Insurance sent check but roofer wants to see adjuster estimate before quoting

I filed a claim for hail damage on my roof. I had a roofing company meet the adjuster, but haven’t signed anything with them. My insurance company took the adjuster’s report, calculated ACV, added on Recoverable Depreciation, subtracted my deductible, mailed me a check, and closed the claim. So as best as I understand, this is the money I have to go get a new roof. I talked to the insurance company a bit about it, and they said if it ends up being more than that, submit them the paperwork and they might send me a supplemental check. If it ends up being less, then that’s their mistake and I should go buy an xbox.

So I’ve gotten several quotes now. And there are a couple of companies that have come in a couple thousand under the amount on my check. And as far as I can tell, in some cases they are using better materials than called out by the insurance company estimate. So I feel like this seems like the best deal, and I’ll have some extra cash leftover. I’ve been wanting to add some gutters anyway.

But the original roofing company that met the adjuster feels like I should go with them. And they’ve been great. BUT, but they won’t give me a quote without seeing the insurance company’s estimate. And I’m like, give me a quote and THEN I’ll let you see the insurance estimate. They say they can’t charge me less than what insurance gives me or it’s illegal, which I think is wrong in this case (in the way that my insurance has treated the claim). And they say they’ll work with insurance to get more money if insurance missed something, but I feel like I can do that anyway with any roofer. It shouldn’t stop them from giving me a quote up front. So I feel like they’re going to charge me what my check is, then add on extra for the better materials. I feel like this is not the best value.

Are they wrong? Am I wrong?

Dump the idiot and go with one of the others who took the time to give you a quote. You obviously own your home without a mortgage. You can do what you like.

Did the first roofing company meet with the adjuster? If so they should be paid for that time.

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I do have a mortgage, but I don’t see where that comes into play. The mortgage lender was on the check - they told me to mail it to them and they will endorse it and mail it back.

The first company did meet with the adjuster. They didn’t indicate that they would charge for that, but I’m not opposed to it. Should I ask them to bill me? What’s a fair price?

The first contractor should have signed a contract with you unless you had a Gentleman’s Agreement. Did they provide value? If so, don’t they deserve to be compensated?

When we work on claim jobs, we generally have a contract and if the claim gets approved, we get to do the work. 95% or more of the time, our estimate is higher than the IC scope of loss, so we have to supplement.

Sounds like you’re pretty excited about making some money off of your claim and posted here to try to justify actions you know are not morally sound. Now I bet you reply with some anger because you have been called out. Shame on the first contractor trusting you to do the right thing. If the Insurance paid your claim in full upfront, you are right, you can handle the money any way you wish. If they held back recoverable depreciation, you’ll be committing insurance fraud if you turn in an invoice for an amount less than you actually pay.

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So your insurance company mailed you an acv? Then mailed you your Recoverable without a completion?

rooferama, sometimes, when the claim amount is below $5K or even $10K, the IC will pay it all upfront except the deductible of course. There are a few IC’s that most often pay it all regardless of the amount.

Thanks for the info. We haven’t seen that in Texas.

Texas House bill 2102 has me having new contracts printed according to the State law. Contract must include the statement. Insurers can require proof of the deductible being paid before paying the recoverable.

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I’ve read quite a bit about it. Texas is special.

The first contractor did NOT have me sign a contract, and we didn’t have a verbal agreement that I was aware of. If they want to bill me for meeting with the adjuster, I will be happy to pay it. But at that point, I had not agreed or decided to work with any specific roofer yet. If I had known they would feel that way, I wouldn’t have had them be there. Misunderstandings.

My biggest issue with them at the moment is that they won’t give me a quote without seeing the scope of loss. I feel like they should be able to quote it without seeing the “answer” first. Several other roofers did (some were more, some were less).

I’m not trying to justify my actions, I’m trying to understand how all of this works, operate within the law, and get good value. If two contractors were going to give me comparable materials and workmanship, but one cost significantly less, it would be financially irresponsible and foolish of me to pay more, wouldn’t it?

The insurance company gave me a check for everything: ACV + recoverable depreciation - deductible. The way I understand it (and this is after discussing it with the insurance agent) is that I can use this money how I see fit, and if someone does the job for less (of course, I also want them to do a good job), then it’s ok and legal to keep the excess money. But if I’m wrong about this, please tell me. The reason I’m posting here is to get hopefully expert opinions on something I’m doing my best to understand. I’m trying to do the “right thing” AND save money.

FYI, I’m in Florida if that helps with any location specific differences in law, etc.

