View Full Version : What the Hail Happened?
I have never seen hail like this in September. Anybody else get damage from large hail out of this storm? Just finished cleaning up branches and filing a hail claim on the car, truck and house. Hit real hard here ping pong to golf ball size. Pretty sure the car is a total loss, roof, hood, doors, window posts and windows. I drove the car through hell (hail) to get home only to find I was too late to save the truck. Must be a big event, body shop set estimate up for November due to volume. The photo is about 2 hours after it happened still pretty good sized.
50179
hurley842002
09-29-2014, 20:01
Holy crap man, sorry to hear. Pics of the truck?
We just got grazed in this part of HR. I was thinking, "This is great. Just got the roof replaced on Friday due to hail damage and it hasn't even been inspected yet."
There was a swath up through HR, up into Greenwood Village and over into Aurora.
Saw the video of Arapahoe Hyundai. They have a lot of cars that were pretty much destroyed....busted out windows, sunroofs, and a boatload of sheet metal damage.
I will get picks tomorrow when I get the truck out of the garage in daylight. It is pretty much hood and roof got it in before the sides got slammed and it has a bed liner that covers the top of the box sides. The car is a work car with more than a few miles, so not a huge loss. Just a $1k deductible each vehicle is going to suck. Just had new roof and house painted this year.
Sheesh, we just got rain here. That's some big ice balls.
We got enough to do damage, not as large, but damage none the less. That was at Holly and County Line. Got the hood and passenger side that was facing the storm coming in from the west. Been raining ever since so can't get a clear idea of the damage but i can see them in there.
ruthabagah
09-29-2014, 20:53
I liveb in the area hit, but the cars were in the garage. Need to check the roof tomorrow though.
I got nailed. Blew the roof vent and sky light out of my camper. Broke the siding and gutters on my house and hammered the roof.
lucky all my vehicles where inside. Smashed my boys toys that where in the yard :-(
At my friends house in the middle of Highlands Ranch.... we lucked out here, we're in the far South West portion of HR and we just got some pea sized hail.
50185
hunterhawk
09-29-2014, 21:09
Been there done that! Sorry man!
Oh, wow! I'm so sorry. :( We had some trees that lost a good amount of bark and a LOT of leaves- but the worst actual damage we had was the loss of a window screen. Our hail was about fifty-cent-piece size, and then is shrunk down to pea size.
BPTactical
09-29-2014, 21:36
Global Warming, err Global Cooling, err Climate Change...........
Global Warming, err Global Cooling, err Climate Change...........
As long as we can all agree it was somehow our fault. :)
At my friends house in the middle of Highlands Ranch.... we lucked out here, we're in the far South West portion of HR and we just got some pea sized hail.
50185
I hear those Presidential shingles can get blasted pretty good in unsupported areas. Haven't seen it first hand yet though.
Got some decent rain at my house. The yard can always use it. Seems like you guys in Aurora always get the brunt of the hail. Must have something to do with being so close to the airport.
OneGuy67
09-30-2014, 06:56
Wife says we lost three windows, all the screens are torn up, the basement flooded, and the siding on the west side of the house is damaged. We live in HR as well. I won't be home for another week to see the damage.
My 4runner has hail damage, dammit!! Have to check the roof of the house when there is more sun out today.
Weather has been crazy this year. Come on winter! !
My wife and I got caught in that hail storm on I25 on the way home to the Springs. It was hailing so hard I to stop because I couldn't see 10 feet in front of me! Hundreds of dents all over the car and a broken drivers side mirror. Now I have to call the insurance co and argue with them. I'm still fighting them over my Suburban that was stolen 6 months ago.
USMC88-93
09-30-2014, 08:33
I was close to driving up the street and reserving a spot in a car wash bay (in years when Lakeside mall existed we would drive over to their underground receiving bays before hail hit).....I really need to clean out another spot in the garage. Thankfully no hail here.
ChunkyMonkey
09-30-2014, 08:52
Dr_Fwd and I were caught in the gumball size hail storm yesterday. He freaked out like a lil girl, cause I was 'intrumental' driving w/ my GPS. I figured, everyone else pulled over, I just had to watch my gps where to turn and so on. Visibility was less 5 feet. That was fun... watching him shrieking that is.
