Yes.

 All 50 states have a variation of the statute below. A contractor reducing or eliminating your deductible in any way is fraud. This is due to the fact that the process of a claim is designed that the deductible is paid first and then the insurance begins to pay, in a similar way to many Health Insurance policies.

The timeline of payments may differ than this. But, it becomes fraud because you and your contractor have legally declared that your financial obligation to the claim has been paid in full and the insurance is then liable for the rest.

"Sec. 3. (a) A residential roofing contractor providing roofing goods and services to be paid by an insured from the proceeds of a property or casualty insurance policy shall not advertise or promise to pay or rebate all or any part of an applicable insurance deductible. For the purposes of this section, rebating the insurance deductible includes granting any allowance against the fees to be charged or paying to the insured any

form of compensation, for any reason, including, but not limited to, permitting the residential roofing contractor to display a sign or any other type of advertisement at the insured’s premises, or paying an insured for providing a letter of referral or recommendation."

Get comfortable. Grab a beverage. 

An insurance claim starts when you believe that damage has occurred on your property that would be covered by your policy. These steps outline the typical claims process:

(Optional) Step 1: Getting an Inspection

This step is not mandatory. But, we at CRI cannot stress enough the importance of getting a reliable company to check if your property has been damaged enough to warrant a claim. Ask friends or family for references to contractors. Go online and check reviews. Whichever method you choose for finding them, having at least one contractor check your property is highly recommended. Some companies will attempt to get you to file an unnecessary claim. But, the majority understand that it just wastes time to lie about it.

Step 2: The Claim

If you decide to make a claim, most insurance companies allow you to make your claim online or over the phone. When you make this call, they will ask for your policy number, the date when the damage occurred or "date of loss", and the scope of the damage you are claiming (Roof, Gutters, etc). Most of this information should be available from the inspection provided by your contractor, if you had one performed. 

We have also provided a list here to the claims contact info of the most commonly used insurance companies in the midwest.

It is also important to understand what your policy says for the kind of damage you are claiming. The common types of coverage/claim categories are hail, wind, hail/wind, etc. It is important to know because you may call and report that a tree hit your roof, but forget to tell them it was in a hailstorm. Because of this, they may only cover you for a wind damage claim you reported and you would have to file a separate claim for the hail damage, and be liable for both deductibles.

Step 3: The Field Adjuster

There are some cases where an insurance company will request an estimate for the damage from a contractor. However, they will most commonly send an Adjuster to survey the property damage. The purpose of the Adjuster is to put together a report to provide to your insurance company. 

 We would highly recommend having your contractor be present for the inspection. This does not guarantee an approval. But, in our experience, the presence of a contractor has a higher rate of success ensuring that all necessary aspects of the claim that matter to you are accounted for and documented.

Step 4: The Desk Adjuster

One major aspect of insurance claims that I have noticed is missed by homeowners is that the Adjuster that approves or denies your claim is often not the person that inspected the property. This is the reason that you should always be wary of a contractor that guarentees you an approval on your claim. 

Ultimately, this part of the process becomes a negotiation between you and your insurance provider on the scope of work, if any. Kansas and Missouri allow your contractor to negotiate, on your behalf with your insurance, should you decide to let them.

Step 5: Settlement

At this point in your claim, the contractor has been chosen, the scope of work has been decided, and the settlement has begun to be paid. This typically comes in the form of two checks. The first is the Actual Cash Value (ACV) payment. This check is the total settlement, minus the depreciation (value reduced by age) and your deductible (The portion that you are liable to pay), outlined in your policy. 

 When the work has been completed, they will release the Replacement Cost Value (RCV), up to the remaining balance. 

It Varies.

 On average a claim will take about 6-8 weeks from the initial filing to completed work and final settlement check.

  However, many factors can affect this timeline. Widespread severe weather can result in your insurance company handling claims more slowly due to a large number in a short period of time. Materials for your project could be scarce and take longer to source. There may be a necessity for lengthy negotiations to make sure all of the work you want done is covered. Etc. 

Yes.

