A family’s gas leak case just ran into a major roadblock. A Texas appeals court has upheld a ruling in favor of Atmos Energy, finding that the family did not show the utility knew about the dangerous condition in their home and failed to do anything about it.
Andrea and Cordell Potter and their two children discovered gas leaks in their home in 2022, about 13 months after moving in. An inspection found 25 leaks in the home’s pipes, and the family said the exposure caused headaches, fatigue, shortness of breath and other symptoms.
The family argued that Atmos should have known something was wrong because its internal system had flagged unusually high gas usage about five months before the leaks were discovered.
Atmos had investigated the high reading, but the company determined that the meter had simply been misread. It closed the investigation without finding evidence of a gas leak.
That turned out to be important. The appeals court said there was no evidence that Atmos knew about an actual leak, only that the company had received what appeared to be a high reading that was later explained by the meter error.
The court explained that under Texas law, a public utility generally cannot be held responsible for a dangerous condition on a customer’s property unless it actually knew about the condition.
Because the family could not show that Atmos had actual knowledge of the leaks, the three judge panel unanimously agreed that the trial court was right to dismiss the case.
The decision shows why knowledge can be just as important as negligence in a premises related injury case. Finding a dangerous condition after the fact does not necessarily mean someone else is legally responsible for it. Here, the court found that the evidence did not show Atmos knew the leaks existed before the family discovered them, leaving the company’s win in place.
Every case is different, but understanding your legal rights is always the first step. If you have questions about your situation, The Minias Law Firm is here to help. Just remember Don’t stress, Just text.