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Mealey's Texas Insurance

  • November 12, 2025

    Insured Admonished For Use Of AI; Remand Of Mold, Water Damage Suit Denied

    DALLAS — A Texas federal judge denied an insured’s motion to remand a water and mold damage suit and accepted a magistrate judge’s recommendation and report that cautioned the insured, a pro se litigant, from relying on artificial intelligence (AI) after finding numerous nonexistent legal cases cited in the insured’s filings.

  • November 12, 2025

    Texas Federal Judge Dismisses Insurance Adjusters From Storm Damage Coverage Suit

    AMARILLO, Texas — A Texas federal judge granted a property insurer’s motion to dismiss two insurance adjusters from its insureds’ breach of contract suit arising out of a storm damage coverage dispute because the insurer accepted liability for any claims alleged against the insurance adjusters.

  • November 10, 2025

    COMMENTARY: Uh-EUO: How Examinations Under Oath Impact Claims

    By Rachel E. Hudgins, Kevin V. Small and Charlotte E. Leszinske

  • November 11, 2025

    Insured Waived Right To Seek Attorney Fees In Auto Coverage Suit, Panel Says

    CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — An insured waived the right to seek attorney fees because the insured and auto insurer did not have an enforceable agreement to bifurcate a claim for attorney fees from a liability claim and because the insured failed to object when the jury was discharged prior to considering the insured’s request for attorney fees, the Texas 13th District Court of Appeals panel said in issuing a revised opinion.

  • November 10, 2025

    Texas Panel Affirms Ruling Denying Summary Judgment In Guaranty Act Dispute

    HOUSTON — In a case of first impression, a Texas appellate court affirmed a lower court ruling denying a motion for summary judgment filed by a woman sued by a county government over damage to its vehicle in an auto accident, finding that because the woman failed to show that the county was a “self-insurer” pursuant to the Texas Motor Vehicle Safety-Responsibility Act (Safety and Responsibility Act) and the Texas Property and Casualty Insurance Guaranty Act, the lower court did not err when denying the woman’s motion for summary judgment.

  • November 05, 2025

    Panel Majority Denies Rehearing; Ruling In Favor Of Workers’ Comp Insurer Stands

    HOUSTON — The majority of a First District Texas Court of Appeals panel denied a workers’ compensation claimant’s motion for rehearing and rehearing en banc, refusing to reconsider its ruling that a trial court did not err in finding that the claimant failed to meet her burden of proving that she is entitled to continuing workers’ compensation benefits.

  • November 04, 2025

    Genuine Issues Exist On Whether Hailstorm Damage Is Covered, Federal Judge Says

    DEL RIO, Texas — A homeowners insurer is not entitled to summary judgment because genuine issues of fact exist regarding whether a hailstorm occurred during the applicable policy period and whether the loss is covered under the policy, a Texas federal judge said in agreeing with a magistrate judge’s report and adopting the magistrate judge’s recommendation to deny the insurer’s motion.

  • November 04, 2025

    Texas Federal Judge Adopts Recommendation To Dismiss Suit Against Auto Insurer

    SAN ANTONIO — A Texas federal judge accepted a magistrate judge’s recommendation to dismiss an insured’s suit against an auto insurer for lack of jurisdiction, agreeing with the magistrate judge that the amount in controversy does not meet the federal minimum requirement of $75,000 and that it is unclear whether complete diversity of citizenship exists between the parties.

  • November 04, 2025

    Named Driver Exclusion Precludes Coverage For Insured’s Auto Accident, Panel Says

    AUSTIN, Texas — A trial court did not err in finding that a commercial auto insurer had no duty to defend its insured and owed no coverage for damages incurred to the insured’s vehicle because the insured signed a named driver exclusion that precluded the insured from driving an insured vehicle and relieved the auto insurer of any coverage obligation if the insured, who did not possess a driver’s license, was involved in an auto accident while driving an insured vehicle, the Third District Texas Court of Appeals said.

  • October 31, 2025

    Bad Faith Claims In Storm Damage Suit Cannot Proceed Against Insurer, Judge Says

    SAN ANTONIO — An insured’s bad faith claims, alleged under the Texas Insurance Code and Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act (DTPA), cannot proceed because the insured failed to show that the homeowners insurer’s coverage decision or conduct in handling the insured’s storm damage claim were unreasonable, a Texas federal judge said.

  • October 30, 2025

    Bad Faith Claim Against Church Insurer Cannot Proceed, Judge Says

    SAN ANTONIO — An insured church’s bad faith claim alleged against its insurer cannot proceed because the insurer’s conduct in handling the insured’s storm damage claim does not rise to the level of bad faith, a Texas federal judge said in partially granting and partially denying the insurer’s motion for summary judgment.

  • October 28, 2025

    5th Circuit Slightly Revises Opinion In Health Care Claims Assignment Dispute

    NEW ORLEANS — Granting what it construed as a petition for panel rehearing in a reimbursement dispute over out-of-network care, the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals issued a slightly revised substituted opinion with the same result as the original — it mostly vacated and remanded summary judgment against health insurance plans.

