hail damage – Chateau Public Adjusters

Frederick MD Hail/Wind Damaged Roofing & Siding

Chateau Public Adjusters — Sun, 22 Mar 2020 14:01:45 +0000

The most common type of insurance claim that we handle are storm-related property damage like hail and wind damage to roofing, siding and gutters. Here's how we make sure our homeowners get maximum coverage for their damaged homes so that restorations are paid for in full by their insurance company.

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Siding & Gutters Hail & Wind Damage

When people think of a property damage insurance claim they tend to think of catastrophic loss like in the case of hurricanes and tornados. The truth is, the majority of cases are much less dramatic, and most people do not know that even small, seemingly minor damage is eligible for payment on an insurance claim. See the picture above of a hail-damaged gutter. The dent, which is highlited with chalk by our public adjuster, is caused by hail. Therefore, it needs to be replaced and the insurance company has to pay for it. Where there is one hail-strike, there are likely more. At this home we found hail damage to the roofng and siding, in addition to gutters and downspouts, and these homeowners are getting a complete replacement of all roofing, siding and gutters paid for by their insurance company.

Match Clauses & Patch-Work Repairs

Sometimes, replacing only damaged pieces of siding or shingles on a roof will result in a mis-matched appearance. Most insurance companies don't care about this. If only one or two sides of the house are damaged by hail then they will only pay for those sides. Additionally, if your home's siding is still in production then it is possible to replace a few pieces of siding in order to restore the property to its pre-loss state. If there is no match clause in your insurance policy, and if there are no state laws requiring insurance companies to pay for uniform matching, then you will have a hard time getting an insurance company to pay for more than they have to. Having a public adjuster helps fight the insurance company's decision.

Get the Most for Your Claim!

If you have a claim for storm damage and your insurance company is only paying for patch-work repairs, contact a licensed public adjuster today for a free consultation to see if you are entitled to more.

The dent in this gutter (highlited with chaulk) is caused from hail-strike, and it means that your insurance has to pay for a new downspout.

Wind-damaged siding in Frederick Maryland

This wind-damaged roof shingles in Frederick MD result in a roof replacement for our clients, paid for by their insurance company.

Inspecting a roof for hail damage and making chalk-marks to present our case to the insurance company at this storm-damaged home in Frederick, Maryland.

Roof Damage from Hail & Wind

The majority of homeowners do not truly know the condition of their roof. And, just like siding, it only takes a couple missing shingles, creased shingles, or shingles that have significant granule loss and damage to the matting from hail, to get a full roof replacement paid for by your insurance company. Check out these photos of hail and wind damaged roofing in Frederick, Maryland. We got these homeowners a full roof replacement, complete siding replacement (top-to-bottom) and new gutters and downspouts, all for the price of their deductible!

Roof Damage Claims for ACV vs. RCV Insurance Policies

There are differences in the insurance payout depending on whether you have an ACV or RCV insurance policy. For ACV, you will only get the Actual Cash Value of your roof - which is the market value minus the depreciation, which is calculated based on the age of the roof. If you are like most homeowners and you have an RCV insurance policy, you will receive a first check for the Actual Cash Value of your roof, same as above. But then, after you get your roof replaced, you will receive a second check for the recovered value of the roof. In addition to this, your roofer will be able to install and bill for items like ice-and-water shield, etc that are required by code. Most insurance companies pay for code coverage. The handling of these details, and making sure you get a quality roof replacement, is why having a public adjuster is so important.

Sit Back, Relax, and Let a Pro Handle Your Insurance Claim

Hiring a roofing contractor that is comfortable handling insurance claims is very important. They can help with the insurance process, but it will still be on you to negotiate the claim and communicate with the insurance company. Roofers are NOT legally allowed to file or handle a claim on your behalf. That's where a public adjuster differs. We work WITH the roofer, but FOR you and AGAINST the insurance company. And our fee is paid by the roofer, not you, so in the end you only pay your deductible (plus any upgrades or additional work you choose to get done).

How to Get Roofing & Siding Damage Restored by Insurance

The process for getting your claim approved and damaged home restored...

First, hire a licensed public insurance adjuster like Chateau. Our contract is contingent upon us getting the claim approved. There's no risk to the insured homeowner. One of two things will happen. Either we will get the claim approved, in which case our contractor will execute the approved work for the approved price, and you will only pay your deductible. Or we will fail to get the claim approved, and you won't pay anything.
Allow the public adjuster to file the claim and handle all correspondence with the insurance company. This is important, because the slightest misstep can result in a denial. For example, failing to identify an appropriate date of loss. Homeowners might say something like, "Yeah, last week some shingles blew off the roof, and a couple months ago we had a hail storm". This tells the insurance company that there were two different dates of loss, or the homeowner was negligible because he didn't do something about the damage sooner. Just let your public adjuster use their expertise to ensure things go smoothly.
Document damage and present a case to the insurance company. Your public adjuster will meet with the insurance company's adjuster and inspect the property. Using the same estimating software that the insurance company uses, the public adjuster will build out a scope of work that the insurance company needs to pay for to adequately restore the damaged home. The insurance company will have their own estimate, and from there it is a matter of negotiating a fair settlement. Your public adjuster will fght to get work approved, because they are paid a percentage of the claim, so you can rest assured: your best interest is our best interest.
Get the work executed. In our contracts, we waive the public adjuster fee if the homeowner hires our affiliated contractor. That's because our contractor pays our fee for the referral of the work, and you'll only have to pay your deductible. We trust our contractors and we know that they will do excellent work so that our clients are happy.

Public Adjusters Challenge Insurance Denials of Roof Claims

If you and your insurance company disagree about the extent of damage and the extent of repairs or roof replacement needed then there are certain steps that will need to be taken. These are often technical and require the services of an experienced public adjuster. First, the insurance company will send out a "third party" engineer. But the engineer is hardly a third party - they are hired by your insurance company. When this happens, many homeowners think that the engineer has the final say. Public adjusters know that if they don't like the engineer's determination of damage they can invoke the appraisal clause (click here to learn more about appraisals). When a public adjuster invokes a policyholders right to appraisal, a truly disinterested third party, chosen by your public adjuster, will appraise the roof damage and compare that with your insurance company's appraisal in order to reach an agreement. We have won many appraisals for our clients, including just this last week for a roof damage claim (October 18, 2019 - we'll be writing about it on our blog soon!).

Thanks for Reading! Want to Learn More?

Visit our blog page for more information about property damage, public adjusters and insurance claims. If you live in south-central PA or northern Maryland contact us today for a free consultation and property inspection!

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Chateau Around the Web

Public Adjuster License Look-Ups and Other Important Links

PA Public Adjuster License Lookup: #773784
MD Public Adjuster License Lookup: #2189995
Superior Services of PA & MD: Our partnered contractor for roofing and restorations in PA and Maryland.

Our Service Area

We serve the entire south-central Pennsylvania and Northern Maryland areas including all towns and zip codes in the following counties:

Cumberland, Lancaster, York & Adams Counties in Pennsylvania
Frederick, Baltimore & Carroll Counties in Maryland

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Visit Us at Our Office Appointments Available 24/7

The post Frederick MD Hail/Wind Damaged Roofing & Siding appeared first on Chateau Public Adjusters.

Roof Damage & Hail: Insurance Approval & Policy Coverage Info

Chateau Public Adjusters — Sun, 15 Sep 2019 16:12:16 +0000

Roof damage claims are often denied by homeowners insurance or approved only for bare-minimum repairs. But not on our watch! Read on for a discussion of insurance policy coverage and law, and some examples of Chateau getting denials overturned and our policyholders the money they're entitled to for repairs and restorations of their property damage claims.

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Introduction & Background

FC&S Opinion: Hail Damage

Case Law & Precedent

Roofs by Superior Services

Roofs by JWE Remodeling

Cosmetic vs. Structural Damage - Debate & Case Law

Roof Damage Claims Caused by Hail: Do Insurance Companies Pay?

Something we here at Chateau talk about all the time is the fact that insurance companies have a profit-motive to deny claims. This often means that they will deny a roof damage claim on the basis of a "cosmetic damage" exclusion. Homeowners often don't know that this is a wrongful denial of benefits.

The fact is that unless it is explicitly stated otherwise, direct damage to property is always covered. Even the cosmetic kind. So long as the damage was due to a covered peril - like a hail storm - your insurance should pay for repairs and restorations necessary to make it like new.

'Cosmetic' Roof Damage like this caused by hail storms is sometimes WRONGFULLY DENIED by homeowners insurance companies.

The FC&S, an organization that provides policy coverage analysis and interpretations for all types of insurance professionals, agrees. In their view, the question of whether cosmetic damage ought to be covered is answered with a simple yes. They responded to a recent roof damage claim that was denied on the basis of cosmetic damage exclusion:

The principle of indemnity is to restore the insured to what they had before the loss, and this insured had a roof with no dents. - FC&S Bulletin ( source )

Period.

The courts agree: cosmetic property and roof damage is covered.

In a federal appellate court decision in June 2015 - Advance Cable Company v. Cincinnati Ins. Co., No. 14-2748, 2015 WL 3630699 (7th Cir.) - the court essentially agreed with the FC&S, ruling against the insurance company and setting a precedent for matters pertaining to property and roof damage.

In that case, the plaintiff's roof had suffered damage due to hail. The insurance company denied their claim, asserting that in their policy, "loss or damage" meant "harm", and cosmetic damage is not harmful, and so is not covered.

The court didn't buy it, and they found in favor of the policyholder. Their ruling was that when an insurance policy covers "direct physical damage" there is no distinction between cosmetic damage and structural.

There is no exception to the definition of “loss” for cosmetic damage, or any other kind of particular damage. Had [the insurer] wished to exclude cosmetic damage from coverage, it should have written the policy that way. - U.S. 7th Circuit Court of Appeals, 2015 ( source )

Roof Damage Claims Approved in Hanover PA by Chateau Our Public Adjusters Use their Knowledge of Property Damage Law to Help Policyholders get Money for Repairs, Restorations and Replacements for Damage to Roofs, Siding, Gutters and More Caused by Covered Perils like Hail, Storms, etc. Recent Examples Below...

York PA Roof Damage Claim Approved

By Superior Services of PA & MD

This roof damage claim for hail was originally denied by insurance, and Chateau's public adjuster re-opened it over one year later. We fought to get it approved, and ultimately got insurance to pay for a full 50-year warrantied roofing system replacement, executed by Superior Services of PA & MD.

York PA Roof Replacement Service

We ensure that our clients get the representation they deserve, with fair compensation of covered perils or damages incurred. A homeowner should NEVER accept the insurance company's estimate, assessment or scope as the final word. - Eric Hare, owner of Chateau and Superior Services of PA & MD

Littlestown PA Roof Damage Approved

By Superior Services of PA & MD

This home in Littlestown had a severe leak, which our expert restorations contractor mitigated and fixed. During our inspection we discovered the leak was caused by wind- and storm-damage to the roof. We got insurance to pay for the roof leak repair plus a full roof replacement by Superior Services of PA & MD.

Littlestown PA Roofing Service

Hanover PA Siding & Roofing Approved

By JWE Remodeling & Roofing

This Hanover PA home had suffered hail damage to its siding and its roof. We were brought on by JWE to get the insurance company to approve and pay for a full exterior remodel. These homeowners got brand new siding, a new roof and a new porch installed by JWE Remodeling & Roofing contractors.

Hanover PA Siding & Roofing Service

Our partnership with Chateau has allowed us to offer our customers an exclusive and valuable service. As a roofing contractor I'm not legally allowed to advocate on a homeowner's behalf to their insurance company, despite my extensive expertise in roofing and construction. But Chateau's public adjusters are, and when we work together I know that my customers are in good hands and cannot be taken advantage of by their insurance company. - Jeff Erb, owner of JWE Remodeling & Roofing

Abbottstown PA Roofing Approved

By JWE Remodeling & Roofing

This home had extensive roof damage caused by storms and wind, and we got it approved for a full lifetime-warrantied roofing system installed by JWE Remodeling and Roofing in Abbottstown PA.

Abbottstown PA Roofing Service

Damage to Your Roof, Siding or Interior?

Don't wait for your insurance company to deny you and don't settle for anything less than full coverage of your repair or restoration. Contact the licensed pros at Chateau Public Adjusters - we will advocate for you and make sure you get the full amount of money you're entitled to. We serve the entire Southern Pennsylvania and Northern Maryland area: York, Adams & Carroll Counties.

Free Consultation

Chateau Around the Web

Public Adjuster License Look-Ups and Other Important Links

PA Public Adjuster License Lookup: #773784
MD Public Adjuster License Lookup: #2189995
Superior Services of PA & MD: Our partnered contractor for roofing and restorations in PA and Maryland.

Our Service Area

We serve the entire south-central Pennsylvania and Northern Maryland areas including all towns and zip codes in the following counties:

Cumberland, Lancaster, York & Adams Counties in Pennsylvania
Frederick, Baltimore & Carroll Counties in Maryland

Free Consultation

Visit Us at Our Office Appointments Available 24/7

The post Roof Damage & Hail: Insurance Approval & Policy Coverage Info appeared first on Chateau Public Adjusters.