Dr_Fwd and I were caught in the gumball size hail storm yesterday. He freaked out like a lil girl, cause I was 'intrumental' driving w/ my GPS. I figured, everyone else pulled over, I just had to watch my gps where to turn and so on. Visibility was less 5 feet. That was fun... watching him shrieking that is.
nice [Beer]
HoneyBadger
09-30-2014, 10:43
My plane was landing in it yesterday. As we were taxiing, some smaller pea-sized hail was accumulating on the tarmac at DIA. We flew all the way up into Wyoming and then came around the back side of the storm to land, but we still caught a little of it.
Circuits
09-30-2014, 11:07
I work in Centennial, and we got grape-sized hail in enough quantity that it's still on the ground in drifts here this morning, but not big enough to damage my car out in the parking lot. Just rain on the house in springs.
Sure made the drive home yesterday evening "interesting"
My wife and I got caught in that hail storm on I25 on the way home to the Springs. It was hailing so hard I to stop because I couldn't see 10 feet in front of me! Hundreds of dents all over the car and a broken drivers side mirror. Now I have to call the insurance co and argue with them. I'm still fighting them over my Suburban that was stolen 6 months ago.
What's the argue about? This storm is already labeled as a CAT, so there shouldn't be any question about whether there was hail or not.
I have a # of anti Hail wear for sale.
https://fbcdn-sphotos-b-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xpf1/v/t1.0-9/10330299_510830859053690_1092142048600078770_n.jpg ?oh=d940044d981efa3b3221aa805934d0b3&oe=54C1DBD2&__gda__=1422083000_ccc99cb9ddc01427c26895256107e32 8
https://www.ar-15.co/images/tf_ideal/misc/quote_icon.png Originally Posted by Cman https://www.ar-15.co/images/tf_ideal/buttons/viewpost-right.png (https://www.ar-15.co/showthread.php?p=1731427#post1731427) My wife and I got caught in that hail storm on I25 on the way home to the Springs. It was hailing so hard I to stop because I couldn't see 10 feet in front of me! Hundreds of dents all over the car and a broken drivers side mirror. Now I have to call the insurance co and argue with them. I'm still fighting them over my Suburban that was stolen 6 months ago.
What's the argue about? This storm is already labeled as a CAT, so there shouldn't be any question about whether there was hail or not.
The argument will be over the value of the LHS. I have custom paint - platinum pearl flames, 300 M performance suspension, rear spoiler, custom wood trim. I added these to the policy but this insurances co ignores these in it's appraisals of the cars value. I put $17,000 in parts into my Suburban that was stolen and they valued it at $2.900. I've been fighting that for the last 6 months. Bobs of Colorado apprised it at
$8300 plus 20% for the add-ons. As soon as this over I'm changing ins co!
Ahh, I see now. Good luck!
https://www.ar-15.co/images/tf_ideal/misc/quote_icon.png Originally Posted by Cman https://www.ar-15.co/images/tf_ideal/buttons/viewpost-right.png (https://www.ar-15.co/showthread.php?p=1731427#post1731427) My wife and I got caught in that hail storm on I25 on the way home to the Springs. It was hailing so hard I to stop because I couldn't see 10 feet in front of me! Hundreds of dents all over the car and a broken drivers side mirror. Now I have to call the insurance co and argue with them. I'm still fighting them over my Suburban that was stolen 6 months ago.
What's the argue about? This storm is already labeled as a CAT, so there shouldn't be any question about whether there was hail or not.
The argument will be over the value of the LHS. I have custom paint - platinum pearl flames, 300 M performance suspension, rear spoiler, custom wood trim. I added these to the policy but this insurances co ignores these in it's appraisals of the cars value. I put $17,000 in parts into my Suburban that was stolen and they valued it at $2.900. I've been fighting that for the last 6 months. Bobs of Colorado apprised it at
$8300 plus 20% for the add-ons. As soon as this over I'm changing ins co!
Would you feel comfortable telling us which insurance co that is so we can avoid them or cancel ourselves, if we use them too? If you'd rather wait until it's all sorted and finalized, I understand.
Would you feel comfortable telling us which insurance co that is so we can avoid them or cancel ourselves, if we use them too? If you'd rather wait until it's all sorted and finalized, I understand.
What he is experiencing is very likely not unique to any one insurance company.
NFATrustGuy
10-01-2014, 09:46
Is it possible to buy "stated value" insurance on a car? I don't have any exceptional cars right now, but I have in the past. With airplanes, you tell the insurance company what your plane is worth (stated value) and they either accept it and will sell you the insurance, or they'll say no. If the plane is totaled, they pay stated value without a fuss. I imagine it'd be more expensive with cars, but I'd buy it for the right car.
