A Harris County woman is suing a national retailer and its benefits carriers for alleged infringement of fiduciary duties in 2015.
Kimberly D. Hendrix filed a complaint against Wal-Mart Stores Inc., The Associates’ Health and Welfare Plan, and The Prudential Insurance Co. of America in the Houston Division of the Southern District of Texas on July 6, claiming liability for alleged Employee Retirement Income Security Act violation in June 2015.
According to the suit, the plaintiff’s husband, Randy A. Hendrix, was a Wal-Mart employee and manager for more than 18 years until July 11, 2012. The suit states that he died Aug. 27, 2012, intestate, but that he had been a member of his employer’s Prudential-administrated health plan.
The suit states that Prudential has refused to pay the plaintiff any amounts from the decedent’s life insurance policies. According to court documents, Kimberly’s attorney had written to Prudential on March 19, 2015, to convert the group policies into individual policies, but the communication was never acknowledged; instead, Prudential allegedly claims that it notified Randy on July 23, 2012, that he needed to make the conversion within 31 days and that he failed to do so.
Claiming that the deadline notice was invalid due to lack of evidence of Mr. Hendrix having received the July 23 statement, as well as confusion over the terms, the plaintiff requests not only insurance benefits, but also accrued bonuses, sick time and unpaid salary.
The plaintiff seeks compensation, interest, attorney’s fees, expenses, and costs. She is represented by Brantly Harris of Houston.
Houston Division of the Southern District of Texas case number 4:15-cv-01920.