Under Louisiana law, there are tough proof requirements for an insurer seeking to use flood exclusion language in a homeowner's policy to avoid paying for a total loss, a state appeals court has ruled.

The 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals, in its 3-2 decision, while ostensibly finding in favor of the state-owned Citizens Insurance Company, sent the case back to the lower court for a trial, where it said the insurer will have to convince a jury that flooding–an excluded peril–was the total cause of loss.

Without making that case, the courts said Louisiana's valued-policy law comes into play. Under that statute, an insurer is normally required, when there is a complete loss, to pay the full face value of the policy. The law also precludes a carrier from accepting premiums for one face value and then claiming the loss is a lesser amount.

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