Bill Text: TX HB2374 | 2019-2020 | 86th Legislature | Comm Sub
Bill Title: Relating to prohibiting oral releases for automobile insurance claims.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2019-05-03 - Committee report sent to Calendars [HB2374 Detail]
Download: Texas-2019-HB2374-Comm_Sub.html
86R29699 SCL-F | |||
By: J. Johnson of Dallas | H.B. No. 2374 | ||
Substitute the following for H.B. No. 2374: | |||
By: Lucio III | C.S.H.B. No. 2374 |
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relating to prohibiting oral releases for automobile insurance | ||
claims. | ||
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
SECTION 1. Subtitle C, Title 10, Insurance Code, is amended | ||
by adding Chapter 1955 to read as follows: | ||
CHAPTER 1955. ORAL RELEASES FOR AUTOMOBILE INSURANCE CLAIMS | ||
Sec. 1955.0001. PURPOSE. The purpose of this chapter is to | ||
protect those injured by motorists from predatory practices engaged | ||
in by personal and commercial automobile insurers that seek to | ||
induce injured motorists into settling and releasing their legal | ||
claims for an amount that is insufficient to compensate their | ||
losses at a time when these losses are not known with any certainty, | ||
resulting in costs both to the injured person and medical providers | ||
whose care and services may go uncompensated as a result of those | ||
predatory insurance practices. | ||
Sec. 1955.0002. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter: | ||
(1) "Claimant" means an individual who has a claim for | ||
an injury against another individual or an entity. | ||
(2) "Injury" means a bodily or psychological injury. | ||
(3) "Oral release" means an oral contract under which | ||
a claimant releases, wholly or partly, one or more of the claimant's | ||
claims arising out of an injury for which an insurer may be liable | ||
under an automobile insurance policy in exchange for money or other | ||
consideration paid. | ||
Sec. 1955.0003. APPLICABILITY OF CHAPTER. This chapter | ||
applies to an insurer writing personal or commercial automobile | ||
insurance in this state, including an insurance company, | ||
corporation, reciprocal or interinsurance exchange, mutual | ||
insurance company, county mutual insurance company, association, | ||
Lloyd's plan, or other insurer. | ||
Sec. 1955.0004. ORAL RELEASE OF CLAIMS PROHIBITED. A | ||
claimant and an insurer or another individual or entity may not | ||
enter into an oral release. A release made in exchange for money or | ||
other consideration paid for the claimant's claim arising out of an | ||
injury for which an insurer may be liable under an automobile | ||
insurance policy is not enforceable unless the contract is in | ||
writing. | ||
SECTION 2. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to | ||
a contract entered into on or after January 1, 2020. A contract | ||
entered into before January 1, 2020, is governed by the law as it | ||
existed immediately before the effective date of this Act, and that | ||
law is continued in effect for that purpose. | ||
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2019. |