Anyone?
funkymonkey1111
10-01-2014, 09:48
still have hail on the ground near arapahoe/dayton. roof damage (shake) and paint blasted off with some siding damage.
car took a beating, too.
SamuraiCO
10-01-2014, 11:43
I was coming home from the mountains on Monday. We got rain, sleet and snow up the road west of Jefferson. Colors were peak but the storms over the weekend knocked off a lot of leaves.
The strom just went through as we were on 470. In the traffic I saw the snow plows and wondered if there was debris and saw 1-2 feet of hail they had removed from 470. My wife's coworkers vehicles got hammered in the tech center. Her's was safely tucked in our garage.
Sorry for those that were effected. If you are military or had/have immediate family military I suggest USAA insurance. My father was military and I have cars, home, guns, etc. Never had a problem with them.....not once with cars with hail damage, struck deer and two different roof replacements.
Another storm overhead now, wondering what it will bring
Is it possible to buy "stated value" insurance on a car? I don't have any exceptional cars right now, but I have in the past. With airplanes, you tell the insurance company what your plane is worth (stated value) and they either accept it and will sell you the insurance, or they'll say no. If the plane is totaled, they pay stated value without a fuss. I imagine it'd be more expensive with cars, but I'd buy it for the right car.
Anyone?
Yes, but that is usually for classics and customs. I don't believe most carriers (like Safeco/Liberty Mutual) offer those types of policies, but I honestly don't know as I've never had one or sold one.
Safeco is the ins co.
Since you mention Safeco, I have two words for you..... public adjuster.
Let me know if you need a reference to one that has a proven track record of 'dealing' with Safeco.
A public adjuster is a great way to lose money.
A public adjuster is a great way to lose money.
Didn't cost me a dime. Insurance company paid out WAAAYYYYYY more then their original offer.
We're talking property claims right?
I thought I would post a follow up. Adjusters and appraisers have all come and gone. House gets the two year old roof replaced plus gutters, downspouts, windows, screens, shed roof, barn roof and misc other yard items. The car at $5600 to repair was totaled and the truck at $3500 will be repaired. Now if I didn't have to deal with the $3500 in deductibles it would not be bad.
This brings me to a new issue that was discovered during the process. The 2003 car that I bought from an acquaintance in 2009 turns out to be a salvage. Neither me nor the acquaintance have had "salvage" on the title. According to my insurance company it was totaled in California then sold and the salvage title was processed through South Dakota then on to Colorado with a clean title. Clearly it was not a severely damaged car because since I've had it I have put 102K on it with just tires and breaks. My issue is that they now want to cut the settlement on the car in half because of the salvage title.
Title washing is an issue. It was sold in those states for that specific reason. I don't know what you can do about it though. I think you should fight them for it. They agreed to insure the vehicle, and they wrote the terms. You had no knowledge that the vehicle had previously been totaled, so they can not argue that you withheld information from them. If they could, then they could cancel the whole policy; but they aren't trying to do that. In Colorado, titles are clearly marked as salvage, so I don't think you have any greater duty than looking at the title to ensure that the vehicle was not previously totaled. If either party had known the vehicle was salvage, it would be different because they never would have agreed to put comp and collision on the policy. Since neither of you knew, I think they need to bite the bullet and pay the policy that they wrote. Since an insurance policy is a contract of adhesion, they must interpret the policy as broadly as possible to benefit you.
I don't have personal experience with this particular issue, but Snowman78 on here may be able to help. My advise is to threaten a DOI complaint (as a last resort), but Snowman may have better insight. One very important thing to keep in mind though, if the insurance company wants to cut your settlement in half, then perhaps they should be offering you a refund on half of the portion of your comp and collision premium that you've paid since the inception of your policy. Work the math on that and see if you can be properly compensated. They can't expect you to agree to taking lesser value on your vehicle, while they keep the premiums for a non-totaled vehicle. Good luck.
Oh yeah, some companies offer to combine deductibles for large events like this. Meaning, if you have your home and your autos insured by the same company, and one single event damages both the home and the vehicles (fire, hail, tornado, etc) they'll just apply the largest deductible of all the policies, for the entire loss.
A public adjuster is a great way to lose money.
Yup. I've never seen the situation improve because of a PA. They just create problems and take a cut for doing it.
Having a good agent will prevent the need for a PA.
Before the public adjuster thing starts up again, I have to step out of that conversation because I don't have any personal experience with one. I'm sure there are both good and bad experiences.
