Water Damage in Cedar Park, TX: What to Do First

Shutting Off Your Water and Reaching Cedar Park Public Works

Cedar Park Public Works answers water-emergency calls at 512-401-5550 during normal business hours and sends a technician to help. After hours and during scheduled holidays, call 512-260-4600, extension 0, and the city's dispatch team will assist you instead.

For the full picture of what the city's water line covers, how to check whether your address sits in a mapped floodplain, and what to do outside business hours, see who to call first in Cedar Park.

Homeowners Insurance and Your Claim Timeline

Most standard homeowners policies generally cover sudden and accidental water damage, such as a burst pipe, but typically exclude flood, continuous leakage and most mold unless the mold results from a covered loss. This page is general information, not legal or insurance advice — your policy wording controls, so confirm details with your insurer or agent.

Texas Deadlines for Your Insurer's Response

Texas Insurance Code Chapter 542 sets several deadlines. Under §542.055, an insurer must acknowledge your claim, start investigating and request the documents it needs not later than the 15th day after receiving notice of the claim — an eligible surplus lines insurer instead has until the 30th business day. Under §542.056(a), once the insurer has all required items, statements and forms, it must notify you in writing of acceptance or rejection within the 15th business day; if it needs more time, §542.056(d) requires the insurer to notify you of its reasons within that same period, then accept or reject the claim not later than the 45th day after that notice. Under §542.057(a), once the insurer notifies you it will pay, payment is due not later than the fifth business day after that notice; under §542.057(b), if payment depends on an act by you, payment is due the fifth business day after you complete that act. Under §542.058(a), paying more than 60 days after receiving all the items it reasonably requested can trigger added interest and costs under §542.060. Under §542.059(b), a weather-related catastrophe or major natural disaster, as defined by the commissioner, extends these deadlines by an additional 15 days.

Public Adjusters and Fee Limits

If you hire a public adjuster to handle your claim, Texas Insurance Code §4102.104(a) caps the total commission at 10 percent of the settlement. Under §4102.104(b), the adjuster may not charge a percentage fee at all if the insurer, within 72 hours of when the loss was reported, either pays the policy limit or commits in writing to pay it.

If you rent your home in Cedar Park, tell your landlord about the water damage in writing as soon as possible. Your renters policy generally covers your belongings, not the building itself, and repairing the building is the property owner's responsibility.

• National Flood Insurance Program: coverage up to $250,000 for the building and $100,000 for contents, subject to a standard 30-day waiting period before a new policy takes effect.
• Texas Department of Insurance consumer complaint line: 800-252-3439, weekdays.

New Construction and Builder Disputes

Cedar Park has grown quickly, and plumbing failures in newer homes can sometimes trace back to construction defects rather than ordinary wear. Texas Property Code Chapter 27, the Residential Construction Liability Act, sets a formal notice process you generally must follow before suing a builder over a defect.

• Before suing, §27.004(a) requires written notice to the contractor by certified mail, return receipt requested, before the 60th day preceding the date you file suit.
• After receiving that notice, the contractor has a 35-day period to inspect the property, with up to three inspections allowed.

For the boundary between what the city maintains and what you own after a pipe fails, see burst pipe water damage in Cedar Park.