Dallas Fort Worth Insurance Lawyer Blog

Declaratory Judgment On Homeowners Policy

September 27, 2012 | Mark S. Humphreys

Grand Prairie insurance attorneys and those in Arlington, Fort Worth, Dallas, Mansfield, and other places in the DFW area have to know how to deal with an insurance company when a declaratory judgment action is filed.

The Texas Supreme Court issued an opinion in a case in 1999, that had it’s legal beginning from a declaratory judgment action. The style of the case is, Texas Farmers Insurance Co. v. Murphy. Here is the relevant information.

Mr. Murphy obtained homeowners insurance with Texas Farmers in 1993. Seven days later the home was ransacked and intentionally burned down. Mr. Murphy submitted a proof of loss claiming $115,000 for damage to the structure and $69,000 for damage to personal property.

Declaratory Judgments For Insurance Cases

September 25, 2012 | Mark S. Humphreys

Weatherford insurance lawyers and those in Aledo, Azle, Springtown, Hudson Oaks, Cool, Millsap, Brock, and other places in Parker County need to have a good understanding of declaratory judgment actions.

The Austin Court of Appeals issued an opinion in 1998, that was a declaratory judgment action. The style of the case is, Calderon v. Mid-Century Insurance Company of Texas.

Here is the relevant information:

Insurance – What’s Not Covered

September 23, 2012 | Mark S. Humphreys

Fort Worth insurance lawyers and those in Grapevine, Colleyville, Saginaw, Roanoke, and other places in the Tarrant County area need to have knowledge of the various coverages in an insurance policy.

There was a recent article on the internet that discussed this topic. It’s title was, “Beware of Common Holes in Homeowners Insurance.”

Earthquakes, unexpected deductibles, and flooding are just a few of the costs your homeowners policy might not cover. But if you’re like most Americans, you probably don’t realize it. According to the MetLife Auto & Home Insurance Literacy Survey, many homeowners are clueless about the ins and outs of their policies, which means they could easily end up paying a lot more than they expected after damage to their home.

Deceptive Trade Practices

September 22, 2012 | Mark S. Humphreys

Weatherford lawyers and those in Mineral Wells, Springtown, Aledo, Azle, Willow Park, Hudson Oaks, Millsap, Brock and other places in Parker County need to have an understanding of the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act.

One part of this Act that most attorneys do not realize is discussed in a case opinion issued by the San Antonio Court of Appeals in the case styled, Texas Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Co. v. Rogers. Here are some of the relevant facts.

Texas Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Co. (“Farm Bureau”), appealed from the jury’s verdict and award to Shannan Rogers and Cristen Bazan (“the Heirs”), in a suit involving a homeowner’s insurance policy. The Court reversed and rendered judgment that the Heirs take nothing.

Under Insured Insurance Fighting Against You

September 20, 2012 | Mark S. Humphreys

Weatherford lawyers and those in Mineral Wells, Springtown, Aledo, Azle, Poolville, Cool, Millsap, Brock, and other places in Parker County need to have a good understanding of how Under Insured motorist coverage works. Good Morning America highlighted this topic in a story recently. Here is what the said.

The brother of a woman who was killed in car accident is accusing her insurance company of defending the person he said is her killer in an insurance legal dispute, including calling a witness to the stand against her.

Kaitlynn Fisher, called Katie by her brother and who had engineering degrees from Johns Hopkins University, died in a car accident on June 19, 2010 in Baltimore after another driver ran a red light. She was 24.

Fraud Claims

September 18, 2012 | Mark S. Humphreys

Insurance lawyers in Fort Worth, Arlington, Hurst, Euless, Bedford, Lake Worth, Saginaw, and other places in Tarrant County need to be tuned in to what looks like or constitutes insurance fraud. The Texas Penal Code, Chapter 35 deals with insurance fraud in the State of Texas. Also the Texas Department of Insurance has information that may be helpful for learning more about it.

The Associated Press ran an article in August 2012, that dealt with an example of insurance fraud:

The article tells us that a man who reported his father missing at a beach in New York was charged with insurance fraud and filing a false report several days after his father turned up alive in the State of South Carolina. This was following a massive air and water search that cost tens of thousands of dollars.

Insurance Fraud

September 16, 2012 | Mark S. Humphreys

Grand Prairie insurance attorneys and those in Dallas, Fort Worth, Mansfield, Irving, De Soto, Cedar Hill, Arlington, and other places in the Dallas / Fort Worth metroplex need to know how to evaluate a case. There will be those times when a person may be trying to commit insurance fraud. An attorney needs to know the penalties associated with such efforts.

The Insurance Journal ran an article dealing with new penalties enacted in the State of Alabama. Here is most of the article:

A number of recently enacted laws in Alabama concerning property-casualty insurance became effective on August 1.

Insurance Claim Denied

September 15, 2012 | Mark S. Humphreys

Weatherford insurance attorneys and those in Mineral Wells, Aledo, Samson Park, Azle, Hudson Oaks, Peaster, Cool, Poolville, Whitt, Springtown, Millsap, Brock, and other places in Parker County need to know the various ways under the Texas Insurance Code and Texas Common Law that recovery can be made when an insurance claim is wrongfully denied by an insurance company.

“The Record,” a newspaper in Madison, Wisconsin ran an article telling us about a couple suing their insurance company pro se.

A Belleville couple is asking for more than $100,000 from insurance companies that allegedly denied damage claims without cause.

Personal Injury Protection Coverage

September 13, 2012 | Mark S. Humphreys

Grand Prairie insurance attorneys and those in Irving, Duncanville, De Soto, Lancaster, Richardson, Garland, Mesquite, Farmers Branch, Carrollton, and other places in Dallas County should have a good understanding of the way that Personal Injury Protection (PIP) benefits work. The State of Florida through it’s department of insurance mandates coverage much the way Texas does. The SunSentinel ran an article dealing with PIP complaints. Here is much of what the article says.

Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater blasted the auto insurance industry Tuesday, saying it needed to “quit the whining” over reductions to auto insurance rates required as part of reforms to the state’s no-fault auto insurance law.

“The insurance industry came to each committee meeting, they lobbied these legislators – ‘You’ve got to make these changes so we can help our customers,'” Atwater said in an interview. “But no sooner do suggested reductions come out and everybody starts running for cover.”

Subrogation

September 11, 2012 | Mark S. Humphreys

Fort Worth insurance attorneys and those in Grapevine, Haslet, Rhome, Newark, and other places around Tarrant County need to have an understanding of subrogation issues when handling insurance cases.

The Eastland Court of Appeals issued an opinion in 2006, that dealt with subrogation. The style of the case is, State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company v. Perkins. Here is some relevant background:

Shannon Perkins was involved in an automobile accident with Eddie Mike Cooper Jr. on May 22, 2003. At the time of the accident, Cooper was driving a dump truck owned by Harold Oaks. Perkins had an automobile insurance policy with State Farm. Cooper did not have automobile liability insurance. As a result of the accident, State Farm paid $25,000 in uninsured/underinsured motorist benefits (UM) to Perkins for her injuries under the terms of her policy.