{"id":225978,"date":"2025-05-06T03:31:26","date_gmt":"2025-05-06T03:31:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/peraltafinancing.com\/business\/insurance\/delay-in-paying-claim-the-difference-between-541-and-542-dallas-fort-worth-insurance-lawyer-blog-may-3-2025\/"},"modified":"2025-05-06T03:31:26","modified_gmt":"2025-05-06T03:31:26","slug":"delay-in-paying-claim-the-difference-between-541-and-542-dallas-fort-worth-insurance-lawyer-blog-may-3-2025","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=225978","title":{"rendered":"Delay In Paying Claim &#8211; The Difference Between 541 and 542 \u2014 Dallas Fort Worth Insurance Lawyer Blog \u2014 May 3, 2025"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p>Slow payment of an insurance claim can create a claim for extra monies under the Texas Insurance Code. \u00a0An opinion from a 2025, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ca5.uscourts.gov\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Fifth Circuit<\/a> case is an important read on this issue. \u00a0The opinion is styled, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.insurancelawsection.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025-02-11-Senechal-v-Allstate.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Sterling Senechal v. Allstate Vehicle and Property Insurance Company<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>This is a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.law.cornell.edu\/wex\/summary_judgment\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">summary judgment<\/a> opinion wherein claims were made for delays in paying the claim under <a href=\"https:\/\/statutes.capitol.texas.gov\/Docs\/IN\/htm\/IN.541.htm#541.051\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Texas Insurance Code, Sections 541<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/statutes.capitol.texas.gov\/Docs\/IN\/htm\/IN.542.htm#542.051\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">542<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Allstate had eventually paid the claim but Senechal sued because of the slow payment. \u00a0The Facts of the case can be learned from reading the opinion. \u00a0The distinctions between the two sections are set forth here.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">The Texas Supreme Court held that when the only \u201cactual damages\u201d an insured seeks to recover are policy benefits that have since been paid through an appraisal award and interest an insured cannot recover for bad faith claims under Chapter 541 of the Insurance Code or under the common law. \u00a0Senechal has presented no evidence that he suffered an independent injury caused by Allstate\u2019s alleged delayed payment of benefits, the district court did not err in granting summary judgment on these claims.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">The TPPCA is codified at Chapter 542.051 et seq. of the Texas Insurance Code. \u00a0In his complaint, Senechal claimed that Allstate violated three provisions of the TPPCA, which govern insurers\u2019 obligations regarding prompt receipt, notice, and payment of claims. \u00a0Sections 542.055, 542.056, and 542.058. \u00a0The parties focus on section 542.058, which \u201cprovides that the insurer, upon receiving all requested information necessary to evaluate the claim, must pay the claim within 60 days.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">If an insurer violates the TPPCA, \u00a7 542.060 provides that in addition to the amount of the claim, \u201cthe insurer is responsible for 18 percent interest through the date of payment and attorney\u2019s fees.\u201d \u00a0Unlike other provisions of the Insurance Code, \u00a7 542.060 requires neither an award for \u201cactual damages\u201d nor a judgment for an insured to recover attorneys\u2019 fees. \u00a0Instead, attorneys\u2019 fees, along with statutory interest, constitute the damages to which an insured is entitled when their insurer is \u201cliable\u201d for a TPPCA violation.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">The Texas Supreme Court has explained that an insurer is \u201cliable\u201d on a TPPCA claim when it \u201c(1) has completed its investigation, evaluated the claim, and come to a determination to accept and pay the claim or some part of it; or (2) been adjudicated liable by a court or arbitration panel.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">The Texas Supreme Court affirmed its prior holding that payment of an appraisal award does not absolve an insurer of TPPCA liability when an insurer \u201caccepts a claim but pays only part of the amount it owes within the statutory deadline.\u201d \u00a0Our court later noted that a Texas appellate court \u201cclarified that a pre-payment of interest\u201d also does not eliminate an insured\u2019s \u201cability to collect TPPCA damages, such as attorney\u2019s fees.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">To summarize, prompt payment of an appraisal award and statutory interest does not, as a matter of Texas law, absolve an insurer of TPPCA liability. Furthermore, no judgment of \u201cactual damages\u201d is required for an insured to recover attorneys\u2019 fees for a violation of Chapter 542 of the Texas Insurance Code. \u00a0Therefore, to the extent that the district court concluded that prompt payment of an appraisal award and statutory interest defeats TPPCA liability or that a judgment is required to recover attorneys\u2019 fees for such a violation, the district court erred.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Slow payment of an insurance claim can create a claim for extra monies under the Texas Insurance Code. \u00a0An opinion from a 2025, Fifth Circuit case is an important read on this issue. \u00a0The opinion is styled, Sterling Senechal v. Allstate Vehicle and Property Insurance Company. This is a summary judgment opinion wherein claims were [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":116455,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[94],"tags":[3767,13465,14667,1781,17855,2538,11034,13466,11085,11288],"dealstore":[],"offerexpiration":[],"class_list":["post-225978","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-insurance","tag-blog","tag-claim","tag-dallas","tag-delay","tag-difference","tag-fort","tag-insurance","tag-lawyer","tag-paying","tag-worth"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Delay In Paying Claim - The Difference Between 541 and 542 \u2014 Dallas Fort Worth Insurance Lawyer Blog \u2014 May 3, 2025 - Som2ny Network<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=225978\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Delay In Paying Claim - The Difference Between 541 and 542 \u2014 Dallas Fort Worth Insurance Lawyer Blog \u2014 May 3, 2025 - Som2ny Network\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Slow payment of an insurance claim can create a claim for extra monies under the Texas Insurance Code. \u00a0An opinion from a 2025, Fifth Circuit case is an important read on this issue. \u00a0The opinion is styled, Sterling Senechal v. Allstate Vehicle and Property Insurance Company. This is a summary judgment opinion wherein claims were [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=225978\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Som2ny Network\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-05-06T03:31:26+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/social-image-logo-og.