How roof claims actually pay in Texas
Before filing, know your policy type — it changes everything. Per the Texas Department of Insurance: replacement-cost policies pay to rebuild at current prices, while actual-cash-value policies deduct depreciation — TDI's own example shows a $10,000 roof paying $8,500 at 5 years old, $7,000 at 10, and just $4,000 at 20, before your deductible. Replacement-cost claims typically pay in two parts: a first check at depreciated value, then the recoverable depreciation after you show proof repairs were completed. And your insurer can require proof you paid your deductible before releasing that final amount — one more reason the deductible law matters.
What our claim support looks like
- Pre-claim inspection — before you open a claim, we'll tell you honestly whether there's enough damage to justify it. A denied claim is worse than no claim.
- Documentation packet — forty-plus photos, hail and wind indicators, and a written scope of loss.
- Adjuster meet — we show up on-site when the adjuster visits. You don't have to be there.
- Scope completeness — if the initial scope misses code-required items — decking the code won't let us roof over, drip edge, proper flashing — we document them for the carrier's review. Getting the scope complete and correct is normal practice.
- Install and close — once the insurance scope is agreed, we install and deliver the final documentation packet for your file — the proof-of-repairs that releases recoverable depreciation.
The deadlines your insurer must hit
Texas prompt-payment law (Insurance Code Chapter 542) puts real clocks on your claim: acknowledgment and investigation started within 15 days of notice (§542.055); a written accept-or-reject within 15 business days of receiving everything requested, extendable once to 45 days with written reasons (§542.056); payment within 5 business days of acceptance (§542.057). Delay past 60 days triggers statutory interest plus attorney's fees (§542.058, §542.060), and declared weather catastrophes extend deadlines by 15 days (§542.059). TDI also advises filing promptly — some policies carry one-year claim deadlines, so check your contract — and talking to your company before cashing settlement checks, since some carriers treat a signed check as final settlement.
What we won't do
- We are not a public adjuster, and legally can't be on our own jobs — Texas Insurance Code §4102.163 prohibits a roofing contractor from acting as public adjuster on the same property. We're your contractor.
- We will not negotiate your claim's value. We document; you (or a licensed PA you hire separately) negotiate.
- We will not waive or absorb your deductible. Texas law (Ins. Code §707.002; Bus. & Com. Code §27.02) requires you to pay it and makes contractor deductible games a crime — with your insurer entitled to demand proof of payment.
Carrier claim processes we know
We build every scope of loss in Xactimate — the same estimating platform the major Texas carriers use — with photo documentation keyed to the line items an adjuster has to approve. Whoever your carrier is, your claim file arrives in the format their desk reviewer expects.