Court Authorized Notice to Oklahomans - Who Had Homeowner's Insurance Issued by Farmers...

Court Authorized Notice to Oklahomans - Who Had Homeowner's Insurance Issued
by Farmers - About Their Rights in a Class Action Lawsuit

LAWTON, Okla., March 31 /PRNewswire/ -- A statewide notice program
authorized by the District Court of Comanche County, Oklahoma began today in
order to issue notices to those who had homeowner's insurance issued by
Farmers Insurance Company, Inc. and Farmers Insurance Exchange (the
"Defendants") after June 14, 1994. The notices are a result of the Court
establishing or "certifying," in August 2003, a class action lawsuit about
whether the Defendants improperly withheld payments for general contractor's
overhead and profit ("O&P") from amounts paid on claims under homeowner's
insurance policies to citizens of Oklahoma.
The lawsuit is called Burgess et al. v. Farmers Insurance Company, Inc. et
al., No. CJ-2001-292. The lawsuit includes all citizens of Oklahoma who were
or are Farmers homeowners' policyholders who: (1) suffered a covered loss to
their home from June 14, 1994 to the present; (2) whose loss was adjusted on
an actual cash value ("ACV") basis; (3) whose claim files indicated the
anticipated involvement of three trades or more in the repair of the property
at the time of the ACV adjustment; and (4) whose ACV adjustment did not
include a 20% payment for O&P. Generally, a claim was adjusted on an ACV
basis if the initial payment from the Defendants for the covered loss had
depreciation taken out. Depreciation is a decrease or loss in value that
occurs because of age or wear.
The lawsuit says that the Defendants intentionally underpaid the
homeowners' claims of thousands of Oklahomans by failing to provide them a
payment for O&P. The Plaintiffs' claims are based on the contention that
there is an industry standard three trades rule which requires payment for the
services of a general contractor when three or more trades are anticipated in
a home repair. The Defendants deny they have underpaid any homeowners'
claims, or that they failed to provide homeowners insureds with any relevant
information concerning coverage. It is the position of the Defendants that
there is no industry standard three trades rule, and that the determination of
whether, and when, O&P is reasonably likely to be incurred depends upon a
number of different factors in addition to the number of trades. The lawsuit
seeks money or benefits for the Class.
The Court has not decided whether the Class or the Defendants are right.
The lawyers for the Class will have to prove their claims at a trial. The
Court appointed the following lawyers from Oklahoma to represent the Class as
"Class Counsel": Reggie Whitten and Michael Burrage of Whitten, Burrage,
Priest, Fulmer, Anderson & Eisel; Jason Roselius and Derrick Morton of Nelson,
Roselius, Terry, O'Hara & Morton; and Terry West and Bradley West of The West
Law Firm.
Those who wish to remain members of the Class don't have to do anything at
this time and will be informed about any claims process that results from the
trial or any proposed settlement. Class members will be bound by all orders
and judgments of the Court.
Class members may exclude themselves from the Class. To do so, they must
mail a letter stating that they want to be excluded from Burgess v. Farmers
Insurance Company, Inc., and include their name, address, telephone number,
and signature. Exclusion requests must be postmarked by May 16, 2008, and
sent to Burgess Exclusions, PO Box 6336, Portland, OR 97228-6336. Class
members who exclude themselves from the Class cannot participate in any
recovery for the Class, and will not be bound by any court orders or
judgments.
For more information and a detailed Notice, Class members may write to the
above address, or see the website at http://www.Burgess-Class.com.
SOURCE District Court of Comanche County, Oklahoma

Plaintiffs: Derrick Morton of Nelson, Roselius, Terry, O'Hara & Morton,
+1-405-705-3600; Defendants: Thomas T. Rogers of Jackson Walker L.L.P.,
+1-512-236-2030