INSURANCE IS GETTING ME A NEW ROOF....NOW WHAT

So the insurance company is getting me a new roof. What have you guys and gals done to make sure that you get what you need from the insurance company, and from the roofer...this is the first time dealing with insurance, and doing anything with the roof.

You hire the roofer, don't necessarily accept the reccomendations of the insurance company. Get at least 3 quotes. Request a copy of their workers comp and general liability insurance. Check references. DO NOT PAY THEM IN FULL UNTIL THE JOB IS FINISHED COMPLETE AND YOU ARE SATISFIED. Choose a contractor based on scope of work not the cheapest price. Most insurance companies will allow for supplemental billing for line items they may not have included.

-Not sure what you mean about the line item billing?
-Is there a way to get more money if the damage is more than just the shingles? The adjuster said he estimated for a new roof.
The peak of the house runs east and west is there a way to reinforce the leading edge of the shingles so I don't have to do this again?

There's more to a roof system than shingles alone. Underlayments, flashings, ventilation, steepness of the roof, drip edge are sometimes not included in an insurance companies estimate. The contractor of your choice can justify the required elements of an installation to the adjuster, I know, I did it for 25 years. Often times, a insurance company will not include all the components to reduce exposure to loss. Don't accept less than a complete system. A legitimate roofing company will require all the elements of a installation. You will be responsible for upgrading to a better quality shingle though.

A insurance company should provide an estimate that line items what they are paying for.

25 square of shingles @.......$
22 square of 30 lb felt @.......$
3 plumbing boots @...............$

Etc......

Some companies are now depreciating roof replacements. Check your policy to see what applies to your situation.

Upgrade the shingles from 3 tabs to architectural shingles. They are more substantial than 3 tabs and typically have a longer warranty. They'll stand up to wind and hail damage better than a 25 year 3 tab. It may cost you $500 out of pocket, but it will be worth it.

Definitely get architectural shingles! And if you're in a snow belt, make sure ice and water membran4e is included. Drip edge and eaves flashing is also a must. And make sure your roofer knows how to properly cut, stagger and nail down shingles.

The most common reason for premature shingle failure is improper installation. There's 5/8 of an inch nail line on demential shingles. If you nail above the line, the laminate strip is not mechanically attached to the shingle and will result in the laminate strip sliding out. Proper nail placement and the proper amout of fasteners will effect the performance of the roof. Drip edge and starter shingles on all roof edges will reduce the chance of wind lifting.

Most of my neighbors have been getting new roofs due to hail damage. I had architectural grade shingles installed when we built and my roof is holding up. Seems like a bit of an insurance scam as many of my neighbor's old roofs were approaching their end of life, no matter the insurance companies have been paying for new roofs.

I had a roofer inspect my roof a few months ago and install "donuts" on the plumbing boots as they were starting to dry rot after 19 years. He advised I'm probably good for another 5-7 years on my "30-year" roof so I'll get 25 to 27 years out of that roof.

oldognewtrick said:

The most common reason for premature shingle failure is improper installation. There's 5/8 of an inch nail line on demential shingles. If you nail above the line, the laminate strip is not mechanically attached to the shingle and will result in the laminate strip sliding out. Proper nail placement and the proper amout of fasteners will effect the performance of the roof. Drip edge and starter shingles on all roof edges will reduce the chance of wind lifting.

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That's exactly why I mentioned it. My 7 year old roof had shingles blown off in the last windstorm. Looking at them showed they were nailed way above the nail line and only attached through the single layer. Plus the roofer only staggered every other row which resulted in a peeling effect in the windstorm since the cuts lined up in every other row. Allegedly a good roofer when I hired him but now no longer in business.

mabloodhound said:

That's exactly why I mentioned it. My 7 year old roof had shingles blown off in the last windstorm. Looking at them showed they were nailed way above the nail line and only attached through the single layer. Plus the roofer only staggered every other row which resulted in a peeling effect in the windstorm since the cuts lined up in every other row. Allegedly a good roofer when I hired him but now no longer in business.

