WINFIELD – A Winfield couple has sued State Farm after they say the insurer refused to repair the roof of their home after a tornado hit it.
Sean and Megan Loyd filed their complaint June 17 in Putnam Circuit Court. Sean Loyd is the baseball coach at West Virginia State University.
Ben Salango
“We see this fairly frequently,” attorney Ben Salango told The West Virginia Record. “Insurance companies love to take your hard-earned premium dollars but don’t want to pay when you need them the most.”
According to the complaint, an EF0 tornado damaged the roof of the Loyd home on May 26, 2024. The couple says State Farm was notified of the damage, and they say they made a proper claim for insurance benefits under their homeowner policy.
The Loyds say they completed and conformed to all conditions of the policy which they were required to perform, but they say State Farm has refused to pay the full and complete benefits to which they’re entitled.
The plaintiffs accuse State Farm of breach of first-party insurance contract as well as common law bad faith. They also say State Farm violated the West Virginia Unfair Trade Practices Act.
The Loyds seek damages for breach of contract, benefits of the contract, aggravation, annoyance, mental anguish, humiliation, embarrassment, emotional distress and inconvenience. They also seek punitive damages, fees, costs, pre- and post-judgment interests, attorney fees, court costs, all applicable Hayseeds-type damages and other relief.
In West Virginia, Hayseeds damages – also known as consequential damages – are a type of extra-contractual damages awarded to an insured party who “substantially prevails” in a legal dispute with their insurance company over a property damage claim, such as net economic loss caused by the delay in settlement and damages for aggravation and inconvenience.
The Loyds are being represented by Salango of Salango Law in Charleston. The case has been assigned to Circuit Judge Phillip Stowers.
Putnam Circuit Court case number 25-C-140
