Auto Claim Specialists Wins Fight for Mandatory Right to Appraisal in Texas

Indianapolis Star

23-06-2025

Throwing Stones to Take Down a Giant
FORT WORTH, TX / ACCESS Newswire They said it couldn't be done. They said it was impossible. No one believed the battle to require the Right to Appraisal be included in all Texas auto policies could be won – no one except Robert McDorman, founder of Auto Claim Specialists, whose devotion to ensuring the safety of roadways in the Lone Star State inspired him to take up a slingshot in this iteration of the classic 'David versus Goliath' showdown.
For nearly a decade, McDorman tirelessly led the charge to persuade lawmakers of the importance of mandatory appraisal rights, and his hard work has finally paid off – Senate Bill 458 has been adopted into the Texas Insurance Code and made law!
The war against the Appraisal Clause began in 2015 when State Farm removed this vital consumer protection from their Texas policies. McDorman took up the mantle and began sounding the alarm through meetings with the Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) to alert them to the potential dangers that such an action presented to drivers and their roadways. Bills proposing mandatory appraisal rights were presented in the 2021 and 2023 sessions, but both times, the session ended before a conclusive vote; however, the third time was the charm!
Senate 458, the 2025 iteration of this legislative initiative, was fast-tracked through the process, obtaining unanimous approval from both the Senate and the House during every review. That's a far cry from eight years ago when 'legislators didn't believe there was a need for mandatory appraisal rights,' McDorman recalls. 'They hadn't heard anything about it and couldn't be convinced that it was a problem that needed their attention.'
Legislators' disinterest did not dissuade him from his mission. McDorman continued to beat the drum for mandatory appraisal, meeting with TDI five times and appearing before various legislative committees a total of eight times to educate them on the impact of the Appraisal Clause. 'Every time someone told me 'no,' I pushed forward. I refused to believe it was a waste of time.'
His dogged determination ultimately attracted attention, leading TDI to acknowledge the need for legislators to 'establish policy form appraisal guidance' in its 2022 Biennial Report, and in its Report to the 88th Texas Legislature, the Office of Public Insurance Counsel (OPIC) expressed increasing concern with 'restrictions on appraisal in policy forms filed by top insurers [which] can adversely impact consumers, who buy insurance to make sure damage to their property will be repaired or replaced. Without appraisal, they may be forced to choose between accepting the insurer's offer and paying out-of-pocket for any disputed amount or taking on the costly and time-consuming burden of going to court.'
OPIC reiterated those concerns in its Report to the 89th Texas Legislature, listing appraisal as its first recommendation, restating its previous position and adding, 'Restrictions on appraisal can remove an important consumer protection that saves the parties and the judicial system time and resources. Appraisal is usually the consumer's only economically realistic option for challenging the amount an insurer offers to repair or replace property. Filing a lawsuit is expensive – often more expensive than the amount of an auto repair claim. Eliminating appraisal leaves the consumer stuck in the middle of a dispute between the insurer and providers over the amount of loss, resembling the balance billing trap that health insurance consumers found themselves in before the Legislature addressed that issue.' They recommended that legislators 'amend the Texas Insurance Code to require personal auto and residential property insurers in Texas to preserve the insurance consumer's right to invoke appraisal in disputes regarding the cost to repair or replace covered property.'
While McDorman stood at the forefront of the battlefield on this important issue, he had an entire army marching with him, throwing one stone at a time to combat this egregious violation of consumer rights.
The Auto Body Association of Texas (ABAT) stood shoulder to shoulder with McDorman, providing pecuniary support and volunteering time and energy to promote all three iterations of the proposed mandatory appraisal legislation. In addition to significant personal financial contributions, ABAT President Burl Richards joined McDorman in several meetings with TDI and appearances before legislative committees to express the significance of this undertaking. Consumer advocacy watchdog Texas Watch also offered valuable support throughout the process through its efforts to generate public awareness, help educate legislators and the compilation of Impact of Auto Appraisal (available at bit.ly/TXW-RTA), a report that demonstrated the monetary affect that Right to Appraisal typically has on claim settlements.
McDorman humbly credits the passage of Senate Bill 458 to Joe Collins, whose experience with the appraisal process yielded a large settlement from State Farm (see bit.ly/CollinsvSF). Recognizing how detrimental a similar under-indemnification situation might be for others, especially those who do not have the protections provided through the Appraisal Clause, Collins donated his entire settlement to the fight for mandatory appraisal rights. 'If that money goes toward making sure all Texas policies include the Right to Appraisal, then I'm helping everybody.' (Full story available at bit.ly/Collins4RTA.) Collins entrusted the funds to Auto Claim Specialists and McDorman who used them to establish the Mandatory Appraisal Rights Advocacy Trust.
Collins' story inspired many others from across the country to contribute to a GoFundMe fundraiser, creating a national movement. 'Joe's generosity and dedication to 'doing the right thing' resonated with people, and they wanted to support our efforts,' McDorman offers praise and gratitude to everyone who contributed to the fight. 'Many people helped us get to where we are, but Joe's donation was instrumental to building that momentum. I'm gratified by the passage of the bill which demonstrates that I was a worthy steward of his trust.'
Countless others aided in achieving this victory for mandatory appraisal rights as well. Other public adjusters, multiple law firms and lobbyists stepped up, donating time, money and energy to support the cause.
McDorman's own contributions are unquantifiable. Beyond the financial commitment he made personally and on behalf of Auto Claim Specialists, he spent thousands of hours away from the business, devoted to compiling data to present to legislators to help them understand why their constituents deserve the Right to Appraisal.
'The devil is in the detail,' he explains. 'Every time I shared information, I had the evidence to support it. The insurance industry tends to be a little less transparent with their reporting, which provides the opportunity for dishonesty and undervaluation; I put a microscope on that practice and demonstrated how often policyholders get cheated. Now, all of our legislators understand how this provision protects their constituents, and I commend them for doing what's right for all Texans, to help ensure safe roadways. The fact that the vote was unanimous from the House and the Senate – across both sides of the aisle – proves what a great job we did educating them on how the Appraisal Clause is a vital mechanism to ensure vehicle owners are reimbursed for all the operations required to safely repair their cars.'
He equates the legislative victory with the concept of slaying a giant. 'We went up against really big odds; the insurance industry has deep pockets which enables them to walk all over people most of the time. Often, that happens because we are afraid to fight them; we're afraid to lose. But when you're doing the right thing for the right reason, it's worthwhile to keep going, to continue the fight to make a difference. That's what we did, and our efforts paid off – this was the people's fight…and the people fought and WON!'
Senate Bill 458, which seeks to ensure that all Texas insurance policies 'must contain an appraisal provision' and specifies that this appraisal provision 'is intended to provide a type of dispute resolution process solely to determine the amount of loss when that amount is in dispute between the policyholder and the insurer,' will go into effect on September 1, 2025. (Read the bill in its entirety at bit.ly/SB458text.)
McDorman is ecstatic that all Texas policyholders will soon have access to the vital protection of Right to Appraisal, and he 'looks forward to the next step, working with TDI to establish guidelines and appropriate time triggers.'
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Auto Claim Specialists is a national public insurance adjuster agency dedicated to ensuring consumers receive a fair settlement on their auto claims. Founded in 2017 by consumer advocate Robert McDorman, Auto Claim Specialists seeks to hold insurers accountable for fully indemnifying their policyholders for damages suffered by establishing the true value of losses. More information can be found online at autoclaimspecialists.com or by calling 817-756-5482.
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Contact Information
Thomas Greco
[e-mail]
9736676922
SOURCE: Auto Claim Specialists
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