Zalma on Insurance
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Insurance Claims professional presents articles and videos on insurance, insurance Claims and insurance law for insurance Claims adjusters, insurance professionals and insurance lawyers who wish to improve their skills and knowledge. Presented by an internationally recognized expert and author.
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September 03, 2025
Evidence Required to Prove Breach of Contract

APPRAISAL AWARD SETS AMOUNT OF DAMAGES RECOVERED FROM INSURER

Post 5180

See the full video at https://rumble.com/v6yd2z0-evidence-required-to-prove-breach-of-contract.html and at https://youtu.be/2ywEjs3hZsw, and at https://zalma.com/blog plus more than 5150 posts.

It’s a Waste of Time to Sue Your Insurer if You Don’t Have Evidence

Evidence Required to Prove Breach of Contract

Read the full article at https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/evidence-required-prove-breach-contract-barry-zalma-esq-cfe-rfelc, see the full video at https://rumble.com/v6yd2z0-evidence-required-to-prove-breach-of-contract.html and at https://youtu.be/2ywEjs3hZsw, and at https://zalma.com/blog plus more than 5150 posts.

It’s a Waste of Time to Sue Your Insurer if You Don’t Have Evidence

In Debbie Beaty and Jonathan Hayes v. Homeowners Of America Insurance Company, No. 01-23-00844-CV, Court of Appeals of Texas, First District (August 26, 2025) Debbie Beaty and Jonathan Hayes filed a claim under their homeowner’s insurance policy with Homeowners of America Insurance Co. after a windstorm damaged their home in April 2020.

FACTUAL BACKGROUND

Insurance Claim:

Beaty and Hayes filed a claim for roof damage caused by a windstorm in April 2020.

Appraisal Award:

An appraisal award was issued, valuing the total loss at $30,681.81, with $15,508.35 attributed to roof-related repairs. The insurer paid the appraisal award less the deductible and prior payments.

Breach of Contract:

The insurer conclusively negated the breach element, and Beaty and Hayes did not produce evidence raising a genuine issue of material fact.

Summary Judgment:

The trial court granted summary judgment in favor of the insurer, concluding that the insurer did not breach the policy and that Beaty and Hayes were not entitled to additional benefits.

The Lawsuit

They asked the trial court to vacate the appraisal award because it exceeded the appraisal panel’s scope of authority under the policy. The trial court granted the Insurer’s summary judgment motion and ordering that Beaty and Hayes take nothing on their claims.

LAW GOVERNING APPRAISAL AWARDS

The award set the actual cash value of the loss at $30,681.81. Of this amount, an attached estimate attributed $15,508.35 to roof-related repairs.

BREACH OF CONTRACT

The essential elements of a breach of contract claim are:

1. the existence of a valid contract between the plaintiff and the defendant;

2. the plaintiff’s performance or tendered performance;

3. the defendant’s breach of the contract; and

4. the plaintiff’s damages as a result of the breach.

The Court of Appeals concluded that Insurer conclusively negated an essential element, namely the breach element.

The trial court did not err by granting summary judgment.

ZALMA OPINION

People who present insurance claims seem to think that an insurer will do no investigation and simply pay them whatever they ask. Beaty and Hayes believed that and when they didn’t get what they wanted, even after an appraisal panel set the amount of loss and the insurer paid the award, they wanted more and sued only to have the Court of Appeals conclude that they failed to even produce a scintilla of evidence that they were entitled to more.
(c) 2025 Barry Zalma & ClaimSchool, Inc.

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6 hours ago
PROSECUTING ATTORNEYS ARE IMMUNE FROM SUIT

Formulaic Recitation Of The Elements Of Civil Conspiracy Are Insufficient
Post number 5320

See the full video at https://lnkd.in/gPACkgWq and at https://lnkd.in/gsaxij7D, and at https://zalma.com/blog plus more than 5300 posts.

In Hassan Fayad v. Liberty Mutual Insurance Company, et al., No. 2:25-cv-10930, United States District Court, E.D. Michigan, Southern Division (March 24, 2026) Plaintiff Hassan Fayad, the owner of several businesses providing transportation, diagnostics, testing, and therapy services, regularly billed insurance companies for these services, was arrested and tried for fraud, convicted, had the conviction overruled and sued the insurers and prosecutors he found responsible.

FACTUAL BACKGROUND

By January 2020, Liberty Mutual, Progressive, Allstate, and Esurance suspected fraudulent activity and filed a complaint with the Michigan Department of Attorney General (MDAG). The insurers alleged that Fayad and others billed Michigan auto insurance policies for profit without actually providing medically ...

00:08:00
April 09, 2026
Everyone Must Agree to Removal to Federal Court

Federal Courts Have Limited Jurisdiction

When all Parties Refuse Removal There is No Jurisdiction

Post number 5319

Read the full article at https://lnkd.in/gp6Z-JYY, see the full video at https://lnkd.in/gAum322y and at https://lnkd.in/gRPzCjmt and at https://zalma.com/blog plus more than 5300 posts.

