Storms can wreak havoc on your home, causing damage that has to be fixed. Storms are the main reason for damage to structures, with far more storm damage than fire damage each year. In 2016, there were about 1,100 more significant storms than the year before. Storms can damage your home in a number of ways, from wind to hail to flooding. If your home is damaged by a storm, it’s important that you file an insurance claim quickly and get the damage repaired as soon as possible.
There are many times that storm damage is readily apparent, but you might not always notice it without doing a very close inspection. Hail can be particularly tricky, because it can cause damage to your roof that you can’t see from the ground level. If you think you may have storm damage, it is a good idea to call your insurer and have an adjuster come look.
If you do have damage, you need to start the claims process right away. Different insurers operate differently when it comes to claims. Some insurers may determine a damage amount and issue you a check minus the deductible, giving you the freedom to get the repairs done on your own. Other insurers will require you to get estimates and will only pay the actual costs of the contractor after the work is done.
Whether you are selecting the contractor on your own or doing so in conjunction with your insurer, there are some things to consider. Most contractors are small, with 90% of them having fewer than 20 employees, so make sure the company you hire is going to have the manpower to do the job. If there was a lot of damage in your area, roofing companies will be really busy, and it could be hard to hire subcontractors.
You also want to make sure the contractor you hire has expertise in the kind of repairs you need. For example, if you need water damage restoration for damage from flooding, you want a contractor who has done that kind of work before. The same principle applies if you need your roof or siding replaced. You don’t want important work on your home being done by a novice contractor.
Having your home damaged by a storm is bad enough, but you don’t want to exacerbate the problem by hiring an inexperienced contractor to do the repairs.