Snowman78
10-09-2014, 11:33
Title washing is an issue. It was sold in those states for that specific reason. I don't know what you can do about it though. I think you should fight them for it. They agreed to insure the vehicle, and they wrote the terms. You had no knowledge that the vehicle had previously been totaled, so they can not argue that you withheld information from them. If they could, then they could cancel the whole policy; but they aren't trying to do that. In Colorado, titles are clearly marked as salvage, so I don't think you have any greater duty than looking at the title to ensure that the vehicle was not previously totaled. If either party had known the vehicle was salvage, it would be different because they never would have agreed to put comp and collision on the policy. Since neither of you knew, I think they need to bite the bullet and pay the policy that they wrote. Since an insurance policy is a contract of adhesion, they must interpret the policy as broadly as possible to benefit you.
I don't have personal experience with this particular issue, but Snowman89 on here may be able to help. My advise is to threaten a DOI complaint (as a last resort), but Snowman may have better insight. One very important thing to keep in mind though, if the insurance company wants to cut your settlement in half, then perhaps they should be offering you a refund on half of the portion of your comp and collision premium that you've paid since the inception of your policy. Work the math on that and see if you can be properly compensated. They can't expect you to agree to taking lesser value on your vehicle, while they keep the premiums for a non-totaled vehicle. Good luck.
Oh yeah, some companies offer to combine deductibles for large events like this. Meaning, if you have your home and your autos insured by the same company, and one single event damages both the home and the vehicles (fire, hail, tornado, etc) they'll just apply the largest deductible of all the policies, for the entire loss.
If the Colorado Title did not have any salvage title marking then I would settle the claim based of full market value. It is very difficult to spot the salvage marking on some of the older Colorado titles, it is just a lower case s on the from side top left.
You are right they are already considering more on the car since nobody knew it was a salvage. My agent told me yesterday that they do offer Comp on salvage vehicles so nothing to be gained on past premium rebates. I have been trying to get them to raise the car settlement but had not heard or thought of combining the deductibles for a single event. I think the battle is just beginning, I just don't know where to start, they have different adjusters for the house and vehicles. I think I will wait to see what the next offer on the car is. Maybe shop for some legal advise.
I have sent copies of the title to the agent and adjuster, clearly not a salvage title.
They'll have to offer the combined deductible as part of whatever they sell, but you should still ask to see if that is an option. I'd remain firm on the value of the vehicle. It doesn't matter that they will write comp on a salvage, because the amount of the premium is based on the value of the vehicle. So the premium would be lower if they knew the vehicle was salvage, as they would know up front that any settlement amount would be based on salvage value instead of normal value. You've been paying premium for a non-salvage vehicle, so if they want to settle at a salvage value, then they owe you a refund. Depending on how long you've had the car insured with them, the refund may be more than the difference in regular value and salvage value. They might as well just pay you the regular value.
Snowman78
10-09-2014, 11:52
If you want to PM me the vehicle info (VIN & mileage) I will give you an idea of what I would offer as a total loss settlement.
We have to put in a claim. :/ We were out of state from the 1st through the 8th, and when we could actually take a look in the bright-ish light of day, our fence got the living daylights hammered out of it, and a roofing contractor suggested that we have a claims adjuster come out and take a look. Most of the houses in our neighborhood were damaged.
This is our first roof/storm claim. Do we wait for the adjuster to look everything over first, or do we have a contractor look over the damage with the adjuster? The roofing contractor said that it looks like only parts of the roof were damaged, but that the color of our shingles isn't made anymore. What the hell does that mean? That insurance will pay for part of them and we'll have to spring for the rest, or else have a multi-colored roof? Our fence is a cedar picket style that's pretty common, and there are divots galore- it looks like a spotted fence now. What does the insurance company generally do for that sort of damage? Our AC unit has a few areas in the 'fins' that are squashed, too. Is that something that is 'easily' er, combed out?
Please excuse the questions; we're still learning about the responsibilities of home ownership. I appreciate any helpful responses! :)
This is our first roof/storm claim. Do we wait for the adjuster to look everything over first, or do we have a contractor look over the damage with the adjuster?
You can pick whichever contractor you want at any time. It is not necessary that the adjuster and contractor be there together though. Keep in mind that the "contractor" is only a sales person. They like to be there to point out anything and everything to the adjuster. The adjuster doesn't need the contractor to be there to write the claim, but it doesn't hurt to have them there together.
