The Supreme Court of Texas ruled that tornadoes qualify as windstorms for insurance purposes, meaning windstorm deductibles apply to tornado damage under standard homeowners policies.
The decision sided with Privilege Underwriters Reciprocal Exchange and reversed a divided appellate court ruling, resolving a dispute over an $87,156 windstorm deductible. The insurer had paid only part of a claim, citing a policy provision that applies a windstorm or hail deductible to losses caused directly or indirectly by windstorms.
The policy did not define “windstorm,” and the case turned on whether that term includes tornadoes. The court said it does, finding the term unambiguous. Justice Jane Bland Lehrmann, writing for the court, pointed to consistent dictionary definitions describing windstorms as storms marked by strong or violent winds, often with little or no precipitation. Dictionaries likewise define tornadoes as violent, destructive movements of wind, with some explicitly calling them a type of windstorm.
The court rejected arguments that precipitation associated with a broader storm system excludes a tornado from being a windstorm, saying the nature of the surrounding weather does not change what a tornado is. It also dismissed reliance on Texas statutes that list windstorms and tornadoes separately, noting that lawmakers often pair general and specific terms without intending exclusion.
The ruling settles a question with broad implications for how insurers across Texas apply deductibles to tornado-related claims, concluding that, in ordinary usage, a tornado is a windstorm.
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