Insurer Sued By Haitians Accusing It Of Prejudice

MIAMI - Three people have sued Liberty National Life Insurance Co. claiming their insurance was canceled or undervalued because of discrimination against Haitian-Americans.

The plaintiffs say Liberty National asked leading questions about their foreign travel plans and that underwriters listened for a "Haitian" accent, according to the lawsuit filed Jan. 14 in Miami federal court.

Since 2004, Liberty National has denied policies "based solely on the applicant's race and Haitian ancestry, ethnicity and national origin," or replaced them with policies normally sold only to the terminally ill, the lawsuit claims.

Spokeswoman Joyce Lane of Torchmark Corp., the parent company of Alabama-based Liberty National, said Tuesday she would not comment on an active lawsuit.

In 2006, Liberty National reached a $6 million settlement in a nationwide class-action lawsuit that accused it of selling policies to blacks for higher premiums and lower benefits than to other customers.

The new class-action lawsuit was filed by three Haitian-Americans who live in Florida. It seeks at least $75,000 in compensatory damages.

Two plaintiffs claim they qualified for standard life insurance, but later were issued different policies with higher premiums and lower benefits.

The third plaintiff said a life insurance policy he had for two years was canceled after an underwriter subtly asked him in a friendly phone call if he planned to ever visit Haiti. The plaintiff replied he would like to do so in the future, and the underwriter told him his policy was immediately canceled, according to the lawsuit.

Life insurance companies cannot terminate a policy because of foreign travel, but can refuse to issue one, said James Hunt, a life insurance actuary with the Consumer Federation of America.

"If you're going to Iraq, nobody wants to write you a life insurance policy," Hunt said. "Most of us know Haiti can be a dangerous place."

The U.S State Department has issued a travel warning for Haiti, because of security concerns in the Caribbean country.