Dallas Fort Worth Insurance Lawyer Blog

Replacement Cost In Insurance Policy

October 15, 2011 | Mark S. Humphreys

People in Grand Prairie, Arlington, Mansfield, Fort Worth, North Richland Hills, Saginaw, Keller, Roanoke, and other places in the Tarrant County area and Texas would want to know how their insurance policy pays for their property that is damaged in a loss that is covered by the policy.

A 1998, Austin Court of Appeals case helps us understand how some losses are calculated and paid. The case is styled, Great Texas County Mutual Insurance Co. v. Emmett C. Lewis. This is an appeal from the trial court finding in favor of Lewis.

The facts are undisputed. While covered by a policy issued by Great Texas, Lewis’s 1989 Dodge Caravan car sustained damage to the engine. The car had 110,000 miles on it. Great Texas inspected the car and calculated the cost of repairs to be $3,608.27. which included the cost of a re-manufactured engine, replacement parts, and labor. From the $3,608.27, Great Texas subtracted the policy deductible of $527 and $2,031.72 for betterment or depreciation, leaving a net sum of $1,049.55. Great Texas offered Lewis that sum to discharge the obligation under the policy.

Insurable Interest

October 13, 2011 | Mark S. Humphreys

What if someone in Weatherford, Mineral Wells, Aledo, Willow Park, Azle, Hudson Oaks, Millsap, Brock, Springtown, Cool, or anywhere else in Parker County has insurance on a house and the house burns down – do they automatically get paid the insurance on the house? The answer is – It depends.

To be able to recover on an insurance policy, the person suffering the loss must have an insurable interest in the property that is insured. The Dallas Court of Appeals issued an opinion in 1993, that is still good law. The style of the case is, William T. & Elaine Jones v. Texas Pacific Indemnity Company.

It is a summary judgment case. The Jones sued Texas Pacific on an insurance policy. The summary judgment was granted in favor of Texas Pacific because the court said the Joneses could not recover insurance proceeds on property which they did not have an insurable interest to.

Suing The Insurance Adjuster

October 11, 2011 | Mark S. Humphreys

Insurance Law Attorneys in Grand Prairie, Irving, Duncanville, De Soto, Lancaster, Mesquite, Garland, Richardson, Farmers Branch, or anywhere else in the state of Texas will usually want to sue the adjuster who handled the claim in addition to suing the insurance company when a claim is denied. There are reasons for this. But the insurance company will fight the issue.

The United States District Court, Southern District, Galveston Division, issued an opinion in a case on August 10, 2011, wherein the court allowed the adjuster to be sued over the objections of the insurance company. The style of the case is, Juan Jose Cruz, Lidia Cruz and Griselda Cruz v. Allstate Lloyds and Pilot Catastrophe Services, Inc. It is property damage claim following Hurricane Ike.

In this Federal Court case, the Cruz’s filed a “Motion for Leave to File Amended Complaint” for the purpose of adding to the lawsuit the individual adjuster who handled the investigation of the claim. Of relevance to the court was that by adding the adjuster the case still remained in Federal Court whereas often times the addition of the adjuster causes the case to be remanded to State Court.

Suing Insurance Adjusters

October 9, 2011 | Mark S. Humphreys

Adjusters in Grand Prairie, Dallas, Irving, Richardson, Garland, Mesquite, Carrollton, Farmers Branch, Duncanville, or anywhere else in Texas, who make a mistake in their job that costs an insurance customer money, can be sued for what he cost the insurance customer. The tricky thing is doing it in the most advantageous manner.

Usually the individual adjuster does not have to be sued. Suing his employer, the insurance company, is often times just as good. But sometimes there is a legal advantage to suing the adjuster and the company. Often times, if just the company is sued, the case can be removed from the State Court in which it was filed, to a Federal Court. There are advantages to the insurance company for doing a removal. That is why they do it.

One way of defeating the attempt at removal is by suing the insurance adjuster and not just the insurance company. However, doing it this way must be done correctly.

