Dallas insurance attorneys and those in Duncanville, Carrollton, Farmers Branch, Garland, and other places in Dallas County need to know the laws regarding the liability of an insurance company.
The law in Texas is very clear, as the contracting party, the insurance company may be liable based on the contract with their insurance customer.
An insurance company may also be statutorily liable. For example, Texas Insurance Code, Section 541.151, tells us;
Fort Worth insurance lawyers and those in North Richland Hills, Roanoke, Keller, Saginaw, and other places in the Tarrant County area need to keep up with opinions issued by the courts in Texas.
The United States District Court, Southern District, Houston Division, issued an opinion December 12, 2012, that is worth reading. This is an appeal from a summary judgment.
American General is in the business of issuing policies of life insurance. David Mickelson entered into an Agent Contract with American General to solicit applications for insurance plans. Mickelson’s Agent Contract requires agents to “repay to American General, on demand, any unearned commissions or service fees received by agents for, or with respect to, premiums or payments returned to policy or contract owners by American General for any reason.”
Grand Prairie insurance attorneys need to understand what constitutes negligence by an insurance agent. A 1987, San Antonio Court of Appeals case looks at this. The style of the case is, Rainey-Mapes v. Queen Charters, Inc.
Here are some facts:
This case involves appeals arising from the non-payment of an insurance claim. William Gordon, president of Queen Charters, Inc., individually and as co-principal with Queen Charters, Inc. contracted to purchase a sailboat from the Estate of Theodore Schmidt (Schmidt). The boat, valued at $150,000.00, was purchased for $100,000.00. Gordon and Queen Charters (Gordon/Queen Charters) paid $5,000.00 down payment on the boat, and executed a promissory note to Schmidt for the balance of $95,000.00. The sales agreement required the buyers to maintain insurance on the vessel, which protected Schmidt as the loss payee. Gordon contacted the Sanger & Altgelt Insurance Agency (Sanger) to procure the required insurance. Sanger, acting as an agent for Gordon/Queen Charters, contacted Rainey-Mapes, an insurance broker, to obtain the insurance as Sanger does not normally handle maritime insurance. Rainey-Mapes contacted Southern Maritime Underwriters Limited who in turn contacted the Colony Insurance Company. Colony ultimately issued the insurance policy to Gordon/Queen Charters.
Grand Prairie insurance attorneys need to be able to recognize when and if an insurance agent does something wrong.
A 1992, Amarillo Court of Appeals case provides some good discussion on this issue. The style of the case is, Pickens v. Texas Farm Bureau Insurance Companies.
Here is some of the relevant information.
Fort Worth insurance lawyers need to know the law as it regards the negligence of insurance agents.
The Texas Supreme Court issued an opinion in 1985, dealing with this issue. The case is styled, Kitching v. Zamora.
Here is some relevant case information:
Attorneys in Grand Prairie, Irving, Arlington, Fort Worth, and other places in Texas need to understand the ways insurance law works and what constitutes a misrepresentation by an insurance agent.
Here is a case from 1990, that might be helpful in understanding a little bit of how this works. The case is styled, Preston Insurance Agency v. Daryl May et. al. and the opinion was issued by the Texarkana Court of Appeals.
Here is some background.
Insurance Law Attorneys and Lawyers in Fort Worth, Dallas, Weatherford, and other places in Texas know the claims that can be made against an insurance company that treats one of its insureds in an unlawful manner. These same lawyers should also know the claims to make against insurance agents that make misrepresentations to their insureds when selling a policy of insurance.
The question today is: Can an agent be held liable for something he does not say? The answer is: It depends. Here is a case that gives some guidance.
The San Antonio Court of Appeals issued an opinion in 1998, in the case styled, Moore v. Whitney-Vaky Agency. Here are some facts:
No matter if you are in Weatherford, Mineral Wells, Aledo, Azle, Willow Park, Hudson Oaks, Brock, Millsap, Cool, Peaster, Springtown, or any other place in Parker County, at many points in your life there will be times when you buy insurance and as a result there will be many chances for the insurance company to make a mistake.
The insurance industry is regulated in Texas by the Texas Department of Insurance and complaints can be filed with that department. The courts in Texas handle disputes that become lawsuits and these disputes can wind up in the Texas Supreme Court. Guidelines and laws/statutes for insurance companies to follow are found in the Texas Insurance Code and the Texas Administrative Code.
There are many ways an insurance company can mess up.
People in Weatherford, Aledo, Azle, Hudson Oaks, Willow Park, Mineral Wells, Millsap, Brock, Cool, Springtown, Peaster, Poolville, Whitt, and other places in Parker County need to make sure they know what they are doing when they sign a release for a claim they have against an insurance company.
The Texas Court of Appeals, Amarillo, issued an opinion on October 25, 2011. The style of the case is Trisha Braziel, Spencer Braziel and Kathy Wright v. Becton Insurance Agency, Inc.
This case was an appeal from a Motion For Summary Judgement which was granted against the Braziels and Wright.
The liability of an insurance agent for his actions in selling an insurance policy to someone in Grand Prairie, Arlington, Mansfield, Fort Worth, Hurst, Euless, Bedford, or anywhere else in Texas should be of interest to the person buying the insurance. Especially so if the agent does something wrong and as a result the insurance company denies a claim made by the customer.
That is what happened in the 1989, case, “Paramount National Life Insurance Company v. Frankie Williams.” This opinion was issued by the Houston, 14th District, Court of Appeals. Here are some of the facts.
Frankie Williams sued Paramount after the denial of two claims and the cancellation of her medical insurance policy. The jury found in her favor and Paramount appealed the decision.
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