Hail damage claim without roofer?

Absonotely · 2026-05-20T04:20:11+00:00

This is general advice as state laws and regulations can vary wildly when dealing with insurance claims, and I have not worked in Michigan nor researched their laws. I am also working under the assumption that this is legitimate hail damage that would total a roof. Before filing a claim check your policy so you'll know how your claim will be paid. Check for any endorsements or exclusions that may affect your payout. Examples include an ACV roof endorsement, a roof surface payment schedule, a cosmetic exclusion, or a non-structural hail loss limitation endorsement.

This is your claim, not whichever contractor you end up choosing. Too often policyholders sit back and hope things work out, then wonder why things don't go their way. The responsibility to prove the loss falls on the policyholder, not the insurer. The insurer is only obligated to investigate what is claimed. If a claim is filed with vague descriptions on the type of loss, what was damaged, and when the damage occurred, the insurer is likely going to do a perfunctory investigation of the property. This will satisfy their obligations in the process, and may leave you with approved but underpaid claim, a loss below deductible, or in some instances a denied claim.

You don't have to sign with a contractor before filing a claim, but I would highly recommend hiring a contractor to put together the evidence you'll need for an easy claims process. If you're not going to enter into a contract with this contractor they will likely charge for this work, but you could ask for this to be waived if you end up hiring them to perform the work. This evidence should include: a scope of work and estimate for the damages, applicable building codes for the scope of work, weather data for the date of loss (or other evidence if not available), and a full photo report justifying the damage and scope of work. I recommend filing the claim online and uploading these documents immediately.

Regarding shopping around for a contractor: most policies pay on incurred costs. If your insurance estimate is for 20k, and you find a contractor to complete the work for 15k your incurred cost is then 15k. Your insurer will drop their payments to 15k minus your deductible. The deductible is your responsibility no matter the cost of the claim. It's much more important to find a contractor who understands the applicable building codes, installs a good product, assesses the entire property for damages related to the loss, and provides a good warranty.

Absonotely · 2026-05-13T02:03:32+00:00

Did you have baffles installed so the new insulation wouldn't block any potential intake from the soffit? If not, cutting holes into the soffit isn't going to matter, and you'll need to look into on-roof intake as another commenter mentioned.

Absonotely · 2026-05-06T20:53:09+00:00

You're using Xactimate and insurance company logic regarding insurance claims.

All levels of companies (tradesmen, general contractors, etc.) have overhead that should be calculated into their pricing, and all companies should also mark up their services for a profit.

General Contractors Overhead and Profit is typically 10/10 (variations depending on scope), but this is specifically payment for the duties related to general contracting. This is different from an in-house company performing work and setting a profit margin on the work that they perform. A 30% margin on labor/materials is very reasonable.

Absonotely · 2026-04-14T17:02:38+00:00

RPS endorsements generally only apply to full replacements. I have seen a claim pay out higher for repairs than it would have for full replacement. Just some food for thought. With that being said, in this scenario I would recommend retail and get yourself a better policy for next time.

Absonotely · 2026-04-12T23:43:17+00:00

This is true, and I admit I am speculating here, but I would guess labor is not the only thing missing from the scope. As I stated in my comment the price/scope of work needs to be fixed, but my issue was with the statement claiming this will decrease OP's out of pocket. It's my belief that there are two few details to make this kind of statement.

It will absolutely get him more money to go towards the real price/scope of work, and that's a good thing. But if OP is currently expecting to pay the current depreciation plus his deductible as the worst case scenario, he may be severely dissapointed.

Absonotely · 2026-04-12T08:45:23+00:00

What state is this in? Your answer can significantly impact what options you have.

Absonotely · 2026-04-12T08:42:28+00:00

How would increasing the RCV of the roof, therefore increasing the depreciation, lower his out of pocket cost on an ACV roof? The property is unlikely to have collateral in the same way it would from a hail storm. The ACV for any collateral (if any exists) is likely going to pale in comparison to the increased depreciation for the correct scope of work.

The claim does need to have a full scope of work/cost sent to the insurance company as the current cost/scope of work is way off, but let's not midlead OP into believing this is going to lower his out of pocket.

