Yolanda Gonzalez v. American National Lloyds Insurance Company

Court of Appeals of Texas·Decided December 19, 2024·No. 13-23-00319-CV·Published

Opinion

NUMBER 13-23-00319-CV

COURT OF APPEALS

THIRTEENTH DISTRICT OF TEXAS CORPUS CHRISTI – EDINBURG

YOLANDA GONZALEZ, Appellant, v.

AMERICAN NATIONAL LLOYDS INSURANCE COMPANY, Appellee.

ON APPEAL FROM THE COUNTY COURT AT LAW NO. 9 OF HIDALGO COUNTY, TEXAS

MEMORANDUM OPINION

Before Justices Longoria, Tijerina, and Peña Memorandum Opinion by Justice Tijerina

Appellant Yolanda Gonzalez appeals the trial court’s summary judgment in favor of appellee American National Lloyds Insurance Company (American National). By four issues, Gonzalez contends that the trial court’s summary judgment is erroneous because (1) the appraisal award was made by mistake, (2) “American National’s payment of the

Appraisal Award did not extinguish [Gonzalez’s] claim for delayed payment,” pursuant to the insurance code’s Texas Prompt Payment of Claims Act (the Prompt Payment Act), see TEX. INS. CODE § 541.151, and (3) there was a valid Rule 11 agreement concerning the mistake made when Gonzalez’s appraiser signed the appraisal award. We affirm.

I. BACKGROUND

On July 27, 2020, Gonzalez reported to American National, her insurance company, that her real property in Hidalgo County, Texas had sustained damage due to Hurricane Hanna. American National inspected the property on August 8, 2020, and thereafter notified Gonzalez that although it had found $6,417.30 in covered damage after depreciation, it would not make a payment on the claim because the amount of damage incurred was below the deductible. Gonzalez sent American National a letter of demand in December 2022, and American National conducted a re-inspection on January 5, 2022.

Gonzalez sued American National on February 17, 2022, for breach of contract and for extracontractual damages she claimed under the Texas Insurance Code and Deceptive Trade Practices Act. Gonzalez accused American National of misrepresenting her covered damages, refusing to issue a payment on the claim, failing “to disclose pertinent information regarding damages to” Gonzalez’s property, and failing “to pay [her] claim within 60 days of receiving all of the items, statements, and forms required by the insurer to secure final proof of loss, of the acceptance or rejection of the claim.” American National then issued a payment to Gonzalez in the amount of $1,208.55 to cover additional damages found during a re-inspection.

Gonzalez requested an appraisal that was completed on May 10, 2022. Gonzalez

designated Matt Serfoss as her appraiser and American National designated Micah D. Harris as its appraiser. The umpire was Randy LeBlanc. In September 2022, American National received a copy of the appraisal signed by Serfoss and LeBlanc. The appraisal estimated the cost of damages at $31,684.64. American National paid Gonzalez $15,373.06 due to depreciation and her deductible.

Gonzalez filed a motion to set aside the appraisal award claiming it was invalid, and American National filed a motion for traditional summary judgment. The trial court granted the summary judgment on July 20, 2023. This appeal followed.

II. STANDARD OF REVIEW We review the trial court’s granting of a traditional motion for summary judgment de novo. Franks v. Roades, 310 S.W.3d 615, 620 (Tex. App.—Corpus Christi–Edinburg 2010, no pet.) (first citing Provident Life & Accident Ins. Co. v. Knott, 128 S.W.3d 211, 215 (Tex. 2003); and then citing Branton v. Wood, 100 S.W.3d 645, 646 (Tex. App.— Corpus Christi–Edinburg 2003, no pet.)). “We must determine whether the movant met its burden to establish that no genuine issue of material fact exists and that the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.” Id.; see TEX. R. CIV. P. 166a(c). A defendant seeking a traditional summary judgment must either disprove at least one element of each of the plaintiff’s causes of action or plead and conclusively establish each essential element of an affirmative defense. Cathey v. Booth, 900 S.W.2d 339, 341 (Tex. 1995) (per curiam); Sanchez v. Matagorda County, 124 S.W.3d 350, 352 (Tex. App.—Corpus Christi–Edinburg 2003, no pet.). A matter is conclusively established if reasonable people could not differ as to the conclusion to be drawn from the evidence. Franks, 310 S.W.3d

at 621 (citing City of Keller v. Wilson, 168 S.W.3d 802, 816 (Tex. 2005)).

