Bad Faith: Texas Man Receives $288K in Lawsuit Against State Farm

A Texas man who sued State Farm insurance for deducting money from his total loss settlement was awarded $288,517.59 by a jury earlier this month.

Joseph Wayne Collins took civil action against the company after his 2009 Toyota Tacoma, which was insured by State Farm, was damaged in an April 24, 2020 hail storm, according to a court filing.

Although Collins wanted his pickup repaired, and State Farm initially agreed, they later deemed it a total loss and agreed to pay him $17,150.01, from which $1,751.96 was ‘fraudulently deducted,’ a court document says.

The court heard that the funds were deducted to cover pre-repair work completed during a short window when State Farm had deemed the vehicle repairable. After it received the repair estimate it declared the vehicle a total loss and paid the repair shop for its work, only to deduct those fees from Collins’ settlement, the jury heard.