The roofing contractor said that it looks like only parts of the roof were damaged, but that the color of our shingles isn't made anymore. What the hell does that mean? That insurance will pay for part of them and we'll have to spring for the rest, or else have a multi-colored roof?
It depends, that is possible. After the last few years of fires, the department of insurance required all insurance companies to make changes to policies that extended certain coverage. Since insurance companies were forced to re-write their policies anyway, they took the time to change some things like material matching and creating roof payment schedules. Basically, the insurance company may no longer have to match a shingle that isn't made anymore, or match siding when the exact color can't be found. Roofers are slow to this info though. Roofers specifically target certain makes and colors of roofs, and go knock on the door and say there is damage, whether there is or not, because in the past if the product couldn't be matched, the insurance policy would pay for an entire new roof. Since the change, roofers have miraculously been able to find materials that "aren't made anymore." Just ask your company about that when you make the claim.
Our fence is a cedar picket style that's pretty common, and there are divots galore- it looks like a spotted fence now. What does the insurance company generally do for that sort of damage? Our AC unit has a few areas in the 'fins' that are squashed, too. Is that something that is 'easily' er, combed out?
For fences, they usually just pressure wash the fence so it is all fresh wood, and it can age evenly. Unless you have huge dents in the wood, any divots will all work themselves out in probably one season due to moisture and temperature change. You can do absolutely nothing and your fence will likely return to normal by next year, but hail splatter is technically damage, so they'll at least pressure wash it. I assume it's not painted since you said it is cedar. The A/C unit can be combed out and that should be put into the estimate as well.
Finally, more than likely your insurance company will have this storm as a CAT (catastrophe), and a CAT adjuster will show up to do the claim. That makes no difference to you, but you may hear the term "CAT" thrown around. Post up any questions you have.
You can pick whichever contractor you want at any time. It is not necessary that the adjuster and contractor be there together though. Keep in mind that the "contractor" is only a sales person. They like to be there to point out anything and everything to the adjuster. The adjuster doesn't need the contractor to be there to write the claim, but it doesn't hurt to have them there together.
It depends, that is possible. After the last few years of fires, the department of insurance required all insurance companies to make changes to policies that extended certain coverage. Since insurance companies were forced to re-write their policies anyway, they took the time to change some things like material matching and creating roof payment schedules. Basically, the insurance company may no longer have to match a shingle that isn't made anymore, or match siding when the exact color can't be found. Roofers are slow to this info though. Roofers specifically target certain makes and colors of roofs, and go knock on the door and say there is damage, whether there is or not, because in the past if the product couldn't be matched, the insurance policy would pay for an entire new roof. Since the change, roofers have miraculously been able to find materials that "aren't made anymore." Just ask your company about that when you make the claim.
For fences, they usually just pressure wash the fence so it is all fresh wood, and it can age evenly. Unless you have huge dents in the wood, any divots will all work themselves out in probably one season due to moisture and temperature change. You can do absolutely nothing and your fence will likely return to normal by next year, but hail splatter is technically damage, so they'll at least pressure wash it. I assume it's not painted since you said it is cedar. The A/C unit can be combed out and that should be put into the estimate as well.
Finally, more than likely your insurance company will have this storm as a CAT (catastrophe), and a CAT adjuster will show up to do the claim. That makes no difference to you, but you may hear the term "CAT" thrown around. Post up any questions you have.
You're my new hero. :) I was tying myself in knots with worry- our insurance agent completely SUCKS and won't answer questions at all. I was starting to worry that there was a conspiracy or something. THANK YOU.
our insurance agent completely SUCKS and won't answer questions at all.
So why is he still your agent?
So why is he still your agent?
Valid question. Find another one and transfer to someone you like.
Valid question. Find another one and transfer to someone you like.
I called another agent when we moved to our home, and requested to transfer over to her because otherwise it's a 30-40 minute drive. She was also with State Farm. She told me in a scandalized, derisive tone that "that simply wasn't done." I admit, I believed her. [Dunno]
Nah, some agents are assholes about it, but you can switch. You're the customer, do what you want.
Nah, some agents are assholes about it, but you can switch. You're the customer, do what you want.
Thank god. :) I admit, after that, I was about to switch companies altogether. I can't recall why I didn't, but I'm sure it was a good reason at the time.
I have a really good agent. Let me know and I'll PM his info to you.
Personally, I would avoid State Farm like the plague.
