My commercial property insurance was nonrenewed in Texas. What should I do?

If your Texas commercial property insurer will not renew, find two things on the notice first: the date your coverage ends and the reason. Texas generally requires the insurer to mail or deliver written notice of nonrenewal at least 60 days before the policy expires. Use those 60 days. Send the notice and your building details to an agent right away so other insurers can look at the building while there is still time to compare.

Burch Insurance Group compares commercial property options for apartment, retail, office, warehouse and mixed-use buildings across Texas. Licensed in Texas.

How much notice does a Texas insurer have to give?

Texas Insurance Code section 551.054 lets an insurer refuse to renew a liability or commercial property insurance policy if it delivers or mails written notice to the first-named insured at the address on the policy. The notice must be delivered or mailed no later than the 60th day before the policy expires.

If the insurer misses that deadline, the coverage stays in effect until the 61st day after the notice is delivered or mailed. You still owe premium for that extra time, figured on the prior year's rate. The Texas Department of Insurance also says the notice must tell you the reasons the insurer does not want to renew.

The rule has a defined scope, and some policies may follow different rules. It applies to insurers admitted in Texas. Surplus lines policies are outside it, so check the notice terms in the policy itself. Send us the notice and the policy and we will check which rule applies before you count days.

Answer the reason with records

The most useful thing you can send depends on why the insurer said no.

• Roof age or condition: the invoice and permit for the last replacement, any inspection report and recent photos. In North and Central Texas, roof age often decides whether a standard insurer will quote at all.
• Hail or wind claims: five years of loss runs and what was repaired, with dates.
• Occupancy or vacancy changes: the current tenant list, vacant suites and how the building is watched.
• Coastal location: any WPI-8 certificates and existing Texas Windstorm Insurance Association paperwork. Our Texas commercial building quote page explains TWIA eligibility.

Label what you do not know. A planned repair and a finished repair are different facts to an underwriter.

What to send for replacement quotes

• The nonrenewal notice, current declarations and endorsements
• Building address, construction, year built, square footage and occupancy
• Roof type, replacement date and records
• Five years of loss runs
• Rent roll or business income figures
• Lender requirements and the date new coverage must start

Compare the replacement before you choose

When the deadline is close, the premium can feel like the only decision. Put each proposal beside the expiring policy and check the building limit, replacement cost or actual cash value settlement, and above all the wind and hail deductible. In Texas that deductible is often a percentage of the building value, which can matter more than the premium. Our guide to commercial property insurance cost in Texas shows how much it can change the comparison, using hypothetical numbers.

A quote is not coverage. Ask what has to be signed, paid or supplied, get written confirmation of the effective date and time, and keep your current policy in force until the new one is confirmed.

Questions Texas owners ask us

The notice arrived with less than 60 days left. Am I covered? Under section 551.054, if the notice was late, coverage stays in effect until the 61st day after the notice was delivered or mailed, and premium for that period is still owed. Send us the notice so we can check that the section applies to your policy.

Is a higher renewal premium the same as a nonrenewal? No. A higher renewal is an offer you can compare. A nonrenewal means the policy ends on the expiration date and you need replacement coverage before then.

Can I get a quote with an older roof? Often, but the terms may change, such as actual cash value settlement on the roof or a higher hail deductible. Roof records help.

Do I need an agent with a Texas office? No. Burch Insurance Group is licensed in Texas and works with owners by phone and online.

Request a Texas commercial property quote, or call 612-712-6407.

Burch Insurance Group is licensed in Texas.