HOUSTON – On Feb. 6, American National Property and Casualty Co. (ANPAC), which insures a property mortgaged by Vanderbilt Mortgage Finance Inc. and occupied by Mark Rennison, was granted a motion for emergency relief that bars Rennison from obtaining a reappraisal of his home.
Justices Sherry Radak, Russell Lloyd and Peter Kelly of the 1st District Court of Appeals granted ANPAC's motion to stay an order from a trial court compelling appraisal and directed the lower court to vacate its September order for appraisal.
The ruling states that Vanderbilt, upon finding Rennison's home insurance either absent or inadequate, purchased a certificate of lender-based insurance for the home from ANPAC. Rennison is excluded from the policy's named insured.
Vanderbilt was granted a payment in the amount of $5,073.63 from ANPAC following an insurance claim for the home after it sustained damage from Hurricane Harvey. Rennison then used a third-party adjuster to protest the payout to Vanderbilt and demand a reappraisal per the insurance policy in November 2018.
ANPAC negated the request due to Rennison being explicitly excluded from the policy, and Rennison proceeded to file a suit in January 2019.
In return, ANPAC pleaded to the jurisdiction that Rennison was not within his right since he was not included in the named insured.
The trial court acknowledged both ANPAC's plea and Rennison's request for a new trial, but on Sept. 25 of last year, the homeowner's motion for reappraisal was granted.
While trial court granted Rennison's motion for reappraisal, the 1st Court of Appeals issued a writ of mandamus stating that, per the precedence of Alvarado v. Lexington Insurance Co. and reference to the federal courts, Rennison holds no ground in demanding reappraisal.
The justices found that there is no historical precedence in Texas that determines whether the occupant of a mortgaged home is considered a third-party beneficiary to insurance contracts. Per the federal courts' recommendation, the justices determined that there are no clauses in the contract's underwriting which would indicate that Rennison may benefit from the insurance claim.
It was then declared that the trial court's September order for reappraisal is void and the justices conditionally granted ANPAC the writ of mandamus if the trial court doesn't comply.
1st District Court of Appeals case number 01-19-00727-CV