By Eric Dick
Dick Law Firm, PLLC
TDI’s proposed clarification of 28 TAC §21.1006 says insurers may not decline a home policy just because a house or its roof is old. Written comments are due by 5:00 p.m. Central on Monday, Nov. 9.
HOUSTON — November 6, 2026 — Homeowners who want a say on the Texas Department of Insurance’s (TDI) proposed roof-age and home-age amendments have until 5:00 p.m. Central on Monday, Nov. 9, 2026. The proposal, Docket No. 2874, would amend 28 TAC §21.1006. TDI says the rule makes clear that insurance companies can’t decline or not renew a home insurance policy based on the age of a house or its roof.
The proposal was published in the Texas Register on Oct. 9, 2026. TDI’s 2026 rules page, last updated Oct. 26, lists the proposal for §21.1006 with the adoption and effective-date columns blank. The amendments are proposed, not adopted.
TDI’s proposal says the amendments “clarify the existing prohibition” against refusing to write residential property insurance on the basis of the property’s age, and that they “do not change the rule’s meaning or application.” As proposed, an insurer may not decline to write residential property insurance based on the age of the property or of any of its individual components or materials, “including wiring, heating, air conditioning, plumbing, siding, and roofing.” Siding is newly added to that list.
Age is not the same as condition. The proposal states that the section does not prohibit an insurer from declining to write coverage based on the physical condition of the property or any of its components or materials. It also does not stop the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association from requiring different building code standards, based on when a structure was built, repaired or added to, under Insurance Code Chapter 2210.
“This rule is still a proposal, and TDI has asked the public what it thinks. If you want your view in the record, it has to reach TDI by 5 p.m. Monday,” said Eric Dick, a Houston insurance attorney with Dick Law Firm.
TDI asks for comments including information related to the cost, benefit, or effect of the proposal and any applicable data, research, and analysis. TDI also scheduled a Nov. 3 public hearing under Docket No. 2874; the Nov. 9 deadline applies to written comments. For background on how Texas roof claims are often denied or narrowed, see why an insurer may deny a roof claim and how a Texas roof insurance claim works.
How to comment
- Email written comments to [email protected], or mail them to the Office of the Chief Clerk, MC: GC-CCO, Texas Department of Insurance, P.O. Box 12030, Austin, Texas 78711-2030.
- Make sure they arrive by 5:00 p.m. Central on Monday, Nov. 9. TDI counts comments received by that time, not mailed by it.
- A tip from Dick Law Firm, not a TDI requirement: name the rule in your comment, 28 TAC §21.1006, Docket No. 2874.
- Stick to what you know. TDI asks for information on cost, benefit or effect, plus any data, research or analysis.
- If an insurer declined your completed application, or cancelled or refused to renew your home policy, Texas law requires it to give you a written statement of the reasons. Keep that statement.
- Questions about insurance: TDI Help Line, 800-252-3439.
Houston insurance attorney Eric Dick is available to explain what the proposed rule says, what it does not change, and how homeowners can submit a comment before the deadline.
This release summarizes TDI’s proposed amendments to 28 TAC §21.1006, the Texas Register notice, TDI’s rules page and news release, and Insurance Code §551.002(a), for general education. The amendments are proposed, not adopted, and may change. Nothing here predicts whether or when TDI will adopt them, what happened or will happen at the hearing, or how any application or policy decision will turn out. It is not legal advice; your policy, your notices and the official documents control.
Media Contact: Eric Dick · [email protected] · (832) 529-9377 · 3701 Brookwoods, Houston, TX 77092
About Dick Law Firm, PLLC: Dick Law Firm is a Houston home-insurance law firm that assists homeowners with property insurance claims. Its office is at 3701 Brookwoods, Houston, TX 77092. Founder Eric B. Dick, a Texas-licensed attorney, is the lawyer responsible for this release.
