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Under Texas law, extended warranties or “service contracts” are potentially subject to regulatory oversight by four state agencies. The Texas Real Estate Commission (TREC) oversees the licensing and regulation of home warranties—service contracts that cover a structural component, an appliance, or an electrical, plumbing, heating, cooling, or air-conditioning system of…
Read More Locke Lord LLP Austin Attorneys Jon L. Gillum and Lauren Fincher Publish “Cross-Agency Regulation of Service Contracts in Texas” in Latest Issue of the Texas Tech Administrative Law Journal

The Texas Windstorm insurance Association (TWIA) has announced that its board of directors at its May 8, 2018 meeting approved a $175 million member assessment linked to losses arising from Hurricane Harvey.  The assessed amount was reportedly lower than initial TWIA staff estimates.

Additional Harvey related assessments may be issued…
Read More TWIA Issues Substantial Harvey Assessment

On April 10, the Texas General Land Office (“GLO”) released a draft of the State of Texas Plan for Disaster Recovery: Hurricane Harvey – Round 1 (the “State Action Plan”). The State Action Plan outlines the GLO’s proposed use of $5.024 billion in Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (“CDBG-DR”)…
Read More Texas General Land Office Releases Hurricane Harvey State Action Plan

At its recent December 11th meeting in Corpus Christi, Texas, the Governing Committee of the Texas FAIR Plan Association (TFPA) is reported to have approved an assessment for its insurance company members of over $64 million in relation to a currently estimated $90 million gross loss for the TFPA from…
Read More Insurers Brace for a Texas-sized Assessment for FAIR Plan Members

The 2017 United States Atlantic hurricane season, which officially ended on November 30, was the most expensive ever according to one report. Disaster modelers Chuck Watson and Mark Johnson concluded that total damages for the season, which included Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria, topped $202 billion. The staggering financial losses…
Read More 2017 Hurricane Season the Costliest on Record

The Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) has cautioned insurers against improper underwriting activities in the wake of Hurricane Harvey.  Specifically, TDI issued Commissioner’s Bulletin # B-0032017 on September 21, 2017, which reminds insurers of certain underwriting laws and regulations applicable to personal automobile and residential property insurance that are particularly…
Read More Texas Department of Insurance Warns Against Improper Underwriting After Hurricane Harvey

On September 15, 2017, the Texas Department of Insurance issued a public bulletin concerning possible insurance company reductions in business following Hurricane Harvey.  In Commissioner’s Bulletin #B-0031-17, the Department reminded insurers of the specific Texas statutory thresholds for a reduction in business necessitating a formal withdrawal plan filing with…
Read More Texas Department of Insurance Cautions Insurers Against Unauthorized Market Withdrawals following Hurricane Harvey

As we previewed here earlier this year, the Texas Legislature passed legislation expressly permitting service contracts regulated by the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation to include the replacement of a motor vehicle key or key-fob.  This new law became effective September 1, 2017.  A copy of the new law…
Read More Texas Service Contract Law Now Permits Key-Fob Replacement

On September 21, 2017, Texas Governor Greg Abbott announced that Kent Sullivan will be the next Texas Insurance Commissioner.  Sullivan previously served as First Assistant Attorney General when Abbott served as Texas Attorney General.  Sullivan currently practices as an appellate attorney in a Texas law firm.  He also previously served…
Read More Kent Sullivan Named New Texas Insurance Commissioner

On Friday, September 7th, the Senate passed a bill increasing the disaster aid within the National Flood Insurance Program (the “NFIP”) to $15 billion. The NFIP was initially established in 1968 to provide flood coverage to properties located in flood zones, as a response to flood insurance becoming too costly…
Read More Senate Passes Bill Proposing Three Month NFIP Extension