I got a new settlement offer on my car with the "salvage" issue. After the adjuster talked to her supervisor she offered me amount approximately 240% more than the previous one. This is a more realistic number so I believe the issue has been resolved.
The only question I have now is what is the procedure to deposit the roof repair check they sent to me, it has my name on it along with the mortgage lenders name. The roof check two years ago was in my name only.
You need to contact your mortgage company and they will give you instructions. If they have local offices, you can just swing by and they'll sign it over to you. If not, you may have to mail it in.
I called another agent when we moved to our home, and requested to transfer over to her because otherwise it's a 30-40 minute drive. She was also with State Farm. She told me in a scandalized, derisive tone that "that simply wasn't done." I admit, I believed her. [Dunno]
Generally, the original agent retains ownership of the policy. The new agent just does all the work. Thats why she probably told you no.
Generally, the original agent retains ownership of the policy. The new agent just does all the work. Thats why she probably told you no.
I'm going to be looking at different insurance companies after this..
Our policy deductible was $1000 for damage. I was just told by the claims adjuster on the phone that it is now 1% of our home. That's over 100% increase! Apparently they snuck that change in sometime between 2012 and 2013. How can they do that without us having to sign anything?
tim-adams
10-17-2014, 17:22
both vehicles took it, we got hammered by this storm over 4k to one and about 3k to the other... with my 1k deductible pre car that makes me unhappy..
at least it did not shatter my windows/
That's awful, tim-adams. Thank goodness you didn't lose any windows. I was speaking with someone that lived in the DC and got hit- every one of this $600 windows was shattered.
I'm going to be looking at different insurance companies after this..
Our policy deductible was $1000 for damage. I was just told by the claims adjuster on the phone that it is now 1% of our home. That's over 100% increase! Apparently they snuck that change in sometime between 2012 and 2013. How can they do that without us having to sign anything?
They told you at renewal probably. There will be an endorsement to your policy. Now you know one more thing to ask about when shopping around. Do you know if just the wind and hail deductible is 1% or the general policy deductible? I had a lady with a 2% deductible the other day.
jerrymrc
10-17-2014, 18:22
They told you at renewal probably. There will be an endorsement to your policy. Now you know one more thing to ask about when shopping around. Do you know if just the wind and hail deductible is 1% or the general policy deductible? I had a lady with a 2% deductible the other day.
Yep. A few years ago my ins company put in the renewal notice a "Actual cash value at time of loss" for wind and hail damage. I put the claim in a week later.
They told you at renewal probably. There will be an endorsement to your policy. Now you know one more thing to ask about when shopping around. Do you know if just the wind and hail deductible is 1% or the general policy deductible? I had a lady with a 2% deductible the other day.
This is biting me on the butt now...I don't recall seeing it, but I also didn't scrutinize the papers that they send. Dammit, dammit dammit.
I'll look in my papers.
Guys, learn from my mistake and look at your policies! :(
Just noticed my garage doors and window inserts for the garage are peppered.
:-(
You all hate pictures don't you....
Here is what golf ball or larger hail looks like. The ridge generally gets it worse because due to the bend in the shingle, there are unsupported areas; at least compared to a shingle laying right on the decking.
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-2GO4v1A46zI/U77_NRIMRDI/AAAAAAAAKfA/TRKSGurqMmY/w999-h562-no/20140710_145251_Richtone%28HDR%29.jpg
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-Xm2L6JwF_Js/U77_sP2Y6uI/AAAAAAAAKfM/lzjDAnzaLjY/w999-h562-no/20140710_145328_Richtone%28HDR%29.jpg
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-u_nIYrPPwAo/U78AOriF9OI/AAAAAAAAKfY/oXNvTNs0t2E/w999-h562-no/20140710_145334_Richtone%28HDR%29.jpg
Looks like Stuving was on my roof with a camera.
Deductibles suck, and that 1% part sucks more. That's one of the reasons why I changed insurance companies after my last hail claim 2 years ago. They added the part that roofs would not have any value after 16 years, and my roof when they covered it last time was 16 years old. I would have had to eat the entire $11K for that roof, so look at that section very carefully. And 1% seriously who wants a $3K deductible?
After the last couple of fire seasons, insurance companies were forced to extend certain coverage to their policies. Since they were re-writing the policy anyway, they made a point to make some changes that would help their bottom line as well. This is where the 1-2% deductibles, non-matching policy, and ACV (Actual Cash Value) on roofs came in. When shopping around, these are things you want to ask about. Some companies went straight to ACV, meaning you only get the depreciated amount of your roof (like car insurance), and you don't get the full replacement cost on the back end. Not every company has done this though. Some companies created a roof payment schedule. This is essentially a scheduled amount that your roof is worth at X years. This is what my company has chosen to do, just to not have to go to straight ACV. The roof payment schedule is slightly better than straight ACV.
