Does Homeowners Insurance Increase After a Roof Claim?
Are you on the fence about filing a storm damage roof claim? Are you worried your homeowners insurance will increase your premiums or drop you? These are complicated questions that take a lot of variables into account, and even sometimes, those variables don’t even matter.
In this article, I will help you make a fairly certain determination on whether or not your premiums will increase. My analysis is based purely on experience working with customers at Restoration Roofing, and actual results can vary depending on your policy and carrier.
How Can Your Insurance Rates Increase?
One of the things I tell people who are hesitant to file a claim is that your insurance company is likely to increase your rates even if you don’t file a claim. You see, when a storm moves through an area that causes a lot of damage (think of a tornado or hurricane), the whole area is deemed as a higher risk area than areas that are not affected by these types of storms.
If insurance carriers deem these areas as a higher risk area, they have been known to increase the premiums for everyone in that area, regardless of rather or not those people actually filed a claim for said storm. In this scenario, we always recommend you file a claim IF AND ONLY IF you have legitimate storm damage from that storm.
If you have no damage, don’t file a claim. Every time you file a claim, it goes on your record and can place you in a higher risk category with insurance carriers. This can affect your future insurance policies and premiums.
You need to make sure you have a qualified and experienced roofer to help you identify storm damage. During a weather catastrophe, watch out for out of state roofing companies going door to door trying to get people to file claims. These companies use high volume to make their money and often do not care if there is enough damage or not to justify a claim. It’s a numbers game to them.
When Can Your Insurance Company Drop You?
The short answer for this is: they can drop you any time they want to.
To start, insurance companies generally do not want to keep people who file a lot of unnecessary claims. This is obvious. If you are one of those who call your insurance company any time something goes wrong in your home, your risk of being dropped increases, even if they don’t approve the claims.
With that being said, insurance companies also drop people all of the time who have never filed a claim. The reason they do this is largely based upon analyses of their portfolios and areas that they forecast may be an issue in the near future.
Basically, they have their own reasons they drop people, but it’s mostly related to their current financials and the amount of risk they are carrying versus where they want their risk to be. If your insurance carrier drops you, it does not mean you are on some “do not insure” list. Other insurance companies will line up to take you on as a customer. Homeowners are terrified of this happening, but, do not fear, it’s just “business” to the insurance company and is nothing to take personally.
How to Not Worry About Rising Premiums or Being Dropped
Here is now I look at this: if you suspect you have damage to your roof, your first step is to find a qualified and reputable roofing contractor. Have them complete a full inspection and prepare a report of what possible storm damage may be on the roof. Then you go from there, if you have legitimate storm damage, we always recommend filing a claim because, otherwise, why are you paying for insurance? This is what they are there for.
When to Call the Roof Professionals
A heavy storm can take a toll on the condition of your roof. That’s why it’s so important to get a professional inspection to assess any damage. Hiring a professional roofing contractor will simplify and speed up the insurance process while saving your money in the long run. To learn more read our blog: Benefits of Having a Roofing Professional for Insurance Claims.
At Restoration Roofing we have the experience and expertise to help you with a detailed inspection report and filing your insurance claim. To get in touch with one of our project managers, give us a call at 901-854-3402 or click here to set up a free inspection. We offer free inspections that are easy and completed quickly. Make sure to follow us on Facebook and Instagram for more tips on taking care of your roof.