  • October 24, 2025

    Insured Apartment Complex Owner’s Suit Barred By Limitation Provision, Judge Says

    SAN ANTONIO, Texas — An insured apartment complex owner’s breach of contract suit is barred by an insurance policy’s two-year suit limitation provision because the insured’s claims accrued when the insurer initially issued its coverage decision and the insured did not file suit until more than four years after the coverage denial, a Texas federal judge said Oct. 23 in granting the insurer’s motion for summary judgment.

  • October 20, 2025

    Chemical Company Says Settlement Reached In Coverage Suit Arising From Explosion

    BEAUMONT, Texas — A sustainable chemical company insured filed a notice in a Texas federal court indicating that it has reached a settlement with its insurer of its breach of contract and declaratory judgment lawsuit seeking to obtain coverage for the full value of its business interruption loss caused by an explosion at a Texas plant.

  • October 20, 2025

    Insured’s Water Damage Coverage Suit Cannot Proceed Based On Failure To Cooperate

    HOUSTON — An insured’s breach of contract and extracontractual claims against her homeowners insurer cannot proceed because the insured breached the policy’s duty to cooperate provision by failing to provide the insurer with requested documents needed to adjust her water damage claim, a Texas federal judge said in granting the insurer’s motion for summary judgment.

  • October 15, 2025

    Texas Insurance Code Violation Claims Against Homeowners Insurer Fail, Judge Says

    PECOS, Texas — An insured homeowner failed to present evidence showing that her insurer acted unreasonably in handling a claim for storm damage to her home, a Texas federal judge said in granting the homeowners insurer’s motion for partial summary judgment on claims alleging violations of the Texas Insurance Code.

  • October 10, 2025

    Excess Insurer’s Duty To Indemnify Suit Is Premature, 5th Circuit Panel Says

    NEW ORLEANS — A district court properly dismissed an excess liability insurer’s declaratory judgment suit because the insurer’s duty to indemnify its insured and the insured’s employee in an underlying negligence suit cannot be determined until after the underlying suit is resolved, the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals said.

  • October 08, 2025

    5th Circuit Affirms Ruling In Insurer’s Favor In Suit Prompted By Hail, Wind Damage

    NEW ORLEANS — The Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on Oct. 7 held that, absent an independent injury, an insured cannot file tort claims against an insurer under Texas’ Unfair Settlement Practices Act after receiving an appraisal award and statutory interest, affirming a lower federal court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of the insurer in a coverage dispute over wind and hail damage.

  • October 08, 2025

    Panel Refuses To Review Trial Court’s Reinstatement Of Insurer’s Subrogation Case

    SAN ANTONIO — The Texas Fourth District Court of Appeals on Oct. 8 denied a homeowners insurer’s petition for a writ of mandamus in a subrogation suit stemming from a roofing contractor’s defective work, refusing to review a trial court’s decision to set aside a default judgment and final judgment by default entered against the roofing contractor.

  • October 08, 2025

    Breach Of Contract, Insurance Code Violation Claims Are Time-Barred, Judge Says

    FORT WORTH, Texas — An insured’s claims for breach of contract and violations of the Texas Insurance Code cannot proceed against a property insurer because they are barred by the two-year statute of limitations, a Texas federal judge said in granting the insurer’s motion for summary judgment.

  • October 08, 2025

    Fact Issue Exists As To Whether Insured Designated Wife As Beneficiary, Panel Says

    NEW ORLEANS — The Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals reversed and remanded a district court’s summary judgment ruling in favor of a decedent’s mother after determining that the decedent’s wife provided evidence that creates an issue of fact as to whether the insured designated his wife as a beneficiary under his life insurance policy.

  • October 07, 2025

    Insured’s Suit Seeking UIM Benefits Dismissed Following Settlement With Auto Insurer

    SAN ANTONIO — A Texas federal judge dismissed an insured’s suit seeking to recover underinsured motorist (UIM) benefits under an auto policy after the parties notified the court that a settlement was reached.

  • October 07, 2025

    No Coverage For Drain Line Piping That Could Fail In Future, Judge Says

    SAN ANTONIO — A Texas federal judge granted an insurer’s motion for summary judgment on a portion of an insured’s breach of contract claim related to coverage for repair costs incurred following a water leak at an insured restaurant because the policy at issue does not require the insurer to pay for drain line piping that may fail in the future.

  • October 07, 2025

    Insureds Appeal Take-Nothing Judgment In Coverage Dispute Arising From Storm Damage

    TYLER, Texas — Insureds filed a notice indicating that they are appealing a Texas federal court’s take-nothing judgment in favor of a commercial property insurer in a coverage dispute arising from property damage that was caused by a wind and hailstorm.

  • October 06, 2025

    Common-Law Bad Faith Claim In Storm Damage Suit Will Proceed, Judge Says

    SAN ANTONIO — An insured’s common-law bad faith claim alleged against a homeowners insurer can proceed because a question of fact exists regarding the reasonableness of the insurer’s investigation of the storm damage incurred at the insured’s home; however, a portion of the insured’s claim alleging violation of the Texas Insurance Code cannot proceed because the insured failed to show that the insurer made a misrepresentation on which the insured relied, a Texas federal judge said in partially granting and partially denying the insurer’s motion for summary judgment.