Of all the things mentioned, to me, the non-matching policy is the one to least worry about. The 1-2% deductible, you may be able to get a normal deductible with a higher premium. As far as the payment schedule, with my company I believe you can purchase an endorsement that will allow you to receive full replacement cost as long as your roof is 10 years-old or newer. After 10 years the schedule kicks in no matter what. Off the top of my head, I believe my company's payment schedule runs down to 20% for composition roofs 20 years or older. It never goes to zero value though.
*If you know which company I work for, shut up about it. I try to provide information when/where I can, but that will end immediately if names start getting thrown around. No one has ever said anything to my knowledge, but you might have noticed that I've got quite a few posts hanging around so it's not like they are difficult to find.* :)
If anyone remembers the hail storm that roared through Green Valley Ranch very early in the season, while the hail punched holes straight through vinyl siding and vinyl fences, and would have produced pictures like above, many of those homes had tile roofs that didn't even notice there was hail.
Yup, major changes happened with how most insurance companies handle roofs. As you've noticed, home rates in CO are kind of expensive compared to 5 years ago. That's what happens when you have multiple catastrophic hail storms every year. Then add in the roofs that are just old and worn out yet insurance was still having to pay for those because of "hail" damage. Sure, there's damage but the bigger factor was the roof was 30 years old and worn out. Think of how insurance handles tires on your carif it's totaled. They buy out the rest of the life left since tires wear out and aren't designed to last forever. Roofs are the same no matter what year warranty you get. Those warranties usually exclude hail damage. So insurance had to modify things or else rates would be $3,000 a year for $200k in coverage.
Now, each company did it or will do it differently. Some just slipped a 1-2% wind/hail deductible and listed the change in your renewal. These policies may not have seen as drastic of rate jumps on those renewals though. Now you're finding out why. They shifted another few thousand dollars to the insured. IMO, these are terrible plans because the high out of pocket pertains to the entire claim and your chances of a hail claim are almost 100% anymore over a 5 year span.
Other companies just do depreciated value once your roof hits X amount of years (tile roofs get more years than comp). So while it's new(er), they'll pay the full cost. But after its Been worn down for a while, it moves to reduced payment. This makes more sense to me because it's only reducing benefit for the one worn down item and let's you retain a low $1,000 deductible for hail storms.
I also think this is going to drive down the cost of roofs. As more people can't use the hail reason on older roofs to get it replaced, roofers will have to bring down the cost for people paying out of pocket.
We dealt with this a lot over the past year or so. We, like all companies, saw some spikes in one rates which caused people to shop. We explained to all of them the changes in the industry and what questions to ask. Our older policies were grandfathered in so they hold tremendous value due to full roof replacement, no matter the age of roof. We made sure they understood the monetary value of that because saving $200 a year sounds great until you have $2500 out of pocket at claim time. Some stayed, some people still left. But at least we knew they had the information to make the best choice.
To put Colorado into perspective, we've had probably a billion dollars in claims over the past 1.5 years. This storm was at 220 mil, the storms in April/may totaled over 100 mil, Black Forest fire was 400 mil and that doesn't count all the other hail storms and other types of non-catastrophe claims. Something had to change or, like I said, rates would be $3,000 a year.
I know none of that takes away the frustration towards the insurance industry. You use it and rates go up. You don't use it and rates go up. Unfortunately, theres not much that can be done with that. Group insurance is the only way to make insurance viable.
Also, take 30 min to read your policy each year. Ours fully explain the coverages and even lays out coverages not purchased. That stuff is on the first 3 pages so it's not even "buried" in the policy.
They told you at renewal probably. There will be an endorsement to your policy. Now you know one more thing to ask about when shopping around. Do you know if just the wind and hail deductible is 1% or the general policy deductible? I had a lady with a 2% deductible the other day.
All I've been able to find is the renewal policy for this year (which begins November 1) so far, which states 1%, and then an even higher number than they ad quoted me over the phone when I was speaking to the Claims Adjuster. Where do they get that number from, anyhow? I'm going to continue to dig and see what else I can find in my older paperwork.
How is it legal for them to sneak in something other than what I agreed to?
