State Farm Settles Out of Court Days Before Trial

By Jennifer Griffith

Published on January 22, 2007

Richard Tejedor’s Long Beach home was destroyed during Katrina. All that remains is a slab.

Tejedor and his attorneys would not disclose the settlement amount.

The settlement comes just eight days after a jury awarded a Biloxi couple $2.5 million in punitive damages. The couple’s home had been destroyed during Katrina. Their State Farm insurance claim was denied.

State Farm denied their claim based on policy language that details that coverage is for wind damage but not water damage. State Farm claimed that that means the policy does not cover damage caused by a combination of wind and water, even if hurricane winds caused rising water and the subsequent destruction of their home.

Tejedor's trial was scheduled to begin today. State Farm attorney’s requested that the trial be rescheduled due to recent publicity over the multimillion dollar Biloxi verdict. Judge L.T. Senter, who is presiding over most of the Katrina cases, rejected the request.

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