Arizona property owners whose Allstate or Encompass insurer paid a structural damage claim between April 25, 2017 and Oct. 1, 2026 have until Jan. 29, 2027 to ask for a share of the depreciation the insurer held back. For most people in the class, the settlement pays 50% of the withheld amount that was never repaid, plus 10% simple annual interest. The case is Hernandez v. Allstate Vehicle and Property Insurance Company, No. CV-2026 00048, in Mohave County Superior Court, and claims are filed on the settlement website.
The dispute is over what Arizona calls “nonmaterial depreciation,” meaning the part of a repair estimate an insurer subtracts for the age or wear of materials before it pays the first, actual cash value check. The lawsuit questions whether Allstate was allowed to deduct that amount when it adjusted Arizona structure claims. Allstate denies wrongdoing, and the court has not found that it did anything wrong, according to OpenClassActions.
The class is narrower than all Arizona policyholders. It covers people whose Arizona structure was insured by one of nine Allstate-affiliated companies and who were paid on a structural loss from an Xactimate estimate, with nonmaterial depreciation taken out of the actual cash value payment. So a person has to ask whether their own payment letter showed a depreciation deduction, and whether that money was ever released.
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Which companies are named in the Arizona case?
Nine defendants appear on the settlement site: Allstate Vehicle and Property Insurance Company, Allstate Insurance Company, Esurance Property and Casualty Insurance Company, Allstate Indemnity Company, Allstate Property and Casualty Insurance Company, Encompass Insurance Company of America, Encompass Property and Casualty Company, Encompass Indemnity Company and North Light Specialty Insurance Company.
Contents and personal property claims are left out, according to OpenClassActions. So are claims under policy forms that expressly allow labor depreciation, claims where the actual cash value payment used up the policy limit, and claims that were denied or abandoned without any payment.
How much would a claim pay?
The site does not list a total fund, and payments are worked out claim by claim. ClaimDepot and Top Class Actions both report two tiers. People who never got all of the withheld depreciation back receive 50% of the net amount withheld, plus 10% simple interest each year from the first payment through the settlement’s effective date.
People who already recovered all of the outstanding depreciation through the claims process receive a single payment of $10 to $360, depending on how much was withheld. Class counsel’s fees and expenses, which they have asked to be as much as $870,000, and a service award of up to $7,500 for the plaintiff are paid by Allstate separately and do not reduce class payments, OpenClassActions reports.
What does a claimant need to have on hand?
An online claim asks for the Notice ID and Confirmation Code from the mailed or emailed class notice, along with the insured’s name, the property address, the date of loss, the Allstate policy number and the claim number. Receipts and repair invoices are not required. A separate form is needed for each loss, and a representative for a person who has died or cannot act must show proof of authority.
A printable claim form comes in English and Spanish, and mailed forms must be postmarked by Jan. 29. Online claims are due by midnight Mountain Standard Time that day. Claims are signed under penalty of perjury, and the site warns people who do not qualify not to file. Top Class Actions lists the claims administrator, Angeion Group, at 866-945-4242. The notice asks people not to call Allstate or their agents about the settlement.
Contractors figure into some of these claims. Homeowners who signed an assignment of benefits with a roofer or repair company must submit a copy of that assignment agreement with the claim. Anyone filing for a policyholder who died or cannot act needs paperwork showing the authority to do so, and every loss on a separate form means a person with two storm claims over the years files twice.
What happens before the money moves?
Anyone who wants out of the class, or wants to object, has until Nov. 16, 2026, and the request must be mailed and postmarked by that date. Opting out means no payment but keeps the right to sue separately. The final approval hearing is set for Dec. 15, 2026 at 10:30 a.m. by Zoom, and the date or format could change.
Checks go out only if the court approves the deal and any appeals are settled, and no payment date has been announced. Class counsel include Erik Peterson of Erik Peterson Law Offices and James Brandon McWherter of McWherter Scott Bobbitt, with Akerman LLP defending Allstate, according to Top Class Actions. A person who does nothing gets no payment and is still bound by the judgment.
Claims are reviewed after they come in. Those who qualify receive a check with a letter once the court approves the deal and appeals are resolved, while claimants who do not qualify get a letter explaining why, according to OpenClassActions. The class notice itself arrived by mail or email, which is where the Notice ID and Confirmation Code come from. A homeowner who lost or deleted that notice should look for it before the deadline rather than after.
Was depreciation held back on your Arizona roof or siding claim?
Claims filed after Jan. 29, 2027 are too late, and a filing that is missing the Notice ID, policy number or claim number can stall. The Nov. 16 opt-out date and the Dec. 15 hearing arrive long before the claim deadline, so it is easy to lose track of which date matters.
The Settlement & Refund Recovery System includes the four-date rule for reading a settlement notice and a step-by-step filing walkthrough.
This article was produced with AI assistance and edited for accuracy against the sources linked above.
Warren Cohen is a finance writer based in Phoenix, Arizona, covering personal finance topics including credit, banking, and beginner investing. He earned his degree in business administration from Arizona State University and began his career working in consumer finance, where he gained direct experience with lending and credit systems. He now writes for personal finance websites and fintech platforms, focusing on clear, practical content that helps readers make informed financial decisions.
