Tag Archives: Texas
Third Party Beneficiary Status Under a Force-Placed in Texas
Banks and mortgage companies regularly buy what is known in the insurance world as “force-placed” insurance coverage. This type of coverage protects a mortgagee’s interest in the property should no other insurance coverage apply. In o…
Insurer’s Right to Contractual Subrogation Trumps Equitable Made-Whole Doctrine Yet Again in Texas
In Fortis Benefits v. Cantu, 234 S.W.3d 642 (Tex.2007), the Texas Supreme Court held that the “made whole” doctrine does not apply where the parties’ agreed contract provides a clear and specific right of subrogation. Despite this rul…
Disciplinary Information Has Become Harder to Find Under New Texas Department of Insurance Commissioner Eleanor Kitzman
If you wanted to find out whether an attorney you were thinking about hiring has ever been disciplined by the Texas Bar, you can find that information online. It is made available to the public by the Texas Bar. The same goes for doctors, nurses, and a…
TWIA Policy Changes Summary
At last Thursday’s Texas Association of Public Insurance Adjusters Spring Conference, a public adjuster asked me about the recent changes to Texas Windstorm Insurance Association policies. I found this summary on TWIA’s website, and thought…
Commercial Trade Associations Call For Prompt Payment and Good Faith Claims
Commercial policyholders are increasingly having difficulty obtaining full and prompt payments. As a group, they are starting to stand up to the insurance industry’s failures to provide prompt payment and good faith claims treatment following losses.I …
No Push Back from Texas Department of Insurance on Allstate Rate Increases Despite Allstate $750 Million Operating Income in Fourth Quarter of 2011
As expected, the Texas Department of Insurance – the government regulator in charge of overseeing the insurance industry (also known as “protecting the public”) – has approved Allstate Texas Lloyd’s request to raise rates …
Texas Public Adjuster Spring Conference Seminar
The Texas Association Public Insurance Adjusters (TAPIA) is holding its Spring Conference next Thursday, April 19, 2012, from 9am to 4pm at the Hilton Houston NASA Clear Lake. It promises to be an excellent conference with many interesting speaker…
Texas Court Rules that Insurer’s Failure to Notify Insured of Claim Denial
Under most insurance policies, an insurer has an obligation to send you a letter detailing their claims decision, including any decision to deny your claim. Under Texas case law, failure to do so may violate the Texas Insurance Code. Keeping this in mi…
Vacancy in Texas
Many renter’s insurance policies have a provision that excludes all coverage if a building is vacant for a certain amount of time. Unfortunately, many of those same policies fail to define “vacant” or ‘vacancy.” What does …
Texas Prompt Payment Statute and an Insurer’s Decision to Deny Your Claim
Section 542.058 of the Texas Insurance Code states that “if an insurer, after receiving all items, statements, and forms reasonably requested and required … delays payment of the claim for a period exceeding the period specified by other a…
