Insurance appraisal in Texas
Since 2026, Texas has required home and personal auto policies to carry an appraisal clause, and the clause is there only to set the amount of loss. The Department of Insurance has proposed firm deadlines and qualifications for appraisers, but as of late October 2026 those rules are not adopted, so your policy's own wording still sets the clock.
At a glance
- Name an appraiser
- 20 days from the written demand under the standard Texas homeowners form and most others. The Department's proposed rule would make 20 days mandatory in residential policies. It is proposed, not adopted.
- Choose an umpire
- 15 days under common forms and under the proposed rule. The proposal lets an insurer start those 15 days either after the appraisers are named or after they fail to agree on the amount.
- If they cannot agree
- A court. The proposed rule would require every residential policy to let either side ask a county or district court where the property sits to appoint the umpire, after 10 days written notice to the other side. Insurers could add a vendor option, but not replace the court.
- Does appraisal pause the deadline to sue?
- Chapter 1813 does not pause the suit deadline, and a federal court in 2025 refused to treat appraisal as pausing it. Many policies allow suit for two years and one day after the claim accrues, and Texas law bars a contract deadline shorter than two years (Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.070).
- Who may serve
- Texas has no appraiser or umpire license. A 2025 bill to create one (HB 4074) did not become law. The proposed rule would require appraisers and umpires to be competent, independent of the parties and disinterested in the outcome, and, on a dwelling loss, to be an adjuster, engineer, architect or someone with building or estimating experience. More below
REG is based in the Houston area, so Texas appraisals start close to home. Our Houston-area service pages cover the city and the suburbs around it.
Deadlines in Texas
The clock
- Day 0Written demandEither party, in writing
- By day 20Appraisers named20 days for each side
- By day 35Umpire chosen15 days, or a court appoints
- On siteInspectionBoth estimates, line by line
- The awardAward signedAny two of three
- After the awardPaymentPer policy and state rules
Either side starts appraisal with a written demand. Under the standard Texas homeowners form and most other forms, each side then has 20 days to name an appraiser and the two appraisers have 15 days to agree on an umpire. Chapter 1813 leaves the exact deadlines to the Department of Insurance, and the Department's proposal (published in the Texas Register on May 8, 2026) would write them into every residential policy: a demand must be made in writing within one year of the insurer's notice accepting or rejecting the claim, or within 30 days after a suit is filed if a party is sued; the appraisers then have 120 days from the demand to try to agree; and if an umpire is needed the award is due within 240 days. The parties could change any of these dates in writing after the insurer sends its appraisal notice.
Those rules were not adopted when we checked the Department's rule table in October 2026, and the proposal's own September 1, 2026 compliance date has passed without an adoption notice. Until the rules are final, read your policy for the dates that apply to you. Send the demand in writing, keep proof of delivery, and do not wait for months after you and the carrier reach a standstill: a Texas court can find that a party waived appraisal by delaying unreasonably after an impasse when the delay prejudices the other side.
What the panel decides
Amount of loss only
Chapter 1813 says the required clause exists solely to determine the amount of loss when that amount is in dispute, and that appraisal does not change any other policy term. The Texas Supreme Court has said the panel is there to set the amount of loss, not to construe the policy or decide whether the insurer should pay.
The line between amount and cause is not perfectly clean. In State Farm Lloyds v. Johnson (Tex. 2009) the court held that any appraisal involves some causation, because setting an amount means separating damage from the covered event from damage from everything else, including pre-existing wear. How many shingles were damaged, and whether a part can be repaired or must be replaced, are amount questions. In In re ACE American Insurance Co. (Tex. May 8, 2026) the court added that a coverage dispute, or an accusation that the carrier mishandled the claim, does not stop an appraisal from going forward. Coverage and bad faith stay with the courts.
Who may serve
No Texas license is needed to be an appraiser or umpire. Standard forms ask for a competent appraiser, and many add impartial or disinterested. The Department's proposed rule would set a statewide floor: competent by training or experience to judge the type of loss, independent of the parties, and disinterested in the outcome. For a residential loss that involves the dwelling, appraisers and umpires would also have to be an adjuster or public adjuster with residential estimating experience, an engineer or architect with relevant experience, or a person with occupational experience building, repairing or estimating that type of property. Policies could add stricter standards. An umpire whose engagement ran past the award deadline would be replaced.
The award
Once two of the three sign, the amount of loss is binding on both the policyholder and the insurer, except for fraud, accident or material mistake relevant to the appraisal, or an award made without authority (Ins. Code § 1813.004). The award must also be made in substantial compliance with the policy's appraisal clause. The Texas Supreme Court has noted that courts of appeals also allow an award to be disregarded when it was made without authority or did not follow the policy's requirements. A panel that wanders into coverage or bad faith is exceeding its authority.
Points particular to Texas
Who chapter 1813 covers. It applies to residential property and personal auto policies delivered, issued or renewed in Texas on or after January 1, 2026, by insurers of every common type, including eligible surplus lines insurers whose home state is Texas and the Texas FAIR Plan Association. It does not apply to commercial policies or to policies issued by the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association. The proposed rule defines residential property to include homeowners, tenants and condominium policies and residential fire and allied lines.