The Replacement Cost Value (RCV) is the total estimated cost provided by the contractor or insurance for the scope of work described in the claim. In most cases, the contractor will provide an estimate with the requested funds and the insurance will either approve or deny that cost. 

When the value has been agreed on, it has been legally stated to the insurance that this total is how much it will cost. All money sent by the insurance company is meant to reimburse the Value of the Replacement. Any money that does not go to the specified purpose is technically insurance fraud. 

RCV policies cover the full cost of the project. ACV is the full cost, minus the depreciated value. 

 An ACV policy stands for Actual Cash Value. This means that your policy will only cover you for the depreciated cost of the damage. If your roof replacement costs $10,000 and you have 50% depreciation, due to the age of the roof, then your insurance will only pay $5,000 and you are on the hook for the other $5,000. 

  This also, usually, means that they will not cover code upgrade. Which refers to bringing your home up to code and you would be expected to pay for that as well. (If your city requires Ice and Water barrier for the roof or house wrap for the siding)

 An RCV policy stands for Replacement Cost Value. This means that your policy covers the full cost of repair or replacements, barring any exceptions in your specific policy. This also, usually, includes code upgrade. 

No.

 It is not legal for an insurance company to directly penalize you for filing a claim. However, and this is an example purely for the purpose of explanation, an insurance company has the ability to provide you with a time based discount for not filing a claim for X number of years, which is removed when your claim is filed. 

This is not a statement on the ethics of a subscription based service providing a discount for not using the service that is being paid for. This is purely for educational purposes.

More than you think. Less than it should be.

Pricing is one of the topics that is always discussed. But, the truth is, it depends. We try to be as transparent as possible (Check the insurance FAQ for proof). But, to give a price before an inspection would be unethical due to many factors that can't be accounted for. What we can do is provide some ranges for average project costs for standard materials, on an average sized home. 

Contractors typically use Squares as the measurement. A "Square" (SQ) is 100 Square feet, a 10ftx10ft square.

Roof: 

Composition Asphalt Shingles

$500-$725 per SQ.

Metal

$750-$1200

Siding:

Vinyl

$400-550

Fiber Cement

$950-1,500

See above. 

Most often, these projects fall into an average that I'll outline below. However, to make sure that the proper expectations are set, those are ideal circumstances. It is a well-known fact in construction that the best laid plans evaporate immediately when they make contact with the real world. The material you want may not be available or it takes longer than usual to deliver, the supplier may not send a crucial piece of the project, the crew assigned to your project may have a miscommunication on start date. The fact is that when your project is finished, assume the contractor has had a few sleepless nights to finish when it did. 

But, assuming that a minimal amount of delays occur due to skill of the contractor, or luck, these are the timelines you can reasonably expect. 

 Contractors typically use Squares as the measurement. A "Square" (SQ) is 100 Square feet, a 10ftx10ft square.

Roof:

About 20-25 SQ per day

Siding:

About 15-20 SQ per day

Gutters:

About 100-150 feet per day

That is mainly preference. But, there are Pros and Cons to each. A good rule of thumb is that you get what you pay for.

 The quick answer pretty much says it. But, for more detailed information check our Project Materials page.

Very Carefully.

This question is difficult to answer because we don't know what is important to you. The best that we can do is give you a few sources to help you, and offer some advice. 

First, you will want to make sure they are licensed and insured for the work you need performed. Second, take some time to look at reviews on a few different sites. Angi, Google, and BBB are good places to start. When you have a handful of options, it's good to ask around to see if any glaring problems come up. Last, trust yourself to know when someone isn't being honest with you.

For some resources: 

Social Media can be a good place to get some names. There are Facebook groups specifically for finding contractors in specific cities and counties. Nextdoor is a smaller app that has gained popularity that is purely for location based posting that allows local people to find local services. Angi is a decent place to get contractors. Quick peak behind the curtain, Angi charges every contractor that looks at your lead and, most commonly, they get the lead from a 3rd party site that sold your data. So, Angi makes money from every side. 

*Not speaking against Angi or telling anyone to not use their service. This is an educational passage describing the way by which a contractor acquires work from them and how that work originated.*