Portland, Texas 3-Inch Hailstorm (November 1, 2025): TWIA Claim Decisions Are Arriving Now — And the Deadlines to Challenge Underpayment Are Tight
On November 1, 2025, a powerful hailstorm swept through the Portland / Corpus Christi area, producing hail reported as golf-ball to baseball size and causing widespread property damage. If you have a Texas Windstorm Insurance Association (TWIA) policy, you may be receiving your TWIA decision letter now — or you may receive it very soon.
Here’s the critical point: TWIA claims are not like claims with private insurers. TWIA is governed by Texas Insurance Code Chapter 2210, and that law imposes unique deadlines and dispute procedures that can permanently affect your ability to contest an underpaid claim.
This blog is intended to help TWIA policyholders understand what’s happening, what deadlines may apply, and what practical steps to take if you disagree with TWIA’s evaluation of hail damage.
Why TWIA claim decisions are coming out now
After a large hail event, many policyholders report claims within a similar time window. Under Texas Insurance Code Chapter 2210, TWIA generally must accept or reject a claim within 60 days (calculated from TWIA’s receipt of the claim and/or any information TWIA timely requests that it says it needs to make the decision).
That statutory structure is one reason you often see a wave of TWIA decision letters arrive around the same time.
In practice, commercial and multi-building claims often take the full statutory window, because TWIA’s decision letter may address multiple buildings, multiple roofs, and multiple components of loss.
What is unusual is not that the decision arrives later — it’s what happens next: once the decision letter is received, TWIA’s dispute deadlines start running immediately, and they can be far tighter than most policyholders expect.
Quick timeline for TWIA hail claims from the November 1, 2025 storm
1) One year to file the claim
TWIA policies and Chapter 2210 generally impose a one-year deadline from the date of loss to report a TWIA claim. If you suspect hail damage and have not filed yet, do not assume “we can do it later.”
2) After TWIA’s decision letter: tight windows to dispute
The moment you receive TWIA’s decision letter, your dispute path and deadlines may depend on what TWIA did:
Accepted (but underpaid)
Accepted in part / denied in part
Denied
Below deductible (often treated as a form of “acceptance” of coverage but “$0 payable”)
The most common trap after hail claims is an “accepted” claim that is materially underpaid, followed by missed deadlines to challenge the amount.
A quick overview: what is TWIA (and why it matters)?
TWIA is a residual insurer of last resort created to provide wind and hail coverage when the private market will not. TWIA only covers windstorm and hail (not all perils), and it applies in the Texas designated catastrophe area along the coast, including the 14 first-tier coastal counties and parts of Harris County.
If your property is in the Coastal Bend (including Nueces and surrounding coastal counties), you are in the heart of TWIA country — and TWIA’s rules can control your rights from day one.
Bottom line: TWIA is not simply “another carrier.” Its claims handling, deadlines, and dispute procedures are governed by a different legal framework than most private insurers.
What TWIA decision letters typically say after a hailstorm
TWIA decision letters are usually titled something like:
Notice of Claim Acceptance
Notice of Claim Denial
Notice of Claim Acceptance in Part and Denial in Part
Even when TWIA “accepts” a claim, the disposition letter can still be damaging if it:
defines the claim too narrowly,
omits key building components,
undervalues roof damage,
treats obvious storm damage as “wear and tear,” or
assigns a scope that does not match what must actually be repaired or replaced.
This is why TWIA letters should be read like legal documents — because in many ways, they are.
The most important deadline for “accepted but underpaid” TWIA claims: 60 days
If TWIA accepts coverage (fully or partially) but you dispute the amount of loss TWIA will pay, TWIA’s statute-driven process often funnels you toward appraisal.
The key point
A policyholder generally must demand appraisal within 60 days of receiving the notice letter for accepted coverage (or the accepted portion of a partially accepted claim), or the policyholder may waive the right to contest the amount TWIA will pay for that accepted portion.