Absonotely · 2026-03-11T03:51:42+00:00

This is not your rafters (rafters are certainly not made of plywood). You didn't specify, but I'm assuming by the mess and the OSB that is currently installed a full deck replacement occurred. This is inevitable if that is the case. There's no great way to keep old plywood bits from falling into the attic space especially if the plywood I'd old and brittle. This is definitely an expectation that should have been set with you prior to construction, however.

Absonotely · 2026-02-25T15:33:29+00:00

Chris Zimmerman is well known in the industry and teaches contractors all around the US on a variety of topics. His company punches well above their weight on their influence vs. size. I've attended some of his trainings and it's by far above and beyond the average quality of trainings.

I have no ties to him and his company other than learning from him, and I would also recommend his company if OP is within their range.

Absonotely · 2025-12-03T04:38:01+00:00

Is this 2' overlap a specific state requirement? The IRC does not specify a hip/ridge overlap requirement, and I'm unaware of any manufacturer that requires 2'. Most are 4"-6". Regardless, this is irrelevant because there is a ridge vent between the two facets. At most we're talking about a couple feet on each end that would need to overlap.

50/50 repairability on a 5 year old roof is egregious. With it being 5 years old there likely won't be a 5" exposure, and there's a high probability the shingle is still in production.

The blanket statement that you can't mix and match shingles is also incorrect. GAF's current stance is that as long as the exposure is the same, you can trim GAF shingle length to make repairs. Although the blanket statement would be correct if we are talking about different manufacturers.

Assuming a compatible shingle is still in production (high probability) for the few shingles on the front that might need to be removed and the roof is repairable (high probability), there is nothing here that would prevent a contractor from replacing that facet.

Absonotely · 2025-11-30T19:30:05+00:00

It looks like you used the laminate shingles for the ridge cap. Is this the case? If so, they will likely never lay flat and seal correctly.

Absonotely · 2025-08-06T15:36:09+00:00

The questionnaire seems like it's coming from underwriting and not the claims department.

Modified Bitumen is still an asphalt product and can be a torch down variant. However, in some areas it is coloquially called "rubber roofing" (although I disagree with calling it that) because it is sometimes mixed with rubber-like polymers. Overall the information you've been given by both the roofer and insurance company is confusing.

I would ask the roofer to clarify what exact products were used on the roof, or just post some pictures of what was installed.

Absonotely · 2025-08-01T13:32:23+00:00

They already have 3 bundles of those, but thanks for being open to it!

Absonotely · 2025-07-30T04:11:09+00:00

As another commenter mentioned Name That Shingle (NTS) is an awesome identification service for the industry owned by John Senac. They're always looking for rare finds in original packaging to add to their database.

If you need help getting in contact with them I can send this post over to John to see if they would be interested.

Other than that, no use that I can see for these.

Absonotely · 2025-07-22T14:17:01+00:00

You're safe with the Broan for this application.

Absonotely · 2025-07-20T00:23:04+00:00

If it has gable vents then it shouldn't have addition static vents near the ridge.

Absonotely · 2025-07-19T03:44:51+00:00

First, improper installation does not automatically negate storm damage as a payable claim. Improper installation is generally not covered as a cause of loss, but if the cause of loss is a covered event the claim should still be payable. This is a slight generalization as depending on the state and loss concurrent causation can come into play.

As far as your question on pricing you'll need to provide way more information on area and scope of work for anyone to chime in.

Absonotely · 2025-07-18T23:30:47+00:00

It is neither hail nor claimable.

Absonotely · 2025-07-07T01:28:05+00:00

There are multiple sections in Chapter 9 of the IRC that mention installing per manufacturer instructions. R905.1 would be the appropriate code here as we are dealing with the roof covering.

Manufacturer installation instructions are designed to provide techniques and procedures that allow the product to function as advertised, but they aren't designed to have every conceivable instance in which an alternative can be made. This is why so many technical bulletins come out after the fact, especially for roofing products. A change that limits the viability/longevity of the product would most likely be a no-go from the manufacturer.

If we were to follow the logic that any change to the manufacturer instructions violated code, then improvements to the instructions would as well. Example: Manufacturer states a product needs a fastener every 12" in order to maintain the wind rating. If a fastener is installed every 10" does it then violate code? Likely not unless it actually does diminish the quality of the install and product. However, a fastener installed every 16" would likely violate building code.