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Any shingle installed on a bar line, 6" stagger, will not hold up as well as using a staircase pattern. Nail placement has caused as many premature replacements as reaching life span of the roofs. There are a lot of installers willing to cut corners on material and install. Sad part is, most homeowners don't know until it's to late.

GAF has excellent web pages available to educate homeowners on how to choose a good installer and the questions to ask. Remember, the cheapest price is usually the cheapest install.

We had the first guy come by and take a look at it. His price came in about $1800 higher than insurances estimate, but he's including new OSB too.
Here's the work he quoted for

New Roof House Only
Protect customer's siding, grounds, & landscaping with tarps and plywood as needed.

Completely remove existing roof to deck, provide inspection of roof deck and repair as needed.
Install 7/16" Oriented Strand Board to provide adequate nail base for proper application of new roofing.
Install new Quality Edge aluminum drip edge metal on all eaves and rakes. (color to match existing fascia)
Install CertainTeed Winterguard waterproofing underlayment 6' on eaves, 3' in valleys, along sidewalls, and
around all roof penetrations in accordance with all building codes. (must extend to a point 2' inside all heated walls)

Install Certainteed DiamondDeck synthetic underlayment over all remaing exposed surfaces.
Install Certainteed Swiftstart starter strip along all eaves.
Furnish and Install CertainTeed Landmark Limited Lifetime algae resistant shingles in strict accordance with
manufacturer's specifications.

Color of roof to be selected.
All valleys are to be done with Galvanized metal, Ice & Water shield and a closed-cut style.
Remove existing vent stack flashings and install new galvanized vent stack flashings.
Cut in and install Airvent Shinglevent II usSing minimum 2 1/2" roofing nails. Existing vent holes will be repaired.
Fabricate and install new step and counterflashing at base of chimney(s).
Grounds will be cleaned daily. Gutters (if applicable) and a final detailing will be completed at the end of the job.
Contract price includes permit (if applicable), taxes, fees, and removal of debris upon completion of project.
All workmanship is warranted for a period of ten (10) years, manufacturer warrants materials.

topher5150 said:

We had the first guy come by and take a look at it. His price came in about $1800 higher than insurances estimate, but he's including new OSB too.
Here's the work he quoted for

New Roof House Only
Protect customer's siding, grounds, & landscaping with tarps and plywood as needed.

Completely remove existing roof to deck, provide inspection of roof deck and repair as needed.
Install 7/16" Oriented Strand Board to provide adequate nail base for proper application of new roofing.
Install new Quality Edge aluminum drip edge metal on all eaves and rakes. (color to match existing fascia)
Install CertainTeed Winterguard waterproofing underlayment 6' on eaves, 3' in valleys, along sidewalls, and
around all roof penetrations in accordance with all building codes. (must extend to a point 2' inside all heated walls)

Install Certainteed DiamondDeck synthetic underlayment over all remaing exposed surfaces.
Install Certainteed Swiftstart starter strip along all eaves.
Furnish and Install CertainTeed Landmark Limited Lifetime algae resistant shingles in strict accordance with
manufacturer's specifications.

Color of roof to be selected.
All valleys are to be done with Galvanized metal, Ice & Water shield and a closed-cut style.
Remove existing vent stack flashings and install new galvanized vent stack flashings.
Cut in and install Airvent Shinglevent II usSing minimum 2 1/2" roofing nails. Existing vent holes will be repaired.
Fabricate and install new step and counterflashing at base of chimney(s).
Grounds will be cleaned daily. Gutters (if applicable) and a final detailing will be completed at the end of the job.
Contract price includes permit (if applicable), taxes, fees, and removal of debris upon completion of project.
All workmanship is warranted for a period of ten (10) years, manufacturer warrants materials.

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It sounds like a legit proposal. I question though his use of ice and water and galvanized metal in the valleys.

That is an excellent quote. I know some are not fans of the Certainteed brand but they have corrected their old problem Use of starter shingles is a plus and shows he is knowledgeable about the brand and requirements. And use of metal flashing and I&W in valleys is a definite plus. Looks like a quality contractor and it gives you an idea of what the quote should include. I don't know how old the house is and if it really needs to have the OSB which could save you some money.