There may be a limited extension available, but the safest approach is to treat the 60-day deadline as firm and act quickly.
Why this is different than private insurance claims
With many private insurers, policyholders assume they can negotiate for months, gather bids, and “circle back later.” With TWIA, waiting can be fatal. If the appraisal deadline passes, under the plain language of the policy TWIA insureds would be barred from disputed the amount of loss for the accepted part of the claim.
“Accepted in part / denied in part” and “denied” TWIA claims
If TWIA denies coverage (in whole or in part), TWIA disputes may require specific notice steps and TWIA may require alternative dispute resolution before suit, with a two-year limitations framework tied to receipt of TWIA’s denial notice.
Denied-coverage TWIA claims can be procedural minefields. If your letter includes any denial language, the dispute path can change dramatically — and you should get advice promptly.
Why consulting counsel early can make the difference on TWIA hail claims
If you’ve received a TWIA decision letter for the November 1, 2025 Portland hailstorm, this is the moment where a quick consultation can protect — and often materially improve — your outcome. TWIA disputes aren’t just about “getting a bigger check.” They are about preserving rights, framing the dispute correctly, and avoiding procedural traps that can permanently limit what you can recover.
1) TWIA’s decision letter can lock in the “claim definition” — and that matters
Many TWIA disposition letters don’t simply say “accepted” or “denied.” They often define:
which buildings are part of the claim,
which coverages are triggered (and which aren’t),
what date(s) of loss TWIA is using, and
what scope TWIA believes exists.
That “claim definition” can drive everything that follows — especially in more complex situations like:
multi-building condominium or HOA claims,
commercial complexes with multiple structures, or
policies covering buildings with different roof systems, elevations, or construction eras.
If TWIA’s letter defines the claim too narrowly (or misidentifies the buildings/areas at issue), you can end up fighting the dispute on TWIA’s terms — when the policyholder should be setting the terms based on the policy and the actual storm impacts.
2) The “accepted but underpaid” trap is even worse on multi-building policies
For accepted coverage disputes, TWIA’s policy forms and statutory framework can impose a very short window — often 60 days after receipt of TWIA’s disposition / decision letter — to demand appraisal on the amount of loss.
On multi-building claims, this is especially dangerous because:
you may not yet have a full roof/engineering assessment for all buildings when the letter arrives,
TWIA’s estimate may group buildings oddly, omit elevations, or treat obvious hail impacts as “maintenance,” and
an HOA board or property manager may still be gathering bids and trying to understand the full scope.
Waiting until you “have it all figured out” can be exactly how policyholders miss the appraisal window and unintentionally waive the right to contest an underpayment.
3) Commercial policyholders: the clock to file can be only one year
This point deserves to be unmistakably clear for commercial owners and HOAs: Many TWIA claims are subject to a one-year deadline from the date of loss to report the claim. For the November 1, 2025 hailstorm, that deadline is generally around November 1, 2026.
Commercial owners frequently delay hail claims because they assume:
“We haven’t seen leaks,”
“It’s probably below the deductible,” or
“We’ll wait until we have budget clarity.”
But large hail can cause functional roof damage that isn’t obvious from the ground. A professional evaluation often changes the entire calculus — and delaying too long can eliminate the claim altogether.
4) The “next hailstorm” problem: delay can destroy causation — and the ability to recover
If you don’t file now and another hailstorm hits later, TWIA may argue you can’t prove which storm caused which damage, or that later impacts muddied the condition of the roof.
In multi-storm regions, delayed reporting can turn a valid claim into a causation fight — where TWIA contends the policyholder can’t segregate damages by event. In the worst case, a policyholder can be squeezed from both sides:
challenged on the later storm because TWIA claims the damage was pre-existing.
5) Why consult with Lundquist Law Firm specifically
TWIA claims require a different playbook than standard insurers because TWIA disputes are governed by Chapter 2210, TWIA policy forms, and TWIA-specific dispute procedures.
