If you are a resident of Cedar Grove, New Jersey, and are currently in the process of looking for a roofing contractor to work on your roof, you may also be looking into filing a roofing insurance claim. Many people find the insurance claim process to be very tedious. This is specifically difficult for homeowners who are unaided. In addition, if this is their first time having to go through insurance. This is why here at Northkit Roofing we offer free insurance claim assistance.
We have been working with insurance companies for a very long time. Moreover, we have partnered with some of the most noted insurance companies in the business. Such as State Farm, Allstate, Farmers Insurance, Liberty Mutual, and Nationwide.
We do however work with most other insurance providers to give our clients the best chance possible of getting approved for their roofing insurance claim. In this article, we will highlight topics such as what exactly insurance is if you will owe anything out of your own pocket if the insurance company approves your claim, common reasons as to why your claim might get denied, and how to avoid a claim submission denial.
What Is Insurance?
Insurance is a lot less complicated than it may seem. Though it may sound intimidating, insurance is simply a means of protection from financial loss. It’s a way to manage risks and is primarily used as a form of peace of mind. Just as Murphy & Law states, “Whatever can go wrong, will go wrong.” This holds true for most aspects of life as you never know when things can take a turn for the worse.
Insurance companies offer the peace of mind that if and when things do take a turn for the worse, you will not be burdened by the financial pressure associated with said incident. They were able to do this by collecting small payments from you monthly.
When an insurance company takes on a client, they want them to be as low of a risk factor as possible. This is because insurance companies make their money off of the aforementioned small monthly payments their clients make. These payments then go into a large collection fund. When one of their clients eventually makes an insurance claim, they use the money they have gathered to be able to afford to pay off the insurance claim.
An insurance company’s hope is that the number of people who do use their insurance policies is far less than the number of people that never have to use their insurance policies. This way they are able to stay in the green and afford to pay off peoples policies.
Will I Owe Anything If My Insurance Company Approves My Claim?
In most instances, all you will owe your insurance company after they prove your claim will be something called a deductible. A deductible is a much smaller amount of money than what you will have to pay out of pocket. This money goes to the roofing company, and your insurance company will cover the rest of the cost.
Typically, your insurance company will have the cost of your deductible pre-determined for you, in most cases, this is only around the ballpark of $500, which is much less than you would have to pay out of pocket without help from your insurance.
Your deductible can also affect how much you have to pay your insurance company monthly. Your premium is the term used to describe how much money you have to pay your insurance company monthly, and that rate is affected by risk factors such as living in an area that is prone to harsh storms or owning animals/pets. However, the amount that you have to pay on your deductible determines whether your payments will be more or less each month. Having a higher deductible shows that you will take greater ownership if and when you have to utilize your homeowner’s insurance, so in turn, you will get to pay less monthly. This is normally a good avenue to pursue, as chances are you will save money in the long run.
Why Might My Claim Get Denied?
As much as we would like to believe that insurance companies have our best interest in mind, they make their money off of the hopes that people will never have to use their services. That means that there is a lot of gray areas when it comes to what an insurance company deems as a claimable job and what an insurance company deems as a non-claimable job. Here are some common concerns we hear from adjusters when they come to evaluate your home and determine whether or not it is applicable for insurance coverage.
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Neglected Maintenance-
If the insurance adjuster comes to inspect your roof they can get out of paying your insurance claim by stating that your roof was neglected and or not properly maintained. This then pushes the blame of the roof damage onto the homeowner making the insurance company not liable for paying anything. Common signs of roof negligence include but are not limited to dirty Roofs, moss growing on your shingles, and gutters that have not been cleaned.
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Only Cosmetic-
if the insurance adjuster goes onto your roof and feels that the damage is only cosmetic, this is another very common reason a claim is denied. A cosmetic claim denial includes things like faded shingles and wants to upgrade your roof possibly from an asphalt three-tab shingle to a stronger architectural shingle or more commonly from an asphalt shingle roof to a new metal roof.
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Condition Of Roof Before Claim-
an insurance adjuster will also look to try and determine what the condition of the roof was prior to the claim know if they feel the roof was already in disrepair, consisted of subpar roofing materials, or that any other work done prior to the roof was not done to a professional standard, they can deny your claim.
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Policy Coverage Limits-
When you signed up for business with your insurance company, many things or probably discussed. One of those should have been your policy coverage limit. This policy coverage limit is the maximum amount of money your insurance company is responsible for paying you throughout the year. If the inspection adjuster feels that the total cost for the roof repair or replacement work will exceed your policy coverage limit, you can and most likely will get denied.
How To Avoid A Roofing Insurance Claim Submission Denial.
Avoiding a claim submission denial is easy if you know what you were doing. That is why it is crucial to ensure that you have a roofing contractor working with you throughout the entire process. When you first suspect your home has suffered from damage, call Northkit Roofing and we will send one of our professional roofing contractors to come and give your home a complete and thorough inspection.
Throughout the inspection, any damage that we do find will be properly documented and images will be associated with any notes we make. This will then be organized into a form that you can provide your insurance company. Your insurance company will then send an adjuster to your home as a representative of themselves. The adjuster will determine whether or not your home is worthy of a claim submission approval. Though it is entirely up to you, We highly recommend having one of our representatives there when the adjuster comes.
We will go onto the roof with them and point out any and all signs of damage we had noticed prior. Having one of our representatives up there is invaluable for you, as your odds of having your claim approved skyrocket.
Here at Northkit Roofing, we will do everything in our power to make sure your insurance claim is approved. We will make ourselves readily available to work with not only your insurance provider but with you as well, answering any questions that may arise. We hope that this article helps you to better understand the finer details of insurance claims. Please do not hesitate to reach out with any other questions you may have!
