Every Texas auto policyholder will begin receiving a written notice of their right to invoke independent appraisal under proposed Texas Department of Insurance amendments that fold the new right-to-appraisal provision from Senate Bill 458 into the consumer-facing summary insurers issue with new and renewing policies.
The proposed amendments to 28 TAC §§5.9970 and 5.9971 were issued in Austin on May 1, 2026, certified by TDI General Counsel Jessica Barta. They implement four bills from the 89th Texas Legislature, 2025 session: SB 458, SB 1238, SB 1644, and HB 2067. Public comments are due by 5 p.m. Central time on June 15, 2026.
The proposal is the next step in TDI's ongoing SB 458 rulemaking. TDI released proposed procedural rules under Chapter 1813 last month, establishing timelines and notice requirements for invoking appraisal at the claim level. This proposal moves the consumer disclosure into the Bill of Rights document itself.
Policyholders will receive a written right-to-appraisal notice at issuance and renewal
The proposal would add to the Auto Bill of Rights a notice of "the right to request appraisal to resolve disputes about loss amounts (SB 458)." SB 458 created Insurance Code Chapter 1813, which requires certain personal auto and residential property insurance policies to contain an appraisal provision to resolve disputes about loss amounts.
In practice, every personal auto policyholder in Texas, at new policy issuance and at renewal, will receive a written notice informing them that they can invoke independent appraisal when they disagree with their insurer over the amount of loss. The distribution requirement is the substantive change. The right exists today, but the formal consumer-awareness mechanism does not. Shops preparing for appraisal cases, like Miracle Body & Paint's business-office-manager model documented in ABN's prior reporting, should expect a meaningful increase in consumer awareness and, with it, appraisal demand once the new disclosure takes effect.
Additional consumer rights that were proposed
Three additional consumer rights would be added to the Auto Bill of Rights alongside the SB 458 notice:
- Consumers will gain the right to request an annual re-underwriting and re-rating of their policy based on updated credit information, under SB 1644 (which created Insurance Code §559.058). The same section also requires insurers to refresh credit-based policy ratings at least every three years.
- Consumers will gain the right to a written reason whenever an insurer turns down, terminates, or refuses to renew a policy, under HB 2067 (which amended Insurance Code §551.109).
- Consumers will gain protection from insurer discrimination based on marital status following a spousal death, under SB 1238 (which amended Insurance Code §544.002).
Nov. 1, 2026 deadline to begin issuing the revised documents
The proposal stems from a petition the Office of Public Insurance Counsel submitted to TDI on Aug. 27, 2025. Under Insurance Code §501.156, OPIC is required to submit consumer bills of rights to TDI for adoption for each personal insurance line TDI regulates.
The revised Auto Bill of Rights and Homeowners Bill of Rights take effect for distribution Nov. 1, 2026, if adopted. Before that date, insurers may distribute either the new version or the version effective Nov. 1, 2024. Both bills of rights are eight pages long and must appear in no less than 10-point type on separate pages with no other text.
TDI estimates compliance costs at four to 10 hours of staff time per insurer
Per the TDI fiscal note, insurers can expect to spend four to 10 hours of compliance officer time updating internal distribution procedures and a separate four to 10 hours of programmer time preparing and testing systems for the new documents. The 2024 median hourly wages in Texas were $34.64 for compliance officers and $38.85 for computer programmers, according to the Texas Workforce Commission data cited in the proposal. Insurers may distribute the documents electronically; paper printing costs were estimated at three to five cents per page.
The fiscal note found no measurable impact on state or local governments and no measurable effect on local employment. TDI acknowledged that approximately 124 insurance carriers in Texas qualify as small businesses under Government Code §2006.001 and considered three regulatory-flexibility alternatives: not proposing the amendments, imposing different rules for small businesses, or exempting them entirely. TDI rejected all three because Insurance Code §501.156 applies uniformly to all insurers regardless of size.
Comments are due June 15
Written comments must be received by 5 p.m. Central time on June 15, 2026, sent to ChiefClerk@tdi.texas.gov or by mail to the Office of the Chief Clerk, MC: GC-CCO, Texas Department of Insurance, P.O. Box 12030, Austin, Texas 78711-2030. Requests for a public hearing must be submitted separately by the same deadline.
SB 458 itself was the result of years of advocacy by the Auto Body Association of Texas, public insurance adjuster Robert McDorman, and consumer advocacy organization Texas Watch, after State Farm removed the appraisal clause from its Texas auto policies in 2015. The Bill of Rights amendment is one of the final implementation steps before the appraisal right is fully operational at the consumer level.
The full proposal is available at tdi.texas.gov/rules/2026/documents/59970proposal.pdf.
