A couple of the most common phrases used are “We were doing work on your neighbor’s roof and saw that your roof might have damage as well” and “This whole area was hit with hail.”

Now comes the most common scenario that I have seen in the 10+ years of being in the roofing industry.

The roofers offer to inspect your roof “Free of Charge”. Since its free, you tell them to go ahead and you return to what you are doing. About an hour later, the roofers are showing you pictures of damage to your roof and telling you that they can get you a new roof through your insurance company. A claim is filed, and the insurance company sends out an adjuster to inspect the roof and see if it meets their criteria for replacement. Much to your dismay, the adjuster agrees to a repair and not a replacement. Now you have a claim on your policy, the insurance company has pictures of your roof and the “roofers” have moved on to the next property. 

You have been paying your premiums for years on time and never filed a claim so what happened?

One of two things: The insurance company is unjustly denying a claim that it should cover or the roofers caused the damage to your roof.

Wait…what?  

How can an insurance company deny a claim? It’s very easy actually. I have a couple of sayings from my experience in this industry. The first one is “It doesn’t matter what damage is on your roof, it matters which insurance company covers your roof.” However, we can save that one for another post. My other saying and one that I see quite often is “If you let unknown roofers on your roof and you didn’t have any damage, you will before they get off.”

Why would they cause damage to your roof? Money. They only get paid if they replace the roof. Once they are on your roof, they can make it look like wind damage if you have a 3-tab roof or hail damage if the shingles are architectural. I have seen inexperienced roofers lift and crease architectural shingles. What is a crease? A crease happens naturally over time as 3-tab shingles lose their adhesiveness and a strong enough wind can lift it up and down. The crease is a result of the up and down motion on and older, less pliable shingle. Once it creases enough, the shingle will tear off leading to water intrusion through the roof.  

The insurance scope of work covers replacing a large number of shingles and not the whole roof. This is the tough part for the homeowner. New shingles rarely seal with old shingles. Not to mention, the color and size many times are different. To install one strip of shingles, you must disturb two more rows. Disturb is a nice way of saying “potentially damaging”. House property values decline when the roof appears to be damaged or mismatched. Imagine trying to sell your house with different shingles on your roof.

So how can you protect yourself from unscrupulous roofers?

1. Be cautious. Get a business card so if there is any damage you think they cause you will have their contact information.

2. If you suspect roof damage, ask for a referral from a friend or call your insurance agent. They usually have a list of contractors that they trust.

3. If you decide to let someone on your roof, go outside with them and video what they are doing.

4. If they show up in an unmarked truck with no logo, are they really a professional?

5. Check the company out on the Better Business Bureau.

Understand that every time someone walks on the roof, the shingles are being damaged by granular loss. This is why companies are turning to drones to do a preliminary inspection of the roof.  

Home Run Roofing has been using drones since 2017 to help inspect roofs in a safe manner. If you have been told there is damage to your roof and would like a drone inspection, please call (770) 361-9471 or contact us on the website.