NU Online News Service,Jan. 18, 2:34 p.m. EST

Louisiana's last-resort insurer has filed anaverage nine percent rate increase request with thestate's insurance department for personal lines risks, includinghomeowners, mobile homes, dwelling and tenant risks.

RichardRobertson, CEO of Louisiana Citizens Property Insurance Corp., saidthe state-run insurer is legally mandated to make a filing once ayear. It does the filing by comparing market and actuarialinsurance rates in each parish in the state, adding 10 percent, andthen selecting whichever rate is the highest.

Mr. Robertson said the increase request thisyear is based in part on increases in the private insurancemarket.

The filing has been submitted to the state'sinsurance department for review. Louisiana Commissioner Jim Donelonsaid actuaries from the department will look at the filing and thenthe department will discuss the findings with Citizens.

He said Citizens and the department have gone back and forthalmost every year with actuarial reviews. He noted that people tendto think of actuarial science as straightmathematics, but he said, "There is a large degree of art in theprocess." Judgments are made, he said, and the department willreview those judgments over the next several weeks.

According to Highline Data, Louisiana Citizens had the thirdlargest homeowners multi-peril writer in the state as of 2009, witha 6.4 percent market share. State Farm was first with 27.9 percentand Allstate was second with 14 percent.

Highline Data is a part of Summit BusinessMedia, which also owns National Underwriter andPropertyCasualty360.com.