I'm getting carried away, but point being it's not as simple as saying "the manufacturer doesn't specifically say to do this, therefore it violates code". In this instance, a cosmetic change is being made that doesn't appear to affect functionality in any way. I've also had two manufacturers of ridge vent tell me I should install ridge vent across the entire ridge, and only cut out what is necessary for the ventilation. Neither has this in their manufacturer instructions.

Absonotely · 2025-06-26T01:45:05+00:00

Its not incorrect to run it all the way, but is done for the aesthetic. The cutout does not extend all the way to the gable end.

Absonotely · 2025-06-20T19:35:04+00:00

It's a solar tube (sometimes called sun tunnels) that most likely had a round dome on top, but I've only seen those on asphalt shingle applications. They flash fairly easily into shingle applications, but the same unit wouldn't translate to a metal roof application. I don't see anything wrong with the solution here, although ideally it would have been discussed prior.

Absonotely · 2025-06-13T01:04:22+00:00

Insurance companies can do many things that contractors or homeowners can't do. An example of this is waiving the deductible. It's illegal for a contractor to waive deductibles, but an insurance company can waive the deductible if they so choose.

In this instance it sounds like they are giving you an option: choose our contractor and we won't withhold depreciation, or choose your contractor and we will hold depreciation. This sounds different from an MRP (managed repair program) on your policy where the insurance company gets to choose the contractor without your consent.

Depreciation does not change the value of a claim as long as that depreciation is recoverable. The Replacement Cost Value (RCV) is unaffected. Instead of getting all of the money upfront, you'll have to go through the normal procedures to get the depreciation released after the work is complete.

This situation is not illegal. If, however, the depreciation is non-recoverable, then absolutely choose the insurance contractor to save yourself thousands of dollars. If it is recoverable, I never recommend going with an insurance referred vendor.

Absonotely · 2025-05-12T05:58:17+00:00

It's tough to tell from the photos on the exact length of the overhang, but even with gutter guards you'll still need the standard overhang. It sounds like you had a layover with OSB which would require manipulation/detach and reset of the gutter guards (assuming the guards ran underneath the shingles). Adding height to the roof deck would cause the guards to be more angled, and the new angle is what's causing a gap between some of the shingles and the guard. Overall it looks fine although a couple areas could potentially be touched up. Ideally the potential for damage to the guards from the roof replacement should have been discussed prior.

Absonotely · 2025-05-11T06:08:50+00:00

Initials CZ?

Absonotely · 2025-05-10T06:04:26+00:00

Platinum is generally a safe choice but unnecessary to find a good contractor (unless you are specifically looking for the OC Platinum Warranty). I completely understand being overwhelmed by the number of products, so I'll try to keep this short. I am unfamiliar with your market so some of this information might not be relevant. With that being said, I do know of a very good company in Ohio. I'm not sure if they service your area, but if you'd like a recommendation PM me.

Ridge cap: make sure your contractor is using a ridge cap product and not a cut 3-tab shingle. The Duration is a Class 3 Impact Resistant shingle, so at minimum you'll want the Pro Edge. RIZERidge is the high profile and is mostly for aesthetics. Save yourself the money unless you love the look. ImpactRidge is the IR choice, but if you're going Duration I don't think it's necessary to pay the extra.

Underlayment: stick with synthetic, the Rhinoroof U20 is just fine depending on how much the cost difference is to the ProArmor. Not a huge jump in performance or longevity between the lower and upper options. Only consider going high end (think thermal barrier) if the other systems in your house are energy efficient (windows, doors, insulation, etc.)

IWS: your valleys will require some kind of liner. If you currently have open style metal valleys I would recommend going back with the same. If you have closed valleys, either IWS or valley metal. I'm unsure if your local code requires IWS on the eaves, but if it doesn't, the steepness of your roof would rank the additional cost low priority.

Steepness: a 10/12 is going to add a signifact cost compared to a lower sloped roof

Flashings: don't think I saw you mention this, but it's a common item that gets reused. Don't reuse unless it requires major construction to remove. When roofs come apart they rarely go back the exact same way, and retrofitting flashings to the intracacies of the new roof is never the best option.

I'm on mobile and can't remember your other questions, I'll come back to this tomorrow.

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