If you have suffered hail or windstorm damage to your home or business in Texas, and your insurance company has denied your claim, then you need to understand your rights under your insurance policy and Texas law. Insurance companies in Texas are bound to the Texas Insurance Code’s policyholder protections, and your claim for hail/windstorm damage may have been wrongly denied. Your insurance company may fail to meet its legal obligations to you as a policyholder.
McLaurin Law, based in Houston, Texas, sues insurance companies on behalf of policyholders, aggressively representing their clients to secure a fair and appropriate recovery from their insurance company for their covered losses. First, read the below to learn how to get your insurance company to uphold their portion of the insurance agreement to pay your claim for hail or windstorm damages to your home, business, or personal property. Next, contact us to discuss your policy, the applicable law, and the path to recovery for your hail damage claim in Texas.
The Texas Insurance Code Protects Your Rights
The Texas Insurance Code specifies certain rights of Texas policyholders that must be upheld by insurance companies when doing business in the state. Every claim made against an insurance policy issued to a Texas policyholder must be handled following these rules, and the failure of the insurance company (or, its representatives) to comply with such rules means the insurance company may be liable under the law for violation of your rights as an insurance policyholder in Texas.
Other sections of the Texas Insurance Code may apply to your claim. Still, here, we will focus on Chapter 541, which addresses Unfair Methods of Competition and Unfair Deceptive Acts or Practices. This law protects Texas policyholders by establishing legal requirements for insurance companies to follow in order to maintain honest and fair standards with respect to the insurance policies they sell in Texas and the handling of claims made under such policies.
Violations of Texas Insurance Code Chapter 541 May Be Applicable To Your Hail Damage Claim
Chapter 541 outlines a long list of expressly prohibited or unfair claim settlement practices, including:
- Refusing to pay a claim without first conducting a reasonable investigation
- Failing to promptly provide the policyholder with a rationale for the claim being denied
- Failing to either affirm or deny coverage of a particular claim within a reasonable period
- Unreasonably neglecting, refusing, or delaying a settlement offer
- Making an untrue statement about material facts
- Making a misleading or false representation of the terms or benefits of a policy
This is only a partial list of some of the most common or likely violations committed by insurance companies and insurance company representatives that may be used to establish your insurance company has acted in bad faith.
How To Defend Your Rights If Your Hail Damage Insurance Claim Was Wrongly Denied
Suppose your insurance company violated your rights by committing a violation under Chapter 541 of the Texas Insurance Code. In that case, you can hold the offending insurance company accountable for its transgressions. If your insurance policy and claim fit these criteria, then your best way forward would be to hire an experienced Texas insurance lawyer. You could file a lawsuit against the insurance company and the representative(s) of the company that violated the provisions of the Texas Insurance Code.
You May Also Be Able To Recover Court Costs and Legal Fees
If the court rules in your favor, you may not only be entitled to recover for the hail damages to your home or business at issue but also for court costs and legal fees that you will have accrued in pursuit of the verdict. The insurance company ostensibly exists to provide the service of a safety net, protecting your property. Their failure or refusal to honor their obligations under the insurance policy in good faith erodes trust and places unnecessary strain on the court system. By holding the insurance company accountable for deceptive practices or wrongful denial of your claim, you are also helping to strengthen civil society.
Did Your Insurance Company Knowingly Violate Texas State Law?
It can be expensive for the insurance company to continue denying a valid hail damage claim, especially if they have knowingly violated Texas insurance laws. In such cases, a jury may award up to three times the amount of actual damages to the policyholder as a punishment for the offending insurance company.
Hire an Experienced Insurance Claim Lawyer in Texas
The insurance company is supposed to be transparent in their policy description, conduct a reasonable investigation, and promptly communicate with you regarding a clear rationale for affirming or denying your claim. If your claim is valid, then their requirement to pay court costs and legal fees further disincentivizes such a denial.
Hiring an experienced Texas insurance attorney to guide and manage your case dramatically enhances your chances of recovery. You don’t need to search for “insurance lawyers near me” when you already have access to Jason C. McLaurin’s inside perspective on insurance claims in Texas. Call McLaurin Law at (713) 461-6500 today to schedule a consultation to discuss the details of your hail damage claim, or fill out the form on our website. We welcome your questions. Don’t let a wrongly-denied claim stop you from recovering for your unfortunate hail damage. McLaurin Law: When you need more than luck.
