Posted: Sun Aug 03, 2008 1:53 am Post subject: roof repairs
hurricane Dolly blew off the shingles from our roof, water leaked into the house and the ceilings and the blown insulation got wet, i put tubs in the attic and in the house. the insurance adjuster came and said the insurance will only pay for a partial repair on the roof and replace some of the insulation even though Dolly's winds have loosened the rest of the shingles. The insurance does not want to pay for the entire roof, even though they know that the next hurricane will blow off the rest of the shingles. I do not want to have to stay up all night during the next hurricane catching water leaks in the attic and the house. I am insured with Travelers and the adjuster said that their policy is to do only a partial repair if possible and cannot repair the rest of the roof unless it all blows off. The house had a previous patch repair job done on the roof before we bought it 2 years ago. Please help me, I would not feel safe in this house again during a hurricane. My kids have asthma and I am afraid toxic mold might grow up in the attic and on the ceilings that got wet...I got an estimate from a roofer and am now waiting for the amount from the adjuster. What do i do if the roofer's estmates are greater than the adjuster's? Please help me.
Here is the thing and I'm just going to bottom line this to make it easier to understand and shorter...
You carrier is only responsible for making repairs to damage items. If an insurance company paid out to prevent further damages, we'd all have brand new houses. As the home owner _you_ are responsible to maintain the home... this is not the responsiblity of the insurance company. If the shingles are still working now but may fail latter... then _you_ need to maintain the home and have them replaced so that this does not happen.
You need to give the roofer your insurance companies estimate and ask him if he can make the listed repairs for the price they have listed. If not, other he or you can call your insurance company to discuss.
tcope has hit it just right. The insurance company is only responsible for the damages listed under the policy. I think they are only working according to the verbiage of the policy document. If the estimate from the contractor differs from the estimate given by the insurance adjuster, then you either have to negotiate it with the contractor or with the insurance company to get the job done.
Posted: Mon Aug 04, 2008 11:15 am Post subject: hi
hi...would like to know more from tcope since I've always regarded him an expert at dealing with such issues -
would you consider restoring the loosened shingles as paying for further damages? Isn't loosening a form of damage already? Please explain.
Also, would like to empathize with you on the point that insurance co. should not pay for the shingles which proved tuff for Dolly!
would you consider restoring the loosened shingles as paying for further damages? Isn't loosening a form of damage already? Please explain.
I'm guessing that the insurance company is not paying to have them replaced as they were not really damaged, which happens a lot. Shingles are really meant to protect the underlayments of the roof. The underlayments are what shed the water. So the shingles can look bad but still do their job.
It also depends on the insurance company and how liberal they are with their money. In most cases a carrier will not pay for shingles if they only look bad and there are no signs of leaking. Which I'm guessing is the situation in this case.
Tcope is right - unfortunately. Premiums would go way higher if insurers didn't have policies like this.
If the roofers estimates - for a partial repair - are higher than the adjusters you can go back to the adjuster with that number. Or maybe the adjuster has a "preferred" contractor that has given a quote. There is usually room for discussion/negotiation at time of claim.
You are right to be worried about mold. Even if the kids don't have asthma. And it does make sense to do a full repair all at once - especially if this is a recurring cycle that could be stopped by a full repair.
You could consider getting a full repair done with the insurer paying the part they are willing to pay. Then you would have to pay the balance and you would have more peace of mind and security. I know that's costly but that's the joy of home ownership ....
I hope that helps a bit.
Ontario Broker _________________ I am an insurance broker from Ontario licensed for all types of insurance.
Posted: Mon Aug 04, 2008 6:05 pm Post subject: Thanks! :D
Thanks for all the replies, they were very helpful. I also found out that if the insurance is not sufficient, and since we are under the declared disaster area, apparently, FEMA will pick up the rest of the cost for repairing the roof...Isn't that great? Hopefully I won't have to coz the adjuster said that it does look like the wind loosened the shingles, but he thinks they might only pay for repairing a patch since it can last until the next hurricane, oh and there were leaks where the shingles came loose... I am optimistic and I don't hold it against the insurance company nor the adjuster, they are just doing their jobs. I understand that there are things they know and do for the good of many since any decision they make will not affect just me...
Posted: Tue Oct 14, 2008 2:05 pm Post subject: Claims Adjuster
Well I found out my insurance company farmed out there adjusting to Alamo Claims Services. Google them they have been known to run scams on us folks. I am trying my best to keep my cool. _________________ Register Now to have your Insurance queries solved.
Key word to remember is....repair. Normal maintainance is the responsibility of the homeowner. _________________ Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it. - Ferris Bueller
My brother works for a construction company and does a lot of these kinds of repairs. He always tells me how people become irate with him when he is just doing what the insurance company allows him to do. Yep bad shingles may look bad but as long as they are doing there job...
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