If the movant meets this burden, “the burden then shifts to the non-movant to disprove or raise an issue of fact as to at least one of those elements.” Amedisys, Inc. v. Kingwood Home Health Care, LLC, 437 S.W.3d 507, 511 (Tex. 2014). However, if the movant does not meet this burden, “the burden does not shift and the non-movant need not respond or present any evidence.” Id. Evidence favorable to the non-movant will be taken as true in deciding whether there is a disputed issue of material fact. Fort Worth Osteopathic Hosp., Inc. v. Reese, 148 S.W.3d 94, 99 (Tex. 2004); Tranter v. Duemling, 129 S.W.3d 257, 260 (Tex. App.–El Paso 2004, no pet.). All reasonable inferences, including any doubts, must be resolved in favor of the non-movant. Fort Worth Osteopathic Hosp., 148 S.W.3d at 99. A non-movant raises a genuine issue of material fact by producing more than a scintilla of evidence regarding the challenged element. Neely v. Wilson, 418 S.W.3d 52, 59 (Tex. 2013).

III. BREACH OF CONTRACT By her first issue, Gonzalez contends that the trial court should have denied American National’s motion for summary judgment because Serfoss signed the appraisal award by mistake. Specifically, Gonzalez states:

Matt Serfoss, has been in the business for about fifteen years, and had not once before encountered the challenge of an unsuccessful appraisal process which included the umpire. Given that this was a novel issue, Serfoss was unsure how to proceed, so he signed the award under the impression that doing so would resume litigation. Serfoss did not know that his signature formed a binding agreement between the parties, or otherwise he would not have signed the award.

Upholding the appraisal award under these circumstances would clearly not speak to Serfoss’s intention. Serfoss states in plain language in his affidavit

that he did not agree with the amount of the award and signed it simply because he was unsure how to proceed. While his action may be deemed a lapse in judgment, it is undeniable from his testimony that Serfoss did not support the appraisal award and did not intend to bind Ms. Gonzalez to it.

A. Applicable Law The insurance contract contained an appraisal clause, which is an agreed-to procedure for setting the amount of loss when a party disagrees with the insurance company’s amount. State Farm Lloyds v. Johnson, 290 S.W.3d 886, 894 (Tex. 2009). The appraisal procedure usually, as in this case, requires the appointment of a neutral appraiser or umpire to set the value of loss. Id.

“Access to the appraisal process to resolve disputes is an important tool in the insurance claim context, curbing costs and adding efficiency in resolving insurance claims.” Barbara Techs. Corp. v. State Farm Lloyds, 589 S.W.3d 806, 814, 820 (Tex. 2019) (citations omitted); see also In re State Farm Lloyds, No. 13-22-00545-CV, 2023 WL 2029148, at *3 (Tex. App.—Corpus Christi–Edinburg February 15, 2023, orig. proceeding) (mem. op.). An appraisal clause “binds the parties to have the extent or amount of the loss determined in a particular way,” and it should be enforced the same as any other contractual provision. State Farm Lloyds, 290 S.W.3d at 895. Generally, an appraisal award made in accordance with an insurance policy is binding and enforceable unless the insured proves that the award was unauthorized or the result of fraud, accident, or mistake. Breshears v. State Farm Lloyds, 155 S.W.3d 340, 344 (Tex. 2004). “Every reasonable presumption will be indulged to sustain an appraisal award, and the burden of proof lies on the party seeking to avoid the award.” Barnes v. W. All. Ins. Co., 844 S.W.2d 264, 267 (Tex. App.—Fort Worth 1992, writ dism’d by agr.).

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