If you suspect you have roof damage, you need to do the following:

1. Stay safe — avoid going on the roof to check for the damage yourself and instead contact FreeRoofExam.com LLC. It cost you nothing to have us come and advise you and advocate for you. We get paid by insurance when we come to do the job for you.
2. Inspect your attic for leaks or water damage. Also, if any water stains appear on your ceiling or walls, you likely need repairs or a roof replacement.
3. Look for signs of storm damage from the ground. Check for missing shingles or missing pieces of metal fascia, including any metal pieces displaced from around the property. Also, assess the condition of exhaust pipes, valleys, outer edges, or angles where the roof meets the walls.
   4. Obviously, you will notice if a tree fell on your roof. If so, stay out of your property until our professional can determine whether any structural damage occurred. As you will need more than roof repairs.

Often damage from a storm is not visible to the untrained eye. That is why it is particularly important that after a storm you have our qualified team member come and inspect your entire property. NOTE: Your time to be able to file a claim is on a legal clock with Insurance Companies.

If there is damage to your Business or Home, contact your insurance company as soon as possible for an adjuster to come to your property and appraise the damage. Remember, in a disaster situation, someone may not come immediately. Try to be patient.

You do not have to have a roofing contractor to file a claim, however it is beneficial to have our trained contractor on site to meet with your adjuster so nothing is overlooked and you get a fair comprehensive assessment of the damages.

In most cases, you have one year from the date of the storm to file a claim, however all policies are different and some states you have as little as six months. Arizona is 2 years. The best thing to do is call us soon after the storm to do your free inspection.

Filing a single claim should not raise your premiums especially from an “act of God”. However, if a region is hit by a major storm the whole region’s premiums could go up.

This is an especially important question and decision.
Research the company. Check out the company website to make sure they have a location within 50 miles or so of your property, and local phone numbers. You should find a contractor who will readily supply you with insurance, workers compensation, bond, and references upon your request.

“Storm Chasers” are disreputable regional or national companies, which give the roofing industry a bad name. They are evaluating storms throughout the country and dispatching sales teams to areas recently hit by large storms. They work on getting as many houses under contract as possible and then immediately move to the next storm area. They do not have any interest in their local reputation, quality of installation, or selection of good quality materials. These actions result in poor installations and homeowners with roof problems installed by a contractor that is no longer in the area to address.

“Storm Chasers” will position themselves to appear as a local company. Use some of the following items to help you easily spot a “Storm Chaser”.

• Visit their website and look for local phone numbers and office locations
• Ask to see a copy of their General Liability Insurance and look for addresses of where the policy was written
• Ask for local references of completed work (specifically projects not recently completed)
• Lookout for 1-800 numbers and marketing information without a local phone number

No this is false you as the homeowner can choose any contractor you want to do the repairs. Also, it is the insurance companies’ duty to you to send out an adjuster to give you their view in writing of an estimate to repair the project. (i.e. The Loss Sheet)

There are two reasons that insurance companies hold some money back. The first reason is to make sure that you get the work done. Experience has shown them that, if they give the customer all the money upfront, many people end up spending it on something else. The second reason is that they wish to make sure that you pay your full deductible. The insurance company’s reason that, if you are given all the money to begin with, many people would naturally try to find a contractor who would perform the job for the dollar amount in hand. By holding a retainage amount, they can adjust the amount of the final payout based on the roofing contractor’s invoice, thus assuring that their customer does pay the deductible. Also, reducing illegal invoicing fraud. This is a felony!

When you buy a new roof, you are given 2 separate warranties. You receive a Manufacturer’s warranty from the company that made your roof products installed and you receive a workmanship/labor warranty from the contractor who installed the products on your roof.

1. Manufacturer Warranty – The company that made your shingles offer specific wind and life expectancy guarantees when you buy their product. Terms like Lifetime and wind ratings like 110 mph and 130 mph are guarantees that they offer to the consumer. They are the ones responsible for how long your products installed last and how high of wind speeds they will sustain.
2. Workmanship/Labor Warranty – The contractor who installs your roof offers these warranties which cover against leaks usually for a specified period. Standard lengths for these warranties run anywhere from 2-15 years. This warranty protects you after the installation of your roof should you encounter a leak when it rains.
   Unfortunately, your workmanship/labor warranty from your roofing contractor does not cover any Acts of God such as wars, civil disturbances, fires, and Hurricanes.

A few other things to remember following a big storm like Irma or any other damaging storm for that matter:

• Before beginning any clean up, take photos and keep notes. It is important to document everything that is damaged before starting to replace or to restore.
• Notify your insurance agent as soon as possible. If you have vacated the premises, make sure your representative knows where to contact you. If you’re at home, but your phone isn’t working, leave a number where you can be reached.
• Make any temporary repairs.
• Get a tarp if you have a leak.
• Do not allow any contractor to nail a tarp to your roof. This will cause additional water damage and leaks into your home by allowing water to go through where the nail penetrations are.
• Make sure your adjuster provides you with a proof of loss statement. Report any additional damage found as soon as possible so that damage may be added to your claim.
• If your property is uninhabitable and you must live in temporary housing, save all receipts.
• Don’t be rushed into signing repair contracts. Deal with reputable contractors. Make copies of all correspondence and information sent to you by your insurance company.