CenterPoint Loses Appeal of $5.8 Million Electrical Fire Verdict

CenterPoint Energy Resources Corp. will have to pay more than $5.8 million for negligence in maintaining an electrical transformer that caused a fire that destroyed the buildings and equipment of a vehicle upholstery business, a Texas appeals court said.

Video cameras in the surrounding area captured an intense, brief illumination consistent with the start of an electrical fire early one morning in October 2010, the Harris County Fire Marshals said in an investigation.

Howard E. Coleman and his business Coleman Upholstery Inc. later sued the utility for damages.

The Texas Court of Appeals, Fourteenth District, disagreed Thursday with CenterPoint’s argument ...