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Insureds Must Segregate Damages That Occur Prior to Policy Period From Those Occurring During the Policy Period

The Northern District of Texas recently granted summary judgment in favor of an insurer where the insured failed to segregate damages occurring prior to the policy period from those occurring during the policy period.  In Frymire Home Services, Inc. v. Whitfield Capital, LLC, 2020 WL 7259335 (N.D. Tex. Dec. 10, 2020), at issue was hailstorm…
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Allstate Held Accountable For Unreasonable Claim Investigation But Court Fell Short Of Finding Knowing Violation of Texas Insurance Code

Allstate was recently held accountable by a San Antonio Court of Appeals for its unreasonable claim investigation; however, the court fell short in upholding an award of treble damages because it failed to find a knowing violation of the Texas Insurance Code. In Allstate Vehicle and Prop. Ins. Co. v. Reininger, 2020 WL 6928405 (Tex….
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Insurer Seeks to Avoid COVID-19 Business Interruption Class Action in Washington Federal Court

Given the nationwide momentum in COVID-19 related BI claims, it is important to keep an eye on the classes on-file and how courts deal with the insurers’ arguments to strike them.  In Germack v. The Dentists Insurance Co., case number 2:20-cv-00661, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington, the insurer, The…
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Texas Supreme Court Creates Exception to the “Eight-Corners Rule”

Generally, insurance contracts will include a “duty to defend”, which gives an insurer both the right and obligation to defend a policyholder against lawsuits. To determine whether this duty exists, Texas courts use the “eight-corners rule”. This rule limits courts to the terms of the policy and the pleadings against the insured when deciding whether…
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Texas Supreme Court Confirms Prompt Payment Protections for Appraisal Awards – Another Win for Policyholders

One source of protection for policyholders is the Texas Prompt Payment of Claims Act (TPPCA), which places various deadlines on an insurance company’s claims processing. In order to encourage that claims are timely paid, the TPPCA penalizes insurers who break those deadlines. Recently, the Texas Supreme Court decided several cases which raised the question of…
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