If you’re in the process of filing a homeowner’s insurance claim to repair or replace your roof, your roofer is likely to request a copy of your insurance claim before providing a price. You may have read news articles about non-reputable roofing companies or even storm-chasing roofing scammers. Therefore, you may be hesitant to hand your insurance claim to your roofer, but be assured that this is not a way for us to scam you. Rather, it is a way to be sure we are giving you the most accurate price possible.  Here the reasons why your roofer will request a copy of your insurance claim before giving you a price:

1. It is important for your roofer to review and understand your insurance claim and policy. Your roofer needs to understand what will and will not be covered under your homeowner’s insurance policy. Some policies have limitations on the amount of time allowed to complete your project. Other policies do not include such items as code upgrades. Additionally, some policies even label certain roofing items as “cosmetic”. There are even policies (ACV—Actual Cash Value– policies) that only pay for a portion of the repairs. Your roofer should be able to discuss these items with you upfront and include them in the final price if needed. Reviewing the claim allows your roofer to prevent unpleasant cost surprises from coming up during the project.
2.  Your roofer does not want to commit insurance fraud. Many homeowners have an RCV (replacement cost value) policy. If you have an RCV policy, your insurance company pays for the cost of repairs minus your deductible. Occasionally, some ill-advised homeowners will try to price-shop roofing contractors to avoid paying their deductibles, hoping to have the costs rebated or erased.  This is insurance fraud that can land both the roofer and homeowner in trouble. By allowing your roofer to review your insurance claim, your roofer can make sure they bill your insurance company the correct amount and avoid potential charges of fraud.
3. Insurance companies want to have a line-itemized invoice that matches their claim. After years of working with insurance companies, this fact stands out like a sore thumb. If a homeowner or roofing contractor submits an invoice that doesn’t exactly match the claim line by line, the insurance company will ask for verification as to why the amount is different. This often leads to weeks and sometimes months of repetitive calls and long delays in getting the full claim amount paid out to the homeowner.
4. We want to make sure that your claim covers the work that needs to be done. Adjustors often base their claim worksheets off of a standard template—if it’s a roof, it has x,y, and z. Not all roofs are exactly the same.  Sometimes, items on one roof don’t exist on another or vice versa. Code requirements vary from county to county and state to state. Not every adjustor who gets on your roof is familiar with these items. During a large storm recovery time, most insurance adjustors come in from other states to work. Also, most importantly, adjustors don’t install roofing. Most of them are not aware of exactly what materials and labor are required for the best installation. So it’s always good to have your roofer review your claim to be sure that additional payment doesn’t need to be requested for items that were missed or paid incorrectly.
5. Reviewing your claim allows your roofer to help you get your money from insurance. Your roofer wants to get paid and so do you. Allowing your roofer access to your insurance claim gives them the ability to submit a final invoice that matches the claim and get your money to you more quickly. It also allows them to assist you with getting more money from your insurance company if needed to cover missing items or larger code upgrade items (such as decking replacement). All of this helps both you and the roofing company get paid what you are owed in a timely manner.

We get that there are some non-reputable roofing companies and dishonest contractors out there. For that reason, it is important that you choose a roofing contractor you can trust. The best thing that you can do is conduct thorough research on any contractor you plan to hire. This is the most effective way to prevent scams. Find out how long your contractor has been in business. Use referrals from trusted friends and neighbors, and check the contractor’s online reputation. The Better Business Bureau is a great place to research contractors and businesses in your area. If you do your research thoroughly, trusting your roofer with your insurance claim should be an easy choice.