When a TWIA decision arrives — especially for an HOA, condominium association, or commercial policy with multiple buildings — there’s rarely time for trial-and-error. A consultation can help answer the urgent questions:
What exactly did TWIA accept vs. deny?
Did the decision letter define the claim incorrectly?
Does the 60-day appraisal deadline apply — and when does it expire?
What evidence and professional evaluations are needed to document hail impacts now?
Do we need to correct the claim framing immediately to avoid waiver later?
TWIA disputes are high-stakes and procedural. Outcomes often hinge on how the claim is defined, how deadlines are preserved, and how evidence is developed. Our firm has taken TWIA cases all the way through trial and appeal — and won.
Here is one example that illustrates the difference TWIA experience can make:
Case: Commerce Office Park-One, L.P. v. Texas Windstorm Insurance Association (TWIA)
Court: 105th Judicial District Court, Nueces County, Texas (Corpus Christi)
Trial: February 2020 (8-day jury trial)
TWIA’s offer: $0 throughout litigation and even during trial
Result: Final judgment entered for over $4.2 million
Recognition: TopVerdict reported it as the #1 Texas verdict against any insurance company in 2020
Appeal: On October 3, 2024, the Thirteenth Court of Appeals affirmed the judgment in its entirety
That decision was historic for several reasons: (1) it remains as the only successful commercial property insurance claim to go to trial against any insurance company stemming from Hurricane Harvey damage since 2017; (2) it was the first policyholder verdict against TWIA under the new Texas statutes (solely governing TWIA) which have been in effect since 2011; and (3) it was the first verdict ever to find TWIA improperly denied a claim with a “specific intent to harm.”
At Lundquist Law Firm, we have handled thousands of TWIA claims since 2008 and have recovered millions of dollars in policy benefits for TWIA policyholders, including apartment complexes, condos, hotels, and commercial buildings. The point for today’s TWIA policyholders is simple: TWIA claims require TWIA-specific knowledge, especially when deadlines are short, decision letters are complicated, you’ve got a sizeable claim, or the claim involves multiple buildings, roofs, or coverages.
Signs your Portland hail claim may be underpaid
TWIA hail underpayments often show up in patterns, including:
roof damage minimized or excluded as “wear and tear”
characterizing roof damage as “cosmetic”
test squares or sample areas that don’t reflect the roof’s true condition
missing steep/high charges, safety requirements, or access costs
omission of code-driven items where applicable
depreciation applied in ways that don’t match the work required
interior water damage scoped as a patch, when the roof system is compromised
If you see any of these issues — especially in a major hailstorm — it is worth getting the decision letter reviewed promptly.
What to do right now if you received a TWIA decision letter
Step 1: Calendar the deadlines immediately
Do not rely on memory. The deadlines can be short, and missing them can waive rights.
Step 2: Preserve your evidence
Keep copies of:
your TWIA policy and declarations
the TWIA decision letter and estimate
photos/videos of damage
contractor bids, engineer reports, and roofing evaluations
communications with adjusters/examiners
Step 3: Get the letter reviewed before the appraisal window closes
If you suspect underpayment, do not assume TWIA will “work it out later.” With TWIA, timing is strategy.
Talk with a TWIA hail claim attorney in the Coastal Bend
If you have a TWIA hail claim from the November 1, 2025 Portland storm and you have received a decision letter — or if you have not filed yet and want to understand your the one-year reporting deadline — we invite you to contact us for a consultation. At Lundquist Law Firm, there is no financial risk to getting help with your claim. Consultations are free, there are no upfront costs, and you owe nothing unless we recover compensation for you. In many cases, attorney’s fees are recoverable on top of what the insurance company owes, meaning hiring our firm can only help you recover more, never less. Notably, the Texas Department of Insurance has found that engaging the services of an advocate increases an insured’s payment on a property insurance claim by an average of 308%.*
To learn more about the legal assistance we can provide on your TWIA hail insurance claim, give us a call at (346) 704-5295, or Contact us.