A plumbing company agreed to pay $300,000 to settle claims that it was responsible for a house fire in Sugar Land. Insurance carrier Nationwide paid $350,000 to Tracy Spence after a fire ravaged her home in 2006. However, the insurer blamed Gbjs Plumbing Service, which had worked on the home prior to the fire, and sued the company for the cost of the damage. Nationwide claimed the fire started when a Gbjs plumber sweated the pipes in the home. The plumber allegedly failed to use a heat shield and the pipes' insulation caught fire. Gbjs argued the plumber was an independent contractor and not one of its employees. However, it ultimately agreed to pay the majority of Spence's claim.
