Can a Texas insurer refuse to renew my car insurance after a claim?

Can a Texas insurer refuse to renew my car insurance after a claim?

The Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) and the Texas Insurance Code both describe limits on nonrenewal of car insurance in Texas. TDI lists weather damage, damage from hitting an animal, and accidents or incidents that can’t reasonably be blamed on the policyholder as claims a company can’t nonrenew for.³ The Texas Insurance Code says an insurer may not refuse to renew a personal automobile policy solely because of the age of the person covered.¹ The Code also says an insurer may not consider a customer inquiry as a basis for nonrenewal or cancellation of a personal automobile policy.² The TDI list continues with an exception, shown here, and the quoted text begins mid-passage:

It also can’t nonrenew your policy because you had claims for: Weather damage. Damage from hitting an animal. Accidents or incidents that can’t reasonably be blamed on you, unless you have more than one of these claims in 12 months.

What is the earliest a company can nonrenew a policy, according to TDI?

TDI’s auto guide says:

A company can nonrenew your policy only after it’s been in effect for 12 months.

Does the company have to say why it nonrenewed a policy?

TDI says that if a person asks, a company must tell the person in writing why it turned them down, canceled or didn’t renew the policy.³ TDI also says a policyholder may complain to TDI if they think a company improperly denied, canceled or nonrenewed the policy.³

What the sources do not state

The sources used here do not state a complete list of the reasons an insurer may use to nonrenew a policy.

Next step

TDI publishes its own text on the TDI automobile insurance guide. The filing lookup tool is where to look up filing details for a situation.