Kingwood family battles insurance for home repairs after mom narrowly escapes tree fall during Beryl

KINGWOOD, Texas (KTRK) -- Peggy Barrantes moved into her daughter and son-in-law's Kingwood home in May.

She previously lived in Costa Rica.

Barrantes was in her upstairs bedroom on July 8 when Hurricane Beryl hit, but at one point, she decided to go downstairs to fetch some yarn so she could knit.

Her son-in-law, Jorge Garcia, said that turned out to be a life-preserving decision.

"Honestly, it saved us," he said of the yarn.

According to Garcia, while Barrantes was downstairs, a giant pine tree came crashing into her room.

Garcia said she was only out of the room for a moment and planned to return once she got what she needed.

Today, though everyone in the home is safe and healthy, the same cannot be said about the structure itself.

The fallen tree heavily damaged the roof, walls, multiple rooms, and a backyard fence.

Garcia said it also ruined the furnace in his attic.

He reached out to ABC13 for help because his insurance only offered him about $8,400 for repairs.

That's after the deductible and depreciation are taken out of the gross amount.

"I couldn't even get mad at them," Garcia sighed while discussing the situation.

He said FEMA offered him a loan for $177,000 to cover repairs, but he is still hesitant to borrow money.

He believes his insurance company should cover the cost of the repairs.

We've reached out to that company, but at this point, we aren't reporting its name.

What should someone do if they feel like they're being lowballed by their insurance company?

Ben Gonzalez is a spokesperson for the Texas Department of Insurance, a state agency that regulates the insurance industry.

"This is not an easy process, unfortunately, for the consumer," Gonzalez said. "Especially when there are a lot of claims going on."

Gonzalez said the first step is to contact your insurance provider and explain why you disagree with their assessment.

He also said you could hire a public insurance adjuster to help you negotiate, but warned it would come with a cost to you regardless of the outcome.

Garcia said he's done both of those things.

You can also file a formal complaint with the Texas Department of Insurance.

That agency will directly reach out to your insurance company once that is filed, but Gonzalez said the outcome does take time due to the back-and-forth nature of the process.

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