According to the Louisiana Department of Insurance, 366 homeowners' insurance companies — or 99.8 percent of all homeowners' insurance business written in the state — have complied with Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon's order to extend the prescriptive period for policyholders to file lawsuits for hurricane-related insurance claims. State Farm and Allstate, which account for more than 50 percent of the market share, were among the companies that extended the deadline.

The prescriptive period, or length of time an insurance policyholder has to make and settle a claim, is usually limited to one year. However, because of the extent of devastation, most companies have agreed to a year extension. That means claims resulting from Hurricane Katrina must be settled by Aug. 29, 2007 and Hurricane Rita claims by Sept. 24, 2007.

Donelon warned that the time period for extensions does vary by company and while some may offer an extension of up to two additional years, it may be limited if they give the Department of Insurance 30- or 60-days written notice to rescind the stipulation.