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=225978#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=225978\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b85e3c3dc0e1daea076524dc8810c371\"},\"headline\":\"Delay In Paying Claim &#8211; The Difference Between 541 and 542 \u2014 Dallas Fort Worth Insurance Lawyer Blog \u2014 May 3, 2025\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-05-06T03:31:26+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=225978\"},\"wordCount\":563,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=225978#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/social-image-logo-og.png\",\"keywords\":[\"Blog\",\"Claim\",\"dallas\",\"Delay\",\"Difference\",\"Fort\",\"insurance\",\"Lawyer\",\"Paying\",\"Worth\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Insurance\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=225978#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=225978\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=225978\",\"name\":\"Delay In Paying Claim - The Difference Between 541 and 542 \u2014 Dallas Fort Worth Insurance Lawyer Blog \u2014 May 3, 2025 - Som2ny Network\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=225978#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=225978#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/social-image-logo-og.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-05-06T03:31:26+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=225978#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=225978\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=225978#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/social-image-logo-og.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/social-image-logo-og.png\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":1200},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=225978#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?bp_activities=1\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Delay In Paying Claim &#8211; The Difference Between 541 and 542 \u2014 Dallas Fort Worth Insurance Lawyer Blog \u2014 May 3, 2025\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/\",\"name\":\"Som2ny Network\",\"description\":\"Daily Deals\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Som2ny Network\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4a0953c4-logo-300x86-1.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4a0953c4-logo-300x86-1.png\",\"width\":300,\"height\":86,\"caption\":\"Som2ny Network\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b85e3c3dc0e1daea076524dc8810c371\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/729ae85bf62b9917e93538db2f2688ca?s=96&r=g&default=https%3A%2F%2Ffivemor.com%2Fwp-content%2Fplugins%2Fbuddypress-first-letter-avatar%2Fimages%2Fdefault%2F96%2Flatin_a.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/729ae85bf62b9917e93538db2f2688ca?s=96&r=g&default=https%3A%2F%2Ffivemor.com%2Fwp-content%2Fplugins%2Fbuddypress-first-letter-avatar%2Fimages%2Fdefault%2F96%2Flatin_a.png\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Delay In Paying Claim - The Difference Between 541 and 542 \u2014 Dallas Fort Worth Insurance Lawyer Blog \u2014 May 3, 2025 - Som2ny Network","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=225978","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Delay In Paying Claim - The Difference Between 541 and 542 \u2014 Dallas Fort Worth Insurance Lawyer Blog \u2014 May 3, 2025 - Som2ny Network","og_description":"Slow payment of an insurance claim can create a claim for extra monies under the Texas Insurance Code. \u00a0An opinion from a 2025, Fifth Circuit case is an important read on this issue. \u00a0The opinion is styled, Sterling Senechal v. Allstate Vehicle and Property Insurance Company. This is a summary judgment opinion wherein claims were [&hellip;]","og_url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=225978","og_site_name":"Som2ny Network","article_published_time":"2025-05-06T03:31:26+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1200,"height":1200,"url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/social-image-logo-og.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=225978#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=225978"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b85e3c3dc0e1daea076524dc8810c371"},"headline":"Delay In Paying Claim &#8211; The Difference Between 541 and 542 \u2014 Dallas Fort Worth Insurance Lawyer Blog \u2014 May 3, 2025","datePublished":"2025-05-06T03:31:26+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=225978"},"wordCount":563,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=225978#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/social-image-logo-og.png","keywords":["Blog","Claim","dallas","Delay","Difference","Fort","insurance","Lawyer","Paying","Worth"],"articleSection":["Insurance"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=225978#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=225978","url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=225978","name":"Delay In Paying Claim - The Difference Between 541 and 542 \u2014 Dallas Fort Worth Insurance Lawyer Blog \u2014 May 3, 2025 - Som2ny Network","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=225978#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=225978#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/social-image-logo-og.png","datePublished":"2025-05-06T03:31:26+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=225978#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=225978"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=225978#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/social-image-logo-og.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/social-image-logo-og.png","width":1200,"height":1200},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=225978#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?bp_activities=1"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Delay In Paying Claim &#8211; The Difference Between 541 and 542 \u2014 Dallas Fort Worth Insurance Lawyer Blog \u2014 May 3, 2025"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/","name":"Som2ny Network","description":"Daily Deals","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#organization","name":"Som2ny Network","url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4a0953c4-logo-300x86-1.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4a0953c4-logo-300x86-1.png","width":300,"height":86,"caption":"Som2ny Network"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b85e3c3dc0e1daea076524dc8810c371","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/729ae85bf62b9917e93538db2f2688ca?s=96&r=g&default=https%3A%2F%2Ffivemor.com%2Fwp-content%2Fplugins%2Fbuddypress-first-letter-avatar%2Fimages%2Fdefault%2F96%2Flatin_a.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/729ae85bf62b9917e93538db2f2688ca?s=96&r=g&default=https%3A%2F%2Ffivemor.com%2Fwp-content%2Fplugins%2Fbuddypress-first-letter-avatar%2Fimages%2Fdefault%2F96%2Flatin_a.png","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/fivemor.com"],"url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/225978","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=225978"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/225978\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/116455"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=225978"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=225978"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=225978"},{"taxonomy":"dealstore","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fdealstore&post=225978"},{"taxonomy":"offerexpiration","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fofferexpiration&post=225978"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}