Insurance Claims Process with Local Roofing

The claim handler from your insurance company will assign you a claim number and an adjuster. Make a note of this number as it will be very important throughout the entire process. It may take several days to get the name and contact information of your insurance adjuster. Remember to ask for his or her cell phone or direct contact number when you speak to them. Your adjuster will set an appointment with you to assess your roof’s damage. You should also let your adjuster know that you are working with a roofing contractor who will join you during the assessment.

Then, call your Local Roofing representative. Provide us with the adjuster’s name, contact information and appointment time. Keep in mind that your insurance company may ask you to get three roof estimates. This is not necessarily in your best interest. This may result in your insurance company getting the lowest price, but it keeps 100% of the savings. As a result, you will get a cheaper roof! You do not have to have an estimate. We will help you provide the proper information to the insurance carrier for a fair insurance settlement. With Local Roofing, you will get the highest quality roof system on the market.

The adjuster’s damage assessment is a very important part of the roof insurance claim process. If you have not already, inform your adjuster that you will have your roofing contractor present at the appointment. It is critical that we attend the inspection meeting with you. Why? In case there is a disagreement on the damage or scope of work, we can serve as your advocate. As much as they appreciate your business, insurance carriers seek to keep their expenditures down.

During the inspection, the adjuster will take measurements of your roof and other damages. If possible, Local Roofing will provide a satellite-image, and engineered report that details your roof’s measurements. We do our job well so you can feel confident that you will be expertly represented during the initial inspection and the rest of the roof insurance claim process.

Once the insurance adjuster assesses the extent of damages, he or she will provide you with a claim summary. This summary details the scope of roof repairs or replacement. When you receive the adjuster’s claim summary, send us a copy. We will compare it to our own damage assessment. We do this to make sure nothing has been omitted from the scope of the project.

If there is a discrepancy, your project manager will help by providing you with more information so you are able to negotiate the difference with the insurance company. In most cases, this is a simple process of emailing or faxing your adjuster our estimate and calling them to discuss the differences.

If an insurance company is unwilling to fund key components of your new roof, we may ask you to call your provider to discuss the issue. We recommend a conference call between you, your carrier, and us, so we can help you resolve the issue. If that happens, we will review our options and develop the best plan of action for your claim situation. Once the negotiation process has been completed, the insurance company will release a supplemental check to cover the additional amount that was determined through negotiations with the insurance representative.

You should receive the initial check about the same time the claim summary arrives. It may have your mortgage company’s name on it. If this is the case, contact them to find out the proper procedure for getting their endorsement. This process can take a while, so we recommend sending it off as soon as possible. If your insurance company issues a supplemental check, it too may have the mortgage company listed on it. You would need to follow the same procedure. Those funds would be payable towards the new negotiated roof replacement total.

The initial check may seem small compared to the full amount of the roof. There are two reasons for this – your deductible and the depreciation. Most homeowners choose a Replacement Cost Value (RCV) coverage over an Actual Cost Value (ACV) policy. If you have a RCV policy, we will recover (and receive) the depreciation withheld by the insurance company after we complete the roofing project. We require that the insured pays their deductible – that is the law. The deductible is the portion withheld by the insurance company. The deductible is your copay which you will pay directly to Local Roofing. The full cost of the roof replacement is the sum of the first insurance check, your deductible, the amount of depreciation and any supplements.

Once the first insurance check, deductible and insurance loss statement are received, we will start work on your roof repair or roof replacement.

After we complete the project, our office will provide the necessary documentation to the insurance company to let it know it is complete. If the depreciation withheld was recoverable, we will ask for the release of those funds. The insurance company may call you to confirm that the project is complete. Then, it will release the last check.

It is possible that if a supplement was negotiated that it may be included in the final check along with the depreciation. Our office will be happy to make the follow up calls to confirm receipt of this documentation on your behalf to ensure timely processing. Mortgage companies may require their own inspection before they endorse and release the depreciation back to you. We do not handle this detail, so be sure to ask them about their required procedures.

Once you receive your last insurance check, and mortgage company endorsements are made, we will collect the final amount due on the roof. The final depreciation payment is not due until you receive the check from your insurance company. As a courtesy to our clients, we provide a grace period if the check must be endorsed by the mortgage company.