National Claims Negotiators Sets the Bar as the Expert Witness in the Largest Insurance Jury Verdict in the State of Texas for 2021

MANSFIELD, Texas–(BUSINESS WIRE)–National Claims Negotiators today announced the release of a case study video that examines poor claim handling by the insurance carrier and the events that led up to the largest insurance verdict in 2021. This milestone is a major move for National Claims Negotiators on its mission to advocate for property owners that have insurance claims.

See Video HERE

“This was medium-sized commercial property. I would say that 70,000 square feet on the roof to be exact were damaged by hail. Just like a lot of the claims that we work”

In March 2017, a large storm with hail the size of tennis balls damaged much of the city of McKinney, Texas. VirtuWave Holdings had purchased a new facility in McKinney less than four months prior, and employees soon discovered the new property had sustained massive damages from the storm.

“We did what any owner would do and simply filed a claim. The insurance company comes out a day later … tells me that there wasn’t any damage – or certainly not enough damage to justify or exceed a minimum deductible,” says Lance Black, Managing Partner at VirtuWave Holdings.

Several days after VirtuWave’s claim was denied there was another rain storm in the area, exposing many different water leaks.

“We would hear the way water drops on a drop ceiling and a drop flight. You could hear the drops coming through the roof, which is something that we had never experienced before. So I had an ‘AHA’ moment: what the insurance company had told me wasn’t exactly true,” remembers Black.

In consultation with friends and colleagues, Lance Black decided to call National Claims Negotiators for assistance in navigating the claim.

“This was medium-sized commercial property. I would say that 70,000 square feet on the roof to be exact were damaged by hail. Just like a lot of the claims that we work,” recalls Wes Smith, Public Insurance Adjuster with National Claims Negotiators.

National Claims Negotiators brought in third-party experts with no financial stake in the claim to provide assessments on the state of the damages. Photos were taken and documented, then sent to the carrier for review.

Once three more site visits by the carrier resulted in three more denials, it became necessary to hire attorney Matthew Pearson, Founding Partner of Pearson Legal PC and lead attorney for VirtuWave.

“What makes a lawsuit is having obviously a good client with a good story to tell. And Ron Snouffer was part of that storytelling process that helped really tell this consistent story from the start of the storm all the way up,” says Matthew Pearson, Founder of Pearson Legal PC.

The roof consultant and engineering firm hired by the insurance carrier presented an engineering report showing no damage to the roof. During discovery, it was found out that over 1,300 pictures were taken on-site during the inspection, with 450 of those pictures showcasing damage that was covered by the policy. After four days of litigation, VirtuWave Holdings won the case on all accounts.

“The jury awarded what we believe is a very sizeable and fair award,” says Lance Black. “We not only wanted to repair our roof. We also wanted to send a message to the insurance company, to anybody who may be hearing this message that you don’t do this to people.”

To learn more about this case study and watch the video documenting the story of this claim, visit Pearson Legal PC’s website: Pearson Legal, P.C. Breaks 2021 Record, Obtains Largest Insurance Jury Verdict in Texas for the Year.

About National Claims Negotiators:

National Claims Negotiators is a public adjusting firm that works exclusively for residential and commercial property owners. Established in 2012, the company is located in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex with licenses throughout the United States.