A tragic oversight by a major insurance company has led to a lawsuit that highlights the devastating impact of administrative errors. Kimberly Oppenheim, the widow of Allan Oppenheim, filed a complaint against Allstate Insurance Group, LLC in the District Court of Harris County, Texas on December 20, 2024. The case centers around the alleged failure of Allstate to process life insurance documentation for Mr. Oppenheim, which resulted in his widow being denied benefits after his sudden death.
The lawsuit details a series of unfortunate events that began when Allan Oppenheim was hired by Allstate on January 5, 2023. According to the complaint, Mr. Oppenheim was promised health and life insurance benefits as part of his employment package. However, due to onboarding issues and administrative errors on Allstate's part, these benefits were never properly processed. Just two days into his employment, Mr. Oppenheim tragically passed away in his sleep on January 7, 2023, leaving his wife without the expected life insurance payout.
Kimberly Oppenheim alleges that despite her husband's diligent efforts to resolve system access issues and ensure all necessary documentation was completed, Allstate failed to fulfill its contractual obligations. The plaintiff claims that Mr. Oppenheim repeatedly contacted Allstate's HR department and other representatives to address discrepancies with his salary and Social Security information but faced delays and communication failures.
The lawsuit accuses Allstate of breach of contract for not providing the promised life insurance coverage and seeks damages for this breach. Additionally, Mrs. Oppenheim is pursuing claims under promissory estoppel and negligence theories. She argues that her husband relied on Allstate's promise of life insurance when accepting the job offer and that their failure to deliver these benefits constitutes negligence.
Mrs. Oppenheim is seeking various forms of relief from the court including actual damages exceeding $200,000, compensatory damages, consequential damages, pecuniary damages, expert witness fees, court costs, attorney fees, pre-judgment and post-judgment interest as well as any other relief deemed appropriate by law or equity.
Representing Kimberly Oppenheim in this legal battle are attorneys from Shellist Lazarz Slobin LLP based in Houston. The case is presided over by Judge Chandra Lawson in the 295th Judicial District Court under Case ID 2024-88454.