This case arises out of an insurance claim (the “Claim”) Plaintiff Mike Nguyen submitted to Allstate seeking coverage under his homeowners insurance policy (the “Policy”) for damages to the roof and certain exterior components of his dwelling (the “Property”) that he said were caused by a hail storm that occurred on May 1, 2022 (the “Storm”). However, Allstate inspected the Property and alleged that the damages to the steel roof were not covered pursuant to the Metal Roof Surfaces Cosmetic Damage Exclusion Endorsement to the Policy (the “Cosmetic Damage Endorsement”).
Allstate sought to exclude the testimony of the Plaintiff’s retained experts, Chris Rhynehart and Brandon Allen.
Roofing Expert Witness
Chris Rhynehart has served as the owner and operator of Rhynehart Roofing and Construction for over thirty-five years.
Insurance Expert Witness
Brandon Benjamin Allen, AIC is a licensed adjuster in Texas and Louisiana with almost twenty years of experience adjusting claims. He also holds credentials
including an Associate in Claims, and he is a HAAG Certified Roof Inspector, which means he received specialized training to assess roof damage.
Discussion by the Court
A. Chris Rhynehart
Allstate argued that Rhynehart’s opinions are irrelevant because he made no attempt to connect the damage to the May 1 storm or any storm that occurred during the Policy period of February 1, 2022 to February 1, 2023.
Rhynehart’s report said only that the Plaintiff’s property “shows clear signs of a previous severe hail storm,” with multiple areas “indicating significant impact damage.” He made no attempt to connect that damage to the May 1 storm, or to date the damage at all. His report included a weather report showing that a hail storm occurred near the Plaintiff’s property on May 1, 2022, but the same report lists eleven other hail storms that impacted the Plaintiff’s property in the years before the May 1 storm. Rhynehart also failed to consider any possible alternative causes of the damage. Nor did he present any information about the condition of the Plaintiff’s roof before the storm.
The Plaintiff conceded that Rhynehart’s opinions failed to connect the roof damage to the May 1 storm.
The Court found that Rhynehart’s expert opinions as to causation are not relevant because they failed to speak to whether the May 1 storm caused the damage that resulted in a leak in the Plaintiff’s roof. It is the Plaintiff’s burden to establish this.
However, Allstate did not contest Rhynehart’s competence to testify about the overall “condition of the property, the presence of wind and hail damage, the extent of the damage, and to provide an unbiased estimate” as to the cost of repair.
B. Brandon Allen
Plaintiff designated Allen as a “testifying expert to contradict or rebut the evidence, opinions, analysis, and expert designations” of Allstate’s retained expert witnesses.
Allen’s expert report—much like Rhynehart’s report—simply offered a view of the evidence that favored the Plaintiff. The Court found that Allen’s report did not even mention Allstate’s experts, much less attempt to contradict specific findings they made in their reports.
Allen’s report did not attempt to specifically rebut the findings of Allstate’s experts. But even if it had, his report went far beyond that and offered its own “separate and distinct analysis.”
Held
The Court granted in part and denied in part Allstate’s motion to exclude the testimony of Plaintiff’s retained expert witnesses Chris Rhynehart and Brandon Allen.
Key Takeaway
A rebuttal expert’s report must relate to the specific findings advanced by the opposing expert, not simply offer a different view of the case.
Case Details:
| Case Caption: | Nguyen V. Allstate Vehicle And Property Insurance Company |
| Docket Number: | 2:24cv186 |
| Court Name: | United States District Court, Texas Northern |
| Order Date: | February 23, 2026 |
Leave a Reply