toxic sewer methane gas<\/a> and mold from plumbing leaks, attracting insects into the home in violation of the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act.<\/p>\n\u201cInstead of fixing the problems, Dauenhauer & Associates and their subcontractors covered them up,\u201d the suit read. \u201cContractors painted over water damage, ignored the underlying issues, and continued to misrepresent the home as safe and well-constructed.\u201d<\/p>\n
The McCoys claimed the companies had improperly directed plumbing vents into the attic, leading the sewer gas to circulate inside. That led them to experience migraines, respiratory and skin problems, and dizziness.<\/p>\n
Additional mold testing also found as many as 7 million spores per unit, the suit claimed, considered severe contamination.<\/p>\n
The family also said their dog, who also lived inside the home, suffered a health decline and believe that ultimately led to her death.<\/p>\n
Maggie Neusal, an attorney for the McCoys, said Mandy McCoy fainted inside the home in 2024. Soon after, the family was forced to evacuate the home after the sewer gas was discovered in the air vents. The McCoys have been living in an recreational vehicle, or an RV, outside the home ever since.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey are still in the RV,\u201d Neusal said. \u201cThey\u2019ve been staring at a house they can\u2019t live in for about two years now.\u201d<\/p>\n
The McCoys in a press release Wednesday said they\u2019re grateful for the jury\u2019s decision.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis has been a terrible experience for our family,\u201d the McCoys said. \u201cWe hope this verdict will encourage other families to be heard when they suspect construction defects and toxic conditions that threaten them in their homes. We hope we can begin to heal and recover but also help prevent this from happening to other Texas families.\u201d<\/p>\n
This <a target=”_blank” href=”https:\/\/fortworthreport.org\/2026\/10\/15\/tarrant-county-jury-awards-family-21m-over-toxins-defects-found-in-home\/”>article<\/a> first appeared on <a target=”_blank” href=”https:\/\/fortworthreport.org”>Fort Worth Report<\/a> and is republished here under a <a target=”_blank” href=”https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nd\/4.0\/”>Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License<\/a>.<img src=”https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/fortworthreport.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/cropped-favicon.png?resize=150%2C150&ssl=1″ style=”width:1em;height:1em;margin-left:10px;”><\/p>\n
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