In Beth Mayhew and Matthew Mayhew v. Vladimir Sadovyh, et al., No. 2:26-CV-04029-WJE, United States District Court, W.D. Missouri (April 6, 2026) Mayhew was involved in a trailer-truck accident with Vladimir Sadovyh, who was employed by Nova First, LLC and Globex Transport, Inc. Both companies owned the tractor-trailer involved.

FACTUAL BACKGROUND

Chubb and Mohave Transportation Insurance Company jointly issued an insurance policy covering Nova First, Globex, and Sadovyh, with EMA Risk Services acting as a third-party administrator.

Beth Mayhew sued Nova First, Globex, and Sadovyh for negligence in Missouri state court, and following a jury trial, a nuclear judgment was awarded to the Mayhews totaling ...

00:04:01
April 09, 2026
IVF is not Excluded Sexual Conduct

Ordinary Negligence is What Medical Professi0nal Liability Insures

Post number 5319

See the full video at https://lnkd.in/gxKjDztW and at https://lnkd.in/gnxkxS42, and at https://zalma.com/blog plus more than 5300 posts.

Sexual Conduct Exclusion Doesn’t Apply When Doctor Negligently Uses His Own Sperm

In Integris Insurance Company v. Narendra B. Tohan, No. AC 47222, Court of Appeals of Connecticut (April 7, 2026) Integris Insurance Company, a medical professional liability insurer, initiated a declaratory action to determine its duty to defend and indemnify Narendra B. Tohan, a physician licensed in Connecticut, in a separate negligence action alleging medical misconduct.

FACTUAL BACKGROUND

In 2019, Kayla Suprynowicz and Reilly Flaherty (civil action plaintiffs), who were strangers for most of their lives, discovered through a genetic testing company that they are half siblings.

INSURANCE POLICY

The policy defines “Professional Services” in relevant part as “any professional medical services within the ...

00:07:58
April 02, 2026
Zalma’s Insurance Fraud Letter – April 1, 2026

ZIFL – Volume 30, Issue 7 – April 1, 2026

THE SOURCE FOR THE INSURANCE FRAUD PROFESSIONAL
Post number 5314

Posted on April 1, 2026 by Barry Zalma

Zalma’s Insurance Fraud Letter (ZIFL) continues its 30th year of publication dedicated to those involved in reducing the effect of insurance fraud. ZIFL is published 24 times a year by ClaimSchool and is written by Barry Zalma. It is provided FREE to anyone who visits the site at http://zalma.com/zalmas-insurance-fraud-letter-2/ This issue contains the following articles about insurance fraud:

No One is Above the Law – Not Even a Police Officer

Police Officer Convicted for Fraud in Reporting an Accident Affirmed
Police Officer Should never Lie about Results of Chase

In State Of Ohio v. Anthony Holmes, No. 115123, 2026-Ohio-736, Court of Appeals of Ohio, Eighth District, Cuyahoga (March 5, 2026) a police officer appealed criminal conviction as a result of lies about a high speed chase.

Read the following article and the full issue of ZIFL at https://zalma.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/ZIFL-04-01-2026-1.pdf...

April 01, 2026
Zalma’s Insurance Fraud Letter – April 1, 2026

ZIFL – Volume 30, Issue 7 – April 1, 2026

THE SOURCE FOR THE INSURANCE FRAUD PROFESSIONAL
Post number 5314

Posted on April 1, 2026 by Barry Zalma

Zalma’s Insurance Fraud Letter (ZIFL) continues its 30th year of publication dedicated to those involved in reducing the effect of insurance fraud. ZIFL is published 24 times a year by ClaimSchool and is written by Barry Zalma. It is provided FREE to anyone who visits the site at http://zalma.com/zalmas-insurance-fraud-letter-2/ This issue contains the following articles about insurance fraud:

No One is Above the Law – Not Even a Police Officer

Police Officer Convicted for Fraud in Reporting an Accident Affirmed
Police Officer Should never Lie about Results of Chase

In State Of Ohio v. Anthony Holmes, No. 115123, 2026-Ohio-736, Court of Appeals of Ohio, Eighth District, Cuyahoga (March 5, 2026) a police officer appealed criminal conviction as a result of lies about a high speed chase.

Read the following article and the full issue of ZIFL at https://zalma.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/ZIFL-04-01-2026-1.pdf...

March 31, 2026
Insurance Fraud Costs Everyone

Posted on March 30, 2026 by Barry Zalma

Insurance Fraud, a Way to Reduce Violent Crime
Post number 5313

A Fictionalized True Crime Story of Insurance Fraud from an Expert who explains why Insurance Fraud is a “Heads I Win, Tails You Lose” situation for Insurers. The story helps to Understand How Insurance Fraud in America is Costing Everyone who Buys Insurance Thousands of Dollars Every year and Why Insurance Fraud is Safer and More Profitable for the ­­­Perpetrators than any Other Crime.

She Taught Her Customers The Swoop And Squat:

Recently the California Insurance Department’s Fraud Division arrested a young woman in Los Angeles County for operating an insurance fraud school. She advertised her classes in the “Penny Saver” an advertising sheet distributed free to the public and a print version of Facebook, X Craig’s list. She had operated for several years teaching methods of committing automobile insurance fraud. Only after a police officer enrolled in one of her classes was she arrested.

Her defense ...

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