Storm Damage and Your Insurance Claim

Do you think you might have storm damage?

You've heard about it on the news. You've secured the patio furniture, locked the windows, and have provisions in case the power goes out. You're ready for this storm.

Only, this one turned out to be more than expected. Whether it was rain, high winds, hail, or debris, you suspect that your house has been damaged. It could be something obvious like a broken window, or it could be something hard to see, like damage to the high shingles on your roof. Most roof damage is very hard to identify from the ground, and it is impossible to assess.

If you suspect, for any reason, that you might have storm damage to your house, call us. Our Project Managers are trained specifically how to identify and assess storm damage. We will perform a complete, no-cost assessment of your property, and report our honest findings to you. If there is not significant damage on your roof or property to justify filing an insurance claim, we will let you know. Our team is trained to only advise filing insurance claims in cases that have a high claim approval rate. Our expertise will be able to guide you to make the right decisions.

A few things you should know:

Hail/wind damage constitutes an insurable loss. This loss is one that your carrier is required to cover. It is your carrier’s fiscal and legal obligation to indemnify your property to the condition it was prior to the loss.
Most insurance companies have a one year limitation to file a hail/wind claim.
Tennessee is prone to the following severe weather: high winds, tornadoes, hail, excessive rain, freezing temperatures and high temperature fluctuation. All of these can affect the integrity of your roof.
Tennessee is known to have frequent occurrences of golf-ball sized hail, and record hail stones have eclipsed softball size.
Contrary to popular belief, generally rates do not increase when you file an insurance claim for hail or wind damage. The majority of our clients have not experienced a rate increase. If your rates go up, generally everybody's rates go up by zip code or area.

If you suspect you might have storm damage, call us.

How It Works

Nashville Catastrophe Services makes this process as straightforward as possible. Once adequate damage has been detected, the first step is filing a claim with your insurance company. The most important item when filing a claim (besides knowing your storm date) is to make sure the insurance company knows that Nashville Catastrophe Services is to be notified when the adjuster comes to your home to inspect your roof. Our staff meets the adjuster at your home making sure we are talking “apples to apples” about the damage to your home. This ensures that the scope of the work is agreed to up front, rather than arguing after the fact about extra roofing costs that may occur. The adjuster will decide if your roof is “totaled” meaning you receive a new roof (and/or whatever else is damaged).

Nashville Catastrophe Services will respectfully request that you sign a clear-cut release form which binds us to do the work as stated by your insurance company and also ensures that all monies go towards the work they deem necessary. Your insurance summary for dwelling will have a grand total of what your roof will cost to replace based on fair market costs (Xactimate software), minus your deductible and depreciation (hold back money). The insurance company will make the first check (A.C.V.) out to you and your mortgage company (if you have a mortgage). This check will be for an amount considerably less than what it costs to replace your roof. Insurance companies do not usually pay all monies up front. We request funding from the insurance company for the total cost of your project (R.C.V.) as your project goes into operations for scheduling. A second check (depreciation payment) is then issued by the insurance company covering the difference. (Most insurance companies accept our agreement and pay monies in full immediately.) The only responsibilities you have are to choose shingles and to pay your deductible. Nashville Catastrophe Services does the work line by line as the insurance scope states.