimant is joined, each claimant must independently establish that Louisiana is either his domicile or place in which the alleged exposure occurred.

C.  Any recovery under this Part by any claimant not a resident of the state of Louisiana at the time such claim arose, shall not exceed the lesser of the recovery allowed under this Part or that payable by the insurance guaranty association or its equivalent in the claimant's state of residence.  As to the association, any amount payable by the other guaranty association or its equivalent shall act as a credit against the damages of the claimant, and the association shall not be liable for that portion of the damages of the claimant.

D.  The association shall have no duty to provide a separate defense at its cost to an insured of an insolvent insurer as to any issue arising out of the coverage of this Section.

Added by Acts 1970, No. 81, §1.  Acts 1983, 1st Ex.  Sess., No. 1, §6; Acts 1990, No. 130, §1; Acts 1992, No. 237, §2, eff. June 10, 1992; Acts 1999, No. 477, §1, eff. June 18, 1999; Acts 2004, No. 108, §1.

NOTE:  See Acts 1992, No. 237, §3 for provision on applicability to pending claims.