Interpreting An Insurance Policy

Notice To Insurance Company

April 5, 2012 | Mark S. Humphreys

People in Grand Prairie, Fort Worth, Mansfield, Crowley, Burleson, Benbrook, Joshua, and other places in Tarrant and Johnson County need to understand the importance of notifying the company quickly when a potential claim arises.

The Fort Worth Court of Appeals issued an opinion in 2007 dealing with “notice” to an insurance company about a claim. This one is a little unusual but still illustrates the importance of notifying the insurance company about potential claims as soon as possible. The style of the case is, Allstate Insurance Company and Allstate Texas Lloyd’s v. John Hunter and Wife, Carmen Hunter. Here are some facts.

In the summer of 2002, the Hunters noticed a strange smell in their home. The Hunter’s HO-B homeowner’s policy with the Allstate companies expired in October 2002, and the Hunters replace it with an HO-A homeowner’s policy. The strange smell persisted, and in December 2002, the Hunters hired a company to conduct air sampling testing in their home. The results revealed no elevated mold content in the air and offered no explanation for the smell. In February 2003, a general contractor inspected the Hunter’s home. When the contractor entered the crawlspace under the home, he saw water damage and mold. The Hunters testified that this was the first time they knew of the mold damage or that the source of the odor that they had been smelling was mold. They made a claim with Allstate two days later.

Flood Damage Claim

April 1, 2012 | Mark S. Humphreys

People in Weatherford, Aledo, Azle, Springtown, Hudson Oaks, Willow Park, Millsap, Brock, Mineral Wells, and other places in Parker County prone to flooding losses should be interested in a recent opinion issued by the United States Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.

The opinion was issued on March 6, 2012, and the style of the case is, Tom Worthen v. Fidelity National Property and Casualty Insurance Company. The case is an appeal by Fidelity National regarding a summary judgment in favor of their insured, Worthen. This appeals court reversed and rendered in favor of Fidelity National.

Here is some background information.

Insurance Lawyers Arguing The Case

March 27, 2012 | Mark S. Humphreys

Attorneys in Grand Prairie, Arlington, Fort Worth, and other places in the Dallas – Fort Worth area are paid to argue cases. Here is a case where the reasoning sounds pretty good.

The style of the case is Raymundo Salcedo v. Evanston Insurance Company. The opinion was issued on February 22, 2012, by the United States Court of Appeals, 5th Circuit. The appeal arises from the district court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of Evanston upon a conclusion that Evanston owed no coverage under its commercial general liability (CGL) insurance policy issued to Villegas & Sons, Incorporated (Villegas). Salcedo, the injured claimant, argued on appeal that the district court errred by construing the “auto” exclusion to preclude coverage for the judgment he obtained in state court against Villegas. Here are the facts.

Salcedo is a judgment creditor of Villegas pursuant to a final judgment entered by the 448th District Court of El Paso, Texas, for $1.1 million plus interest. Evanston denied coverage in the state court proceeding based on the “auto” exclusion in its CGL policy.

Insurance Lawyer And Policy Interpretation

March 25, 2012 | Mark S. Humphreys

Deer hunters in Grand Prairie, Arlington, Fort Worth, Hurst, Euless, Bedford, Mansfield, North Richland Hills, Saginaw, and other places in Tarrant County should find this case interesting. It shows how an experienced Insurance Law Attorney can help in making a recovery in an injury case.

The style of the case is, Farmers Insurance Exchange and Allstate County Mutual Insurance Company v Juan Rodriguez. The opinion in the case was issued on February 16, 2012, by the Houston Court of Appeals, 14th District. Here is some background.

Juan Rodriguez was injured while helping his neighbor Michael Woodling remove a deer stand from Woodling’s trailer. Rodriguez sued Woodling for negligence and, in the same case, Rodriguez’s automobile insurer, Allstate, seeking coverage under an uninsured/underinsured motorist (UIM) policy. Rodriguez later sued Woodling’s insurer, seeking liability coverage from Woodling under his homeowner’s policy. In a pre-trial partial summary judgment, the court declared the claims were covered by both insurance policies. At trial, the jury found Woodling negligent. The appeal was about the interpretation of the policies as it relates to this claim.

Uninsured Claim

March 24, 2012 | Mark S. Humphreys

Insureds in Grand Prairie, Fort Worth, Dallas, Cedar Hill, De Soto, Irving, Carrollton, Mesquite, Garland, and other places in Dallas and Tarrant Counties should find this case interesting. It deals with the definition of “uninsured motor vehicle” in an automobile insurance policy.

