Caveat before we begin:
I didn’t do anything special here. I didn’t pull strings, bend the rules, or try to game the system. I just followed the process, stayed persistent, and worked with someone who understood how to present the facts clearly. This is simply my experience — nothing more, nothing less.
The Beginning Of My Roof Replacement Journey
It started with a hailstorm in September 2023. Then another in October.
That’s when I started noticing the roofing trucks driving slowly through my neighborhood, like someone showing off a new haircut.
Next, the yard signs popped up like mushrooms, signaling that its house was about to be the proud recipient of a beautiful, brand-new bouncing baby roof. And mine could, too, if I called the number on the sign.
But my neighborhood is big with pockets of houses much older than mine, so that’s how I chalked it up at first.
I mean, some streets have houses that are 20 years old on one end and brand new on the other. Mine was only 8 years old, so there was no way it already needed a new roof.
When I noticed the sign of a roofing guy I knew, I called him up to say hi and get some color on the shingle situation in my area.
He offered to look at my roof for free, but after he came down, he said it was fine.
That was a relief, but trucks and yard signs don’t lie, so I decided to play it safe and get a second opinion from another roofer. I didn’t mention that I already had someone else look at my roof, only that the trucks and signs had me curious.
This time, she came down and said I had enough hail damage to file a claim and get a new roof.
Fair enough, but what gives? I had two different roofers saying two different things, so I was unconvinced that she was right and the first roofer was wrong. For one, as a professional home inspector, I have experience with roofs and hail damage. Second, I wasn’t in a hurry to submit a claim to my insurance company, which is known for being difficult to work with, only to have it denied and put on my Comprehensive Loss Underwriting Exchange (CLUE) report. So I sat on it. For two years.
During that time, the second roofer kept nudging me to take action. I kept putting her off because not only did I not like my odds of getting my roof paid for, but I also didn’t like the idea of being blacklisted by insurance companies. I had better fights to fight.
Then, the California fires happened. I thought, “Uh-oh, this isn’t good on a few levels. Insurance companies are about to pay out big for all that.”
When I brought this up to a friend who works in insurance, he warned me that insurance companies are quietly eliminating roof coverage from their policies and that I should file a claim ASAP because it’ll probably be the last roof that gets paid for.
“Really? So what will they cover if they stop covering roofs?”
“Catastrophic damage.”
Damn. I trusted his opinion and decided to roll the dice and file that roof claim while I still could.
The First Time My Roof Claim Was Denied
Next time I got a call from that roofer asking if I was ready to file a claim, I agreed to let her submit a package to State Farm.
She took 92 photos from both the ground and the roof, put them into her package, and sent it all over.
State Farm said no. Based on the photos, they didn’t see enough damage to pay for my roof.
I felt gullible and stuck. Gullible for believing the roofer’s talk of a 97% claim approval rate and stuck because this was my home and now that State Farm had me on their radar, this fumble would likely end up on my CLUE report, and jack up future coverage and premiums. I didn’t need home ownership to cost any more than it already did.
Their reason for denying her package wasn’t very clear. Something about bad photos. State Farm claimed they only received photos from the ground but I know she took photos from the roof because I watched her climb up and I saw them in my copy of her report. She could be confrontational so maybe she just put a bad taste in their mouth and they didn’t want to work with her. Who knows? Either way, they didn’t budge.
On the bright side, this did prompt them to send an adjuster to look at my roof.
On the downside, my 2-story has a roof with a steep pitch (slope). This meant they couldn’t send one of their everyday roof adjusters. There’s too much risk and liability for one of them to get up there and walk around (even though two roofers had already done this themselves). Instead, it would be a third-party company, and in my case, this would be a structural engineering firm.
I don’t know if you know engineers, but to put it nicely, they’re typically an unaffected, conservative, and pragmatic bunch. Trying to appeal to their emotions or soften them up with conversation is generally considered a futile effort. They show up, get to work, get it done, and leave. Plain and simple.
Well, after a couple of delays caused by mixed messages and rain, the engineer finally showed up. So did my roofer. She got up there with him and pointed out the damaged areas while doing her best to get him to agree.
The Second Time My Shingle Replacement Claim Got Denied
He said no, too. He agreed there was hail damage, but only to my gutters and some roof vents. Not enough for a complete roof replacement.
So with no conversation or appeal from me, State Farm turned his input into a $769 check and called it a day.
Not so fast. I ripped up the check. I had too much skin in the game by now to just give up. If State Farm wanted me and my roof to go away, I was going to make them work for it. Plus, I still had one more hand to play: a re-inspection.
Thing is, a re-inspection isn’t automatic. You’re dealing with a big company full of bureaucracy and policies designed to protect them from wasted time and fraudulent claims. And since I already had two denials, getting them to agree to send out another adjuster would not be easy.
I would need a mountain of convincing evidence for State Farm to reopen my claim and give my roof a second look.
So I called my insurance friend for advice, and he gave me the name of another roofer.
How The Hail Damage Claim On My 10-Year-Old Roof Shingles Finally Got Approved
I instantly liked this guy because he came right out and told me that he would look at my roof, but wasn’t going to sugarcoat it. If my roof didn’t stand a chance, that’s exactly what he would say.
That’s all I ever wanted (well, that and black shingles since my brown roof clashed with my new exterior paint color).
Anyway, he got up there and came down, saying he thought we had a better than average chance and would backdate the damage to the hailstorm way back in September 2023. We just needed two things: A little luck and to go about it the right way. He communicated directly with State Farm on my behalf in order to find out exactly what they wanted. Then he agreed to it and delivered without any objections or quarrels.
The idea was to give myself the best chance of getting a re-inspection by making it as easy as possible for State Farm to get all the evidence they needed. His claim package included 120 fresh photos of all the damaged areas in both PDF format and image files.
Thankfully, this worked, and I got the re-inspection. But once again, they called a third-party structural engineering company to inspect my roof. Oh, well.
Brock met the engineer at my house, smiled, shook his hand, and was respectful, agreeable, and friendly as they both walked and talked about the condition of my shingles. They started on the ground until they finally climbed onto the roof.
When it was all over, this engineer agreed with him and recommended a complete roof replacement.
This was a big relief, but it was still too soon to celebrate. After all, we’re talking about State Farm, and the structural engineer was just an objective third-party (although trusted and vetted) hired for his professional opinion. State Farm could still disagree and decide to only replace the metal parts or just pay for a partial replacement.
And because this was a $20k roof bid, I was a little nervous. Anything less than a complete replacement would cost me thousands of dollars out of pocket.
Fortunately, after a couple of weeks of waiting, State Farm finally said yes and cut me a check for almost $13k to get the work started. Once it was completed, they sent me the rest. I paid my roofer his final check last month.
So, how did I avoid paying my deductible?
I didn’t replace my screens and gutters.
They had hail damage, but it wasn’t enough to affect their performance, so I used the money to cover my deductible and then some.
When it was all over, I walked away with a new roof and a little over $1600 in my pocket.
I hope this helps when it’s time for you to replace your roof.
Let me know what you think.
Disclaimer:
The insurance payments referenced in this post were based on the actual cash value (ACV) of the damaged items. The damage to the gutters and screens did not affect their function, so repairs were deemed unnecessary. No misrepresentation was made, no additional reimbursement was requested, and the insurer did not require proof of repair. This post is intended for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, insurance, or financial advice. Insurance policies vary, and the obligations of homeowners may differ depending on the terms of their coverage and applicable state laws. Always review your policy and consult with a licensed insurance professional or attorney before making decisions related to your claim.
