Articles Posted in Hail Claims

When suing an insurance company, the pleading of a lawsuit have to be proper or the case gets thrown out of court. An example of an insurance company trying to do this is found in a 2015 case from the United States District Court, Southern District of Texas. It is styled, Garza v. Scottsdale Insurance Company,et al.

This is an insurance coverage dispute arising from hail storm damage to Garza’s home. Scottsdale removed the case from state court on the basis of diversity jurisdiction, with its allegation that the non- diverse claims adjusters, Wardlaw Claims Service, L.L.P. and Michael Clark (jointly Adjusters), were improperly joined. The Court granted the motion of Garza to remand from the Federal Court to the State Court, ruling that in this case the proper pleading standard was met.

Scottsdale’s argument is that Garza has not satisfied pleading rules because, while federal courts often apply Texas “fair notice” pleading rules in removal decisions, Texas pleading rules are no longer as liberal as they once were. Scottsdale refers to newly adopted Texas Rule of Civil Procedure 91a, which provides for dismissal “on the grounds that [the cause of action] has no basis in law or fact.”

Duncanville insurance attorneys need to know how the courts looks at the appraisal provisions in an insurance policy. This issue came up in a recent Amarillo Court of Appeals opinion styled, Texas Farm Bureau Insurance Company v. Brittni Sampley.

Farm Bureau insured Sampley’s vehicle under a Texas personal automobile policy. The vehicle suffered hail damage and, when the parties disagreed over the cost of repairs, Sampley invoked the appraisal provision in the policy. It requires each party to select a “competent appraiser.” Each party selected an appraiser. After being notified of Sampley’s choice of Robert Batt as her appraiser, Farm Bureau sent her a letter advising her choice was “unacceptable as Mr. Batt is an employee of Bernard’s Advanced Collision, the body shop who repaired your vehicle. Texas law not only requires appraisers to be competent, but also disinterested in the outcome of the appraisal process.” The letter asked Sampley to “inform us once you have selected a disinterested appraiser.” When Sampley declined to change appraisers, Farm Bureau filed suit asking the trial court to remove Batt as appraiser. The parties stipulated Batt “is not disinterested as to the appraisal of the loss at issue because he is employed by Bernard’s Advanced Collision and that company will be paid from the results of the appraisal.”

Farm Bureau filed a motion for summary judgment which was denied. The court issued a further order stating in part that it “sees no requirement that an appraiser in this appraisal process must be both competent and disinterested and will not impose such a requirement.”

Dallas insurance lawyers who handle roof damage claims will want to ready this “Order” from a Fort Worth Federal Court. The style of the case is, Living Word Teaching Center v. Robert Morris Adams, Jr. and Allstate Insurance Company.

Living Word, a church, secured an insurance policy from Allstate covering its 5,000 square foot church. Living Word later built a large arena next to the church and sought additional coverage for the arena from Allstate. In December 2013, the arena suffered a collapse and was damaged. When Living Word filed an insurance claim with Allstate for the damage suffered, Allstate advised Living Word that the arena was not listed on the policy and therefore, was not covered.

Living Word brought the following claims against Defendants: (1) violations of the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act against Allstate insurance agent, Adams; (2) negligent misrepresentation against Adams; (3) negligence/negligent procurement against Adams; and (4) agency and vicarious liability against Adams and Allstate.

Parker County lawyers who handle hail storm claims should keep up legislation dealing with the topic. The Insurance Journal published an article that should be read. The title of the article is, Bills Aimed At Property Claims Litigation Expected In Texas Legislative Session. Here is what the article says.

Texas lawmakers are expected to file legislation this year aimed at stemming the tide of property claims litigation in the wake of catastrophic weather events, such as hailstorms.

Proponents of such legislation would like to see a measure that limits the time in which claims over property losses may be filed, similar to the limitations put in place for the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association after it was inundated with claims-related lawsuits following Hurricane Ike.

Dallas lawyers handling hail damage claims need to be aware of the actions taking place in Austin. A recent article from the Insurance Journal needs to be read. The title of the article is, Attorneys, Insurers Facing Off Over Hail Litigation In Texas. Here is what it tells us about the battle between hail claims attorneys and insurance companies.

The vestiges of twin hailstorms that ravaged the south Texas coast in 2012 are now blowing through the halls of the Capitol in Austin.

Two of the state’s most-powerful lobbies, the insurance industry and trial lawyers, are gearing up for a fight over a push to ease penalties against companies that deny homeowners their hail-damage claims.