The case was decided on February 8, 2012. The opinion was issued by the Austin Court of Appeals. The style of the case is, “Nealey Michelle Malham v. Government Employees Insurance Company“.

Malham appealed her take-nothing judgment in her suit for uninsured motorist coverage against Government Employees Insurance Company (GEICO). This appeals court upheld the take-nothing judgment.

Certificate Of Insurance

March 20, 2012 | Mark S. Humphreys

Business people in Grand Prairie, Fort Worth, Arlington, Saginaw, Roanoke, Grapevine, Hurst, Euless, Bedford, and other cities in the Dallas / Fort Worth metroplex area should pay attention to this recent case.

The United States District Court, Southern District, Houston Division, issued an opinion on January 24, 2012, in a case styled, Bender Square Partners v. Factory Mutual Insurance Company, d/b/a FM Global, and PNS Stores, Inc.

This case deals with the rights conferred by a Certificate of Insurance, or more accurately the rights that are not conferred.

Insurance Policy Interpretation And Lawyers

March 18, 2012 | Mark S. Humphreys

Residents of Weatherford, Mineral Wells, Springtown, Aledo, Azle, Hudson Oaks, Willow Park, Millsap, Cool, Brock, and other places in Parker County need to know about this case regarding auto policies.

This case is an “Official Order” of the Commissioner of Insurance of the State of Texas. The style of the case is Texas Department of Insurance vs. Old American Mutual Fire Insurance Company. This opinion was issued on January 3, 2012.

The Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) alleged that Old American engaged in unfair claim settlement practices or unfair and deceptive acts when it rescinded private passenger automobile policies after third parties had been injured. TDI sought restitution for third parties and a monetary penalty for each of the 450 policies that Old American rescinded. Old American asserted that the misrepresentations included failing to list all members of a household who would be driving the insured vehicle and procuring insurance on a vehicle the applicant did not own or use.

Exclusions In Homeowners Insurance Policies

March 11, 2012 | Mark S. Humphreys

Someone in Grand Prairie, Fort Worth, Arlington, Dallas, Mansfield, Cedar Hill, Duncanville, De Soto, Irving, or anywhere else in the Dallas / Fort Worth area would have a hard time understanding how to interpret “exclusions” in an insurance policy. It can be difficult even for an experienced Insurance Law Attorney.

Here is a case where an exclusion was at issue.

The style of the case is, Farmers Insurance Exchange v. Neal. This is a 2003, opinion issued by the Texarkana Court of Appeals. Here are some of the facts.

When Is A Passenger A User Of A Vehicle For Purposes Of Insurance Coverage?

March 8, 2012 | Mark S. Humphreys

Here’s one for people living in Weatherford, Mineral Wells, Aledo, Azle, Willow Park Brock, Hudson Oaks, Millsap, Springtown, and other places Texas. When will a passenger be consider a “user” of an automobile?

This is a Dallas Court of Appeals case that was decided in 1997. The style of the case is American Economy Insurance Company v. United Services Automobile Association. Here is some of the background information including the underlying case that this case resulted from.

In the underlying case, Scott Johnson (Driver) was driving a vehicle belonging to his father (Father). Three friends, including Benjamin Ellis, were passengers. The driver and the passengers were intoxicated. The vehicle collided with a second car and the Driver, Scott Johnson, was killed. The three passengers were injured.

What Is An Accident For Automobile Coverage?

March 6, 2012 | Mark S. Humphreys

People in Grand Prairie, Fort Worth, Mansfield, Grapevine, Hurst, Euless, Bedford, Arlington, Kennedale, and other places in the Dallas and Fort Worth areas may find themselves in a situation where their automobile insurance carrier is refusing coverage based on the circumstances of the claim. Here are two examples where the auto insurance company were successful in their claim denial.

The first case was decided in 2001, by the Fort Worth Court of Appeals. The style of the case is, Collier v. Allstate County Mutual Insurance Company. Here are some of the relevant facts.

Amy Cook was insured under an automobile insurance policy issued by Allstate. Her fiance’, Ryan Collier, was driving Cook’s automobile one day when following an automobile driven by Amy Jeanine Dunn. While stopped at a red light, Collier got out of the car and began screaming and hitting Dunn’s automobile. Cook and the other passengers in her automobile allegedly encouraged Collier’s rampage. Dunn attempted to escape by going forward into the intersection, where her automobile collided with a third automobile. Dunn brought suit against Collier and Cook for negligently causing fear and negligently operating their vehicle.