This week, the National Fair Housing Alliance (NFHA) announced a settlement of a lawsuit against Travelers Indemnity Company in which it alleged that Travelers engaged in discriminatory conduct in violation of the Fair Housing Act (FHA). NFHA accused Travelers of refusing to provide habitational insurance policies to District of Columbia landlords that rent to tenants who use Housing Choice Vouchers. NFHA claimed that this policy had a disparate impact on African-Americans and women and served no legitimate business purpose. It was also alleged that the practice violated local fair housing law.
Among other provisions of the settlement, Travelers has agreed not to ask about the source of income of residents at D.C. properties that it considers insuring. We would note that source of income discrimination is prohibited in the District of Columbia, but is not a federally protected class.
Our friends at the Ballard Consumer Finance Monitor have posted additional information about the lawsuit and the settlement.