Guide
Roof insurance claims, step by step
The outcome of a claim is usually decided in the first forty-eight hours, before an adjuster has been anywhere near the property.
Or call (562) 358-3342Get it looked at
Three questions, and up to three Santa Fe Springs contractors. Free either way.
Your request is in.
We are matching it now against roofing contractors working in Santa Fe Springs and the surrounding area.
- Today, usually within the hour. The first contractor calls or texts the number you gave us. ASAP requests go out first.
- Up to three of them, no more. We cap it at three so you can compare without your phone melting.
- They come and look. Estimates are given after somebody has been on the roof, not over the phone.
- You decide, or you do not. There is nothing to cancel and nothing to pay us.
If you do not hear anything today, check your voicemail and spam folder — contractors often call from a mobile number.
Stop further damage, and keep the receipts
Emergency mitigation is normally recoverable and routinely forgotten. Save the paperwork for the tarp as carefully as the paperwork for the repair.
Know what your policy actually pays
Replacement cost pays what it costs to replace the roof today. Actual cash value pays that minus depreciation, which on a fifteen-year-old roof can be most of it. Find out which you have before you file, along with your deductible.
Mind the deadline
Report promptly even if you have not decided what to do. The clock in the policy runs from the date of the event, not the date you noticed.
Photograph everything, immediately
Take far more pictures than feel necessary, including undamaged areas for comparison. Do it before the tarp goes on, not after.
Get an independent assessment first
Filing a claim that turns out to be under your deductible costs you nothing but is on your record anyway. Find out the scale of the damage before you pick up the phone.
Read anything before you sign it
Be wary of any contract signed in a hurry after a storm, particularly one that ties you to the contractor regardless of what the insurer decides.
In short
Document first, mitigate second, file third. In that order it usually goes smoothly; in any other order it usually does not.
Related questions
Should I repair or replace?
It depends almost entirely on how much life is left in the material. Ask any contractor who inspects it to give you a number of years and a reason. If two of them independently say the same thing, believe it.
Can I stay in the house while it is done?
Most people do. Expect noise from early morning, dust in the attic, and a day where the driveway belongs to the crew.
Is this really free?
Yes. You pay nothing, now or later. Roofing contractors pay us for the introduction, which is why the service costs you nothing and why we are upfront that it is how we make money.
Get the roof looked at
Three questions, about a minute, and up to three Santa Fe Springs contractors come back to you.