What the Department has proposed beyond deadlines. Either side could demand appraisal on its own, without waiting for an impasse, on partial or total losses. The insurer would have to send a plain-language appraisal notice with its letter accepting or rejecting the claim, explaining where the clause is, how to demand appraisal, how to ask a court for an umpire, the deadlines and the effect of the award. Umpire requests by court or vendor would need 10 days written notice to the other side. None of this is binding until adopted.
TWIA policies have their own rule. A claimant who disputes only the amount of a covered loss may demand appraisal within 60 days of the association's notice of acceptance, and may ask in writing, within 15 days after that period ends, for a 30-day extension for good cause (Ins. Code § 2210.574). If the appraisers cannot agree on an umpire, the commissioner picks one from the Department's roster. The decision binds both sides on the amount of loss, but either side may sue within two years to vacate it on grounds such as fraud, evident partiality or exceeding the panel's powers. A claimant who misses the appraisal window waives the right to contest the amount TWIA decided to pay.
Texas courts enforce appraisal clauses as written, and they do so before suit. Under Johnson, appraisal should generally go forward without a court first sorting out causation. Under In re ACE (2026), an insured cannot avoid appraisal by pointing to coverage questions or alleging the carrier acted in bad faith. The recognized defenses are illegality and waiver. Waiver requires unreasonable delay in demanding appraisal after an impasse that prejudices the other side (Ortiz v. State Farm Lloyds, Tex. 2019, applying In re Universal Underwriters).
What happens when the carrier pays the award. Under Ortiz, payment of an appraisal award bars a breach of contract claim for the covered loss, and bars bad faith claims when the only damages sought are the policy benefits. It does not by itself bar a Prompt Payment of Claims Act claim, and Barbara Technologies v. State Farm Lloyds (Tex. 2019) held that paying according to an appraisal is not an admission of liability for purposes of the statutory damages. In Rodriguez v. Safeco (Tex. 2024) the court held that when an insurer pays the full award plus any statutory interest, attorney's fees under chapter 542A are not recoverable.
Weather claims have a separate pre-suit step. Under Ins. Code § 542A.003 a claimant generally must give written notice at least 61 days before filing suit on a claim for forces-of-nature damage, such as hail, wind, hurricane, tornado, wildfire or freeze. The notice must state the amount claimed. There are exceptions, including when the limitations period is about to run. A demand for appraisal does not replace this notice, and it does not pause the suit deadline, so note the date in your policy before you demand appraisal.
Common losses in Texas
Each one links back to how we look at that kind of loss.
Questions
Does my Texas homeowners policy have an appraisal clause?
Almost certainly. Chapter 1813 requires one in residential property and personal auto policies issued or renewed on or after January 1, 2026, and the standard Texas homeowners forms carried one before that. Look under the policy's conditions for the heading Appraisal. Commercial policies and Texas Windstorm Insurance Association policies are outside chapter 1813, and TWIA has its own appraisal rule.
How long do we have to name an appraiser in Texas?
Under the standard Texas forms, 20 days after the written demand. The Department of Insurance has proposed making 20 days the rule for every residential policy, and it also proposes that a demand be made within one year of the insurer's notice accepting or rejecting the claim. Those rules were still proposed, not adopted, in October 2026, so check your own policy.
Who chooses the umpire in Texas if the appraisers cannot agree?
A court, under the standard forms and under the proposed rule. Either side asks a court where the property is located to appoint one. The proposal would require 10 days written notice to the other side before the request is filed.
Can the appraisers decide whether my loss is covered in Texas?
No. Chapter 1813 limits the clause to the amount of loss. Under State Farm Lloyds v. Johnson the panel may separate storm damage from wear and tear when it sets that amount, but coverage, how the policy is read and bad faith stay with the courts. A dispute about coverage does not stop an appraisal from going ahead (In re ACE, 2026).
Does demanding appraisal pause the deadline to sue in Texas?
Do not assume it does. Chapter 1813 contains no tolling rule, and a federal court in 2025 held that an appraisal demand did not extend the policy's suit deadline. Many policies allow suit for two years and one day after the claim accrues, and Texas will not enforce a contract deadline shorter than two years. Find your deadline before you demand appraisal.
If the insurer pays the appraisal award, is my claim over?
Mostly, for the amount of loss. Under Ortiz, payment bars a contract claim for the covered loss and bad faith claims that seek only the policy benefits, but prompt-payment interest claims can survive. Under Rodriguez v. Safeco (2024), full payment of the award plus any statutory interest also ends a claim for attorney's fees under chapter 542A. How that applies to your claim depends on the facts, so read the award and the payment letter carefully.
Before you decide anything
Has a claim in Texas stalled on the number?
Tell us what happened and where. We'll read the policy and tell you plainly whether appraisal fits.
When you write to us
- We read the policy, the estimates on both sides and the letters that came with them.
- We tell you plainly whether appraisal fits the disagreement, and if it doesn't, who can help.
- If it fits, we confirm next steps in writing before anything starts.
Reviewed against the sources listed, October 2026. General information, not legal advice.