When you and your insurance company cannot agree on the amount of a property loss, the appraisal clause in most Texas policies gives you a way to settle it without a lawsuit. We are based in the Valley and serve property owners across McAllen, Brownsville, Harlingen, and the surrounding cities as appraisers and umpires.
Got an appraisal demand letter? Start here Call (956) 433-2574Received a demand letter? The clock to name your appraiser may already be running.
Lone Star Insurance Appraisers is based in the Rio Grande Valley. When a property claim in the Valley comes down to a disagreement about the amount of the loss, we serve as your named appraiser, as a carrier-appointed appraiser, or as umpire. The appraisal process is the same everywhere in Texas, but the storms, the building stock, and the way a Valley home or business takes damage are things we see up close, not from a map.
If you want the plain-language version of how the process works before you go further, read what insurance appraisal is. If a demand letter has already landed, start with our appraisal demand letter guide.
Most property insurance policies written in Texas contain an appraisal clause. It is a built-in way to settle disagreements about the amount of a loss without going to court. Either side can invoke it: your carrier can invoke it on you, and you can invoke it on your carrier. Each side names an appraiser, the two appraisers select an umpire, and when any two of the three agree on a number, that number generally binds both sides as to the amount of the loss.
Appraisal decides the amount of a loss. It does not decide whether your policy covers the claim in the first place. Coverage questions stay with your carrier, and if you need them answered, with your own attorney. What appraisal is built for is the common situation where both sides agree there is a covered loss but are far apart on what it costs to make the property whole.
The Rio Grande Valley sits on the Gulf, and the claims here reflect it. We handle residential and commercial losses across the perils that hit this part of Texas:
Tropical systems and straight-line wind drive some of the largest disputes in the Valley, on roofs, envelopes, and interiors. These are the losses where appraisal numbers spread the widest.
Hail damage to roofs, soft metals, and elevations is often argued over scope and repair method. An experienced appraiser documents it to a standard that holds up.
Sudden water losses and fire losses turn on scope, drying, and rebuild. We appraise both on residential and commercial property.
When you invoke appraisal, or your carrier invokes it on you, we serve as your named appraiser: an honest, defensible valuation of your loss, documented to insurance industry standards.
We take appraisal assignments from carriers and independent adjusting firms that need a credentialed appraiser on the ground in the Valley and across South Texas.
When both appraisers agree to it, or a court appoints one, we serve as umpire and issue the deciding award.
More on the background behind the work is on the credentials page: nearly a decade of Texas claims adjusting, eight years of appraisal, and a general contracting background.
Home base is the Valley, so response here is close. We cover the RGV core and the surrounding towns, with the rest of South Texas and statewide travel available.
Also serving Corpus Christi, Laredo, and the Gulf Coast, with travel available statewide to Houston, San Antonio, Austin, and Dallas-Fort Worth.
Send the basics and we will call you back. Nothing here obligates you to anything.
The first conversation costs nothing. If appraisal is not the right fit for your situation, we will tell you.
Call (956) 433-2574 Email [email protected]