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Sounds like the first contractor screwed up. I guess if I were you, I’d choose whichever contractor you feel will provide the best value. Just make sure to verify their licensing and that they have general liability and workman’s comp insurance rated for roofing. I’d also try to choose someone who is an established local contractor.

You’ve been told correctly. The money you received is yours to do what you wish with. You could spend it on a new car if you wanted. The insurance company rarely pays what they should initially but perhaps you got lucky. If someone is much less than your scope of loss amount, I’d be concerned about how they’re doing that. Better said, what corners they’re going to cut.

Good luck to you with your project.

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I am curious now whether RocketB bought a new car.

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A new car would be nice, but I actually do want a new roof, and I’m not saving that much money. What money I am saving, I’m re-investing into the house. I’m going to add some gutters, and maybe get some metal hurricane panels (plywood gets tiresome).

The new roof is actually being put on right now.

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Here’s how i explain it to homeowners. First i don’t always ask for insurance scope unless I’ve worked the deal from the start and filed the claim with the homeowner. i’m always happy to do a bid but a lot of times the adjuster misses a lot on the first inspection. I then supplement any missing items to make sure the claim is maximized and the insurance is paying the correct amount due to the homeowner, By doing so i should be compensated as much. Also as a general contractor there are items outside your roof that are paid for that need replaced , gutters, screens, painting, garage doors, ac repair, anything that could of been damaged . now if i just do your roof and you keep the money for those items they won’t be covered in future storms. Also the way the claims are set up now its so the contractor can do it for the insurance price, you pay your deductible and we do the job, File for the depreciation that all work was completed per insurance scope and therefore can be fully insured again the next storm that comes around.

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I tell people we do not bid insurance jobs because more than 95% of the time, our estimate will be higher than the insurance company’s scope of loss. And the reason is because they leave off items that should be part of a full roof replacement. I let people know if they have researched us and like us as the company they would prefer for repairing their damages, we would work with the insurance company to reconcile the scope of loss to the point we could make the repairs in a quality manner and still make a fair and reasonable profit.

Some people like this approach, sign a contract with us and move forward. Some do not. Those are generally people looking to have their deductible paid and looking to make a profit from their claim. I’m more than happy to walk away from those and avoid wasting our time helping them increase their profits by providing them with a professional Xactimate estimate they may use to supplement on their own and then kick us to the curb.

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Any contractor who can substantially underbid an insurance scope should raise cause for concern. Keep in mind I’m sure you let these guys know the same thing you’ve told us and they’re underbidding to obtain work.(another possible cause for concern). Any successful GC is not gonna undercut their own value just to entice you to swing to them. Meaning if they are reputable then they don’t have to. Those low bids are doing exactly what you let them know they needed to do to compete for this job. The moment you mention a contractor already met the adjuster and you’re holding money, if they NEED this small job they put their game faces on and dip below fair profits to swipe a job that the original contractors knowledge probably got pushed through. He definitely made a mistake not getting you on contract. I wasn’t there for that convo but I highly doubt he was willing to take time from his work day on multiple occasions and assist with YOUR claim without being under the impression he was gonna be the contractor doing the work. Regardless, explanation and signature is key, so It’s his mistake for not closing that deal properly (just another example to any contractor of why we don’t cut corners). The one thing no one is saying here is IC are not in the business of fixing your home AND lining your pockets. If the work is done and you profit from that work without doing it yourself that IS in fact insurance fraud. But for those adjusters who have awarded full payment due to signed contracts or whatever reason just don’t pursue it cuz they know they got off cheap by avoiding costly supplements by an experienced IS. But it is illegal. I assure you the route you took may have gave you a few extra bucks, but it undoubtedly cost you far more then it saved you. Right now you got a bare minimum value roof put on, where as a reputable GC well versed in insurance language , local code, and procedure would have secured final funds to put a complete roof system on your home with upgraded products and extended warranties etc etc… it’s not about raping and taking advantage of insurance companies. It’s about getting what you’ve paid for, indemnified properly via a paid contracted agreement with your IC.

I prolly talk to much, but I can still remember what it was like in the beginning when I was less experienced and I THOUGHT I had a claim all worked out and under way. Getting surprised by a home owner who decided to shop bids the moment they received payment for a claim I got this far was a real let down. We all want more then we pay for, but how much of our own character do we assassinate to get it? Yes the original contractor made a mistake, but at least he was smart enough not to fall for that trap after the fact and just let the job go. Good for him.

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What do you mean by upgraded products SSS?

I would dump the first company - they should be quoting on what the job costs, not what they think they can extract from you.

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