Auto Insurance And Injuries

October 8, 2011 | Mark S. Humphreys

Anybody in Grand Prairie, Arlington, Fort Worth, Mansfield, Crowley, Burleson, Benbrook, Lake Worth, Azle, Saginaw, or anywhere else in Tarrant Count should be concerned about rising cost of insurance.

The Houston Chronicle published an article on September 20, 2011, dealing with auto insurance and rising rates. The author is Purva Patel who investigates and writes lots of articles concerning insurance in the state of Texas. The title of the article is, “Insurers Raising Auto Rates.”

The article tells us that many of the state’s larger auto insurers are raising rates across the state. These insurers include but are not limited to, Allstate Fire & Casualty, USAA, State Farm, and Farmers Insurance.

Insurance Company Responsibility For Adjuster

October 6, 2011 | Mark S. Humphreys

When an adjuster in Grand Prairie, Arlington, Fort Worth, Burleson, Crowley, Lake Worth, Grandview, Benbrook, Britton, Joshua, or anywhere else in Texas commits a wrong, can the insurance company be held responsible?

That question was answered in 1936, by the Beaumont Court of Appeals in the case, Love et al. v. Aetna Casualty & Surety Co. et al. Here are some facts in the case.

Tom Love, Victoria Houston, and Cora Davis were a brother and sisters of Orange Love, deceased. They brought this lawsuit to recover damages for the mutilation and unlawful dissection and autopsy performed without there knowledge or consent in and upon the dead body of their brother, Orange Love.

Agent Liability

October 4, 2011 | Mark S. Humphreys

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.

Authority Of Insurance Agent For Insurance Company

October 2, 2011 | Mark S. Humphreys

Residents in Weatherford, Mineral Wells, Millsap, Hudson Oaks, Aledo, Willow Park, Brock, Cool, Springtown, and other places in Parker County might wonder if what their insurance agent tells them is true. Or, if what the agent says is not true?

Most insurance agents are honest. However, there are a few that are not completely honest because they want to sell you a policy in order to make their commission on the sell. Others are confused or do not completely understand the insurance product they are selling. The question becomes; what can be done when the agent makes a mistake in what he tells someone when he sells the policy?

The answer often times depends on the authority of the agent.

Homeowners Coverage Getting Less And Less

October 1, 2011 | Mark S. Humphreys

For sure, anybody in Grand Prairie, Arlington, Fort Worth, Hurst, Euless, Bedford, or anywhere else in North Texas wants to get rates as cheaply as they can on their homeowners insurance policy, but they would like to thing their coverage is staying the same. Well that may not be the case.

The Houston Chronicle published a story On September 12, 2011, which most homeowners would be interested to know. The author is Purva Patel, who has written on the topic of insurance before. The title of the article is, “State Farm Move Could Mean Less Homeowner Coverage.”

The article tells us that State Farm has proposed changing home insurance deductibles. Most anybody who has tried to get their rates lowered knows that buy raising the deductible, the yearly cost for the insurance goes down. What is different here is that State Farm is trying to make the new coverage mandatory. Consumer advocates warn this would hurt some.

Agent Misrepresents Policy

September 29, 2011 | Mark S. Humphreys

Insurance agents in Weatherford, Mineral Wells, Aledo, Willow Park, Hudson Oaks, Azle, Millsap, Brock, Cool, Springtown, or anywhere else in Parker County will make mistakes. The question becomes: What can be done about it?

A 1979, Texas Supreme Court case is still good law for that question. The style of the case is, “Royal Globe Insurance Company v. Bar Consultants, Inc.”

The principle question in this case was whether or not a misrepresentation about coverage afforded by a policy of insurance, made by the insurance company’s local recording agent, was a deceptive trade practice under Texas statutes for which the insurance company as principle is liable. This court said yes. Further, the Texas Insurance Code now makes the company liable for the acts of the agent.