He quoted with OSB because some of the 1 x whatever are looking pretty rough.
The house was built in the late 40s

I had my old house with plank sheathing re roofed for the first time I owned it and in my case the roof was 1” rough sawed planks without being edged. They wanted to add thin OSB as they worried about nailing shingles and the cracks. I told them sure but I wanted them to use half inch exterior plywood not the OSB. The roofer threw a fit about loosing the job as plywood would cost more. It ended up only a couple hundred bucks and the labor the big cost was the same so I did it.


Even if they do it, if you do have bad sheathing boards tell him you want the bad ones replaced before covering them. If it is rot or such.

I saw a guy on This Old House who hand-nailed his shingles because with an air nailer he couldn't tell if he hit a gap in the decking. With hand nailing, he always knows. I have to say that is the only time I've ever heard of someone doing that, but I don't work in the trades for living. Around here all the roofs are done with OSB. Our housing stock is all fairly new as we have grown from a town of 7500 in the 1970's to a city of 160,000 today. As such an "old house" around here was built in the 1970's or 1980's. There are some older homes in Downtown Cary and in Raleigh and Durham. But most of Raleigh and Cary are fairly new.

One of the benefits besides cost with OSB over plywood is it is solid from top to bottom, you don't run into blank areas in the middle layers of the plywood, especially with sheathing grade plywoods.

Now it begins.
I sent over the quote to insurance and of course he scoffed at it. He wasn't going to cover OSB because it was damaged over the years and not by the wind. Now I have to try to get the roofer to come down a little.

topher5150 said:

Now it begins.
I sent over the quote to insurance and of course he scoffed at it. He wasn't going to cover OSB because it was damaged over the years and not by the wind. Now I have to try to get the roofer to come down a little.

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As a roofer I beg to ask the question, why do you want the roofer to cut his profits to put a new roof on your house, that is unless you married his sister? When you shop at the grocery do you ask the butcher to cut the price because you think the price of ground chuck is too high? Would you show up for work if your boss asked you to work for less than your salary just because he wanted a project to come in under budget? Roofers, all tradesmen, that are skilled craftsmen, should be able to quote a project and receive a fair compensation for their labor. Unless you have been self employed, you don't have a understanding what the costs of being self employed entails. If you beat him up too much on price, the quality of the job can be compromised. In the past I've had customers show me other proposals and ask me to match their price, I responded that if it was price that got their business, then the choice has already been made.

He gave you a fair summary of the scope of work, the insurance company is providing the majority of the job cost. Be thankful you're not paying all out of pocket for the job cost.

I agree the quoting process is where things get sorted out. When you ask 3 or more tradesmen to quote a job unless they are in collusion they are all aware if their cost is to high they likely wont get the job so they are self controlling the pricing based on a lot of factors one of them being profit. You then have every right to ask for references and amend the contract you make with them if you don’t find the scope of the work clear, but in the end there needs to be agreement.


People also do the reverse when finding an insurance company they shop around for the lowest rates they can find and then when they make a claim they find out all insurance companies deal with paying out differently.


As a homeowner I don’t see a problem asking for a discount on just about anything it doesn’t hurt to ask. I bought brake pads and rotors a while back and I joking asked the guy is that the best you can do. He said well are you over 60? Were you in the military? Do you have AAA? Etc and next thing I know he knocked off 20%. On the other hand be aware when you ask a contractor to sharpen his pencil you could be opening a change in mindset. If you ask and they say no that’s when I would personally drop the conversation.


As an interesting side note over the last 2 years I have hired the Amish to do first my garage roof and then my house with metal roofing. About a 1/3 of the roofs around here have been going metal over the last 25 years. The Amish own the roofing metal plant and there are a bunch of them doing work putting it on as independent contractors. As you would think they are looked down on by the shingle guys as they hardly have any overhead except oats for the horse. They come and figure out the materials and have you place the order for it and pay their price up front. So when they show up the material is paid for and waiting. They work crazy hard and do good work and in both cases I saw how many guys and hours they took and I thought their bill was to low and gave them more than they asked for. So far so good on the metal roofing. Rain sounds a little different and there is a few places I should have put the snow clips because when the snow comes off it really comes off.