The Texas Department of Insurance and Texas Insurance Commissioner issued two Consent Orders against contractors for the Unauthorized Practice of Public Adjusting.
Two years ago I discussed trends of this issue in Unauthorized Practice of Public Adjusting Trends. Enforcement by Departments of Insurance over contractors was certainly one of the trends I contemplated.
Contractors sometimes run a fine line between explaining how they arrive at their estimate and go over that line by negotiating and promising to represent policyholders with the adjustment of insurance claims.
Reading the Orders, I noted that the two companies have apparently ceased the wrongful conduct complained of for a while. Public adjusters probably think the $2,000 fine is a mere slap on the wrist. Still, the point from the regulator’s standpoint is to stop the illegal conduct and protect the consumer.
From my view, public adjusters and contractors have a common foe with the insurance industry coming up with every method to pay monies less than acceptable for a roof or other restoration to be legally repaired and replaced.
Texas is now the worst state in the union where this goes on because of recently passed insurance laws that protect or limit insurance company liability for doing wrong to their customers—as noted by Merlin Law Group attorney Emily Marlowe in Are TWIA Appraisals Ever Fair or Impartial. And, Texas has just about the least regulation over contractors and roofers in the country. Lowballing Insurance adjusters are having a field day with contractors who want to follow the law and repair legally. Those adjuster have plenty of shoddy contractors accepting their low-ball bids and doing illegal construction.
Thought For The Day
Two wrongs don’t make a right, but they make a good excuse.
—Thomas Szasz
How about REM to start Memorial Day Weekend:
