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I live in Frisco and lot of my neighbors are getting new roof in my neighborhood due to recent hail storms.
I had my roof inspected thru one of the licensed roof contractor and he said my roof has enough damage to get the new roof approved thru my home insurance. He gives a free roof thru insurance.
This is my first time filing a claim for home insurance so kind of skeptical for getting free roof without paying deductible to the contractor company.
Questions:
1. Are there different type of shingle based roof material (best, better, good, cheap) that comes which roofing company can use without letting us know?
2. If there are different materials available for roof shingle, can you please share which are those so I can compare?
3. Contractor is claiming to ask for fence, gutters and AC unit damage repair and he will work with that expense towards my deductible and won't repair those things. Is that legal and do insurance verify the work after its done?
4. Should I ask roofing company to simply provide me an estimate to get the new roof without telling what my insurance company has approved for the damage? That way I get an honest estimate to get an exact same quality roof for my house?
3. Contractor is claiming to ask for fence, gutters and AC unit damage repair and he will work with that expense towards my deductible and won't repair those things. Is that legal and do insurance verify the work after its done?
4. Should I ask roofing company to simply provide me an estimate to get the new roof without telling what my insurance company has approved for the damage? That way I get an honest estimate to get an exact same quality roof for my house?
For #1, yes, but only the most shady company would do that, and you can easily tell the difference between a cheap shingle (looks like a piece of paper) and a decent one (go look at one at Home Depot if you have never seen them before).
#3: The fence, gutters, AC unit will add extra cost to the total insurance payout, and that extra payout is how they do it without a deductible. YES, at least in our case, our insurance company required us to repair all that stuff too, and any reputable roofing company will have people who do that. Don't let them rip off your gutters and not replace them.
#4: Good luck. they won't give you any estimates without seeing the forms from the insurance company, which has details about the size of your roof. I tried with multiple companies to get a real estimate - they don't give them when working storms. If you want that, then don't involve your insurance company, call some companies in November, and they will probably give you a normal estimate.
Good luck. Yeah, the process seems totally scammy but it's really not worth the effort to break the scam.
I live in Frisco and lot of my neighbors are getting new roof in my neighborhood due to recent hail storms.
I had my roof inspected thru one of the licensed roof contractor and he said my roof has enough damage to get the new roof approved thru my home insurance. He gives a free roof thru insurance.
This is my first time filing a claim for home insurance so kind of skeptical for getting free roof without paying deductible to the contractor company.
Questions:
1. Are there different type of shingle based roof material (best, better, good, cheap) that comes which roofing company can use without letting us know?
2. If there are different materials available for roof shingle, can you please share which are those so I can compare?
3. Contractor is claiming to ask for fence, gutters and AC unit damage repair and he will work with that expense towards my deductible and won't repair those things. Is that legal and do insurance verify the work after its done?
4. Should I ask roofing company to simply provide me an estimate to get the new roof without telling what my insurance company has approved for the damage? That way I get an honest estimate to get an exact same quality roof for my house?
Any other suggestions as welcome.
My roofing contractor asked which brand we wanted to use. I think he gave 2 options. I asked his opinion and did some research online before choosing. Most roofs are composite (is that what you are asking)? Unless you have a high dollar home or a non-traditional style, like a Spanish style home or one that previously had wood shingles, I would think you would get composite. Your HOA may dictate what type you can get too, and color. So check that.
#3 doesn't sound legal to me. My roofer also did my gutters, but nothing else. We had damage to our fence, garage, and solar screens and I contracted with separate companies for those. I mean, you can take the money for those items from your insurance without repairing them, but they won't cover any future damages.
#4. I think my contractor asked how many squares the insurance adjuster quoted. I can't remember if he asked for anything else off of the estimate but I think it's normal for them to ask.
You're not getting things replaced yet, are you? It's not even May and it seems we always have at least one storm into June or even later. One of my neighbors (I'm in Frisco too) got their roof replaced in early April and I was snickering the whole time thinking they must be new to the area because everyone knows to wait until storm season is over to replace things.
Your roofer is a crook and is asking you to do something illegal. I can just about guarantee you that he will find a way to fleece you. Do not hire anyone without checking their rep on the BBB web site. Don't believe someone who says they are too new to have a rating. You don't want a novice doing your roof.
Your roofer is a crook and is asking you to do something illegal. I can just about guarantee you that he will find a way to fleece you. Do not hire anyone without checking their rep on the BBB web site. Don't believe someone who says they are too new to have a rating. You don't want a novice doing your roof.
This. Number three is how certain roofers fleece insurance. The claim is made (for fencing or whatever) in order to save you money, but the work is not done. If you claim fencing, gutters, AC units and don't have them done then you are screwed next time. A good roofing company will tell you that. The fly by night people will not.
I live in Frisco and lot of my neighbors are getting new roof in my neighborhood due to recent hail storms.
I had my roof inspected thru one of the licensed roof contractor and he said my roof has enough damage to get the new roof approved thru my home insurance. He gives a free roof thru insurance.
This is my first time filing a claim for home insurance so kind of skeptical for getting free roof without paying deductible to the contractor company.
Questions:
1. Are there different type of shingle based roof material (best, better, good, cheap) that comes which roofing company can use without letting us know?
2. If there are different materials available for roof shingle, can you please share which are those so I can compare?
Yes to questions 1 & 2 and that is one way shady roofers are able to get promise you no deductible. There are many different brands and models of shingles and one of the first things to do is read your Insurance Adjuster's report/estimate to see if they determined your shingle type. If this is a new home and no roof work has been performed since build you can speak with your builder and ask them to identify the manufacturer and model of shingle they used. It is very important you know this if possible as there are even cost differences between one or the other manufacturer's shingles.
3. Contractor is claiming to ask for fence, gutters and AC unit damage repair and he will work with that expense towards my deductible and won't repair those things. Is that legal and do insurance verify the work after its done?
IMO that is fraud against an insurance company. They may or may not check to ensure the work has been performed. On larger claims the chances are good they will. If they do check and see work has not been performed they can withhold payment for that part of the insurance claim. Remember once you sign the roofer's contract for the roof cost you will be forced to pay that! So if the roofer is trying to help you scam the insurance company you're the one that loses since they will generally not give you lots of free roof work just because the insurance company did not pay out on the other items. The roofer will make sure his paperwork does not implicate him in the fraud and can just claim it is you who are defrauding the insurance company.
4. Should I ask roofing company to simply provide me an estimate to get the new roof without telling what my insurance company has approved for the damage? That way I get an honest estimate to get an exact same quality roof for my house?
As already stated the roofer will either want the insurance estimate from you or more likely will approach your insurance company themselves to obtain the estimate.
Any other suggestions as welcome.
It is the season for the scammers to come out of the woodwork!! They know you have no idea how the system works not only for insurance but also contract law for their contract. These are some additional tips.
Any contractor wanting to perform work in Frisco is required to register with Frisco. The Building Inspections Department maintains a list of registered contractors and their site is Building Inspections | Frisco, TX - Official Website . Also on that site, in BIG red lettering is a link to the North Texas Roofing Contractors Association with even more good information. You should consider using only those properly registered contractors. It does not necessarily mean they are better than unregistered contractors. However at least Frisco has a leash on their registered contractors and can get to them easier if you have problems.
There are good general contractors out there that can handle all aspects of your repairs. However anymore they are harder to find or when storms occur harder to schedule. Look over your house closely to see what damage was done by the storm and read through your adjuster report as well to ensure they estimated for all items. This is where a good GC can help. They can review your house for storm damage, help you understand the adjuster report and if the insurance company is estimating for all damages present.
DON'T approach this with a Wal-Mart attitude and select contractors based on the "cheapest" prices. Nobody works for free and material prices have risen and will rise more during storms. The "cheapest" estimate may well be the crook contractor!
Good luck and share your experiences here so others can learn!
Contact your insurance company. They should send their inspector to go over your whole property and may have contractors they recommend.
Once you have estimate ask for residual numbers.
Find an other roofer. It sounds like the one you are working with knows the system a bit too well.
You do not pay your deductible to a contractor but to your insurance.
The problem is that the roofer is telling you it will be a 'free roof' by using the money from the other damage for your deductible. You still have to get the other things repaired and you will be 100% out of pocket for those. If the expense is more than what the insurance company estimated (usually is), you will have zero chance to get more money from them to cover it because it's already been 'repaired' by the roofer. If you just pay your deductible and the expenses exceed the estimates, you can go back to them with receipts/estimates and get more to cover the actual loss. The only entity who benefits in this situation is the roofing company and, yes, it's fraud.
Yes, Our home has a brand new roof installed by the builder when we bought the house. So this will be the first replacement of the roof.
It sounds like everyone's response on this thread is that if you are getting only a new roof, then you must pay a deductible out of your pocket. If that's the case.... why am I meeting almost every neighbor in my community saying they are getting a free roof without having them paying a deductible?
Sounds to me like most of in not all roofing companies are doing shady business, correct?
Should I first have an insurance adjuster come out and take look at the roof and write an estimate or should I have a roofing guy by my side when adjuster comes out for the inspection?
The problem is that the roofer is telling you it will be a 'free roof' by using the money from the other damage for your deductible. You still have to get the other things repaired and you will be 100% out of pocket for those. If the expense is more than what the insurance company estimated (usually is), you will have zero chance to get more money from them to cover it because it's already been 'repaired' by the roofer. If you just pay your deductible and the expenses exceed the estimates, you can go back to them with receipts/estimates and get more to cover the actual loss. The only entity who benefits in this situation is the roofing company and, yes, it's fraud.
well he is saying that he will do free power wash and stain of the fence since it has a visible damage. But gutters and AC unit has very light hail dings with no other damage so he will ask for a repair cost and won't repair it. How will insurance company know what I got it repaired and what not? Do they actually come out and do another inspection after the work is done?
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