...and by the way, I thank everyone that's sharing information about how these insurance policies work. I now it's my own damn fault for not paying close enough attention to my policy write-up. I got complacent and now it's costing us bucketloads of money.
What about a metal roof? Does anyone know if they will withstand these brutal storms? What are the drawbacks? Do they dent?
How is it legal for them to sneak in something other than what I agreed to?
What about a metal roof? Does anyone know if they will withstand these brutal storms? What are the drawbacks? Do they dent?
For the first part, you can cancel your policy at any time, and your payment of the premium is your agreement to the contract. They can't cancel for any reason, but you can.
Metal roofing will dent. Some of the soft metal on your roof will dent long before your shingles will even notice there is hail, but metal roofing is generally tougher than the flashing and soft metal vent caps. I would say tile and concrete roofing are easily the most hail and fire resistant. They are likely significantly more expensive though.
Don't stress too much about finding some ultimate roof. You can go out and get a 50 year roof (they call them "Lifetime" roofs currently), and a bad enough hail storm can still destroy it. Try and get a decent product, try harder to get a decent policy, and then don't sweat it too much. The concept of insurance is built around nature damaging our property in the first place.
Concrete tiles can look like clay. I imagine they weigh a lot though. http://www.explodedhome.com/concrete-tile-roofing/
If you do metal, ask how they handle claims on metal roofs. Some companies won't pay if it's cosmetic only damage on metal roofs. Just because it dents doesn't mean the roof is bad. Its another one of those changes going on in the industry.
Tile roof is your best bet to avoid hail claims on your roof. But you have to have an engineer check it out to make sure your structure can support the weight. Insurance won't pay for the additional fees for that because you're upgrading. They only owe for similar kind/quality.
Some tidbits for anybody trying to decide if your roof will hold tile. These are just ballpark statements and are not intended to replace an actual evaluation by a professional engineer. These are thumbnail statements I give people to have a starting point to decide how to proceed when considering tile roofs.
Is the roof of your house built with trusses meaning a complete factory designed and built system? Trusses are most often able to hold the additional weight of most common types of tile roofs. The additional weight of tile is generally minimal compared to the live loads (wind and snow) that are considered when designing a truss system. Most track homes since the early 70's are built using trusses, most houses built until the 60's did not have truss roofs. Trusses started to show up in larger numbers throughout the 60's. Custom and semi-custom homes typically have roofs built with a mix of trusses and site built dimension lumber. Different tile products have different weights and specs will vary. Concrete tile and fiberglass tile have significant weight differences. Types of roof sheathing materials also varied greatly throughout the years and have an effect on the roofs ability to support tile.
Having said this it is worth exactly what you paid for it, but it is a place to start and some food for thought.
Good points, all. I've got a contractor coming to discuss the damage this upcoming week, so I'll ask her about tile roofs and hi-impact shingles, etc.
Just remember that her job is to sell you a roof. You start asking about a high dollar roof, and she'll start telling you about one.
OneGuy67
10-20-2014, 07:01
We were hit really hard in this past storm. Worst customer service I've experienced with Allstate in 20 years. Worst customer service by Excel Roofing I've experienced with them. Some companies won't return calls because they have all the business they need right now and want to push you down the road until spring. I am very angry with the whole situation right now.
Do you know if it was a catastrophe adjuster that responded to your claim by any chance?
Just remember that her job is to sell you a roof. You start asking about a high dollar roof, and she'll start telling you about one.
Nope, not this one. She left the roofing company she was working for because they were hard-selling roofs to anyone that could fog a mirror. I asked her about high-dollar roofs, and she stated much the same as in this thread. I spoke with her today, and although I'm still sore from grabbing my ankles with the insurance company, I'm feeling less stressed. She pointed out damage on our garage door that I hadn't noticed, some property damage and gutter damage. I've kicked four roofing companies to the curb so far...but this roofing company listens to me, answers my questions honestly (and I slipped some questions in there that I already had answered, thanks to you) and has passed my background check.
Okay, glad to hear you vetted them and kicked others to the curb. There are plenty of good roofers out there to waste time dealing with bad ones.
OneGuy67
10-20-2014, 17:43
It was, Irving. The first was out of ft Lauterdale, fl and didn't want to get on the roof, so he rescheduled another adjuster to come today to get up there, provide the written estimate and cut the initial check.
It was, Irving. The first was out of ft Lauterdale, fl and didn't want to get on the roof, so he rescheduled another adjuster to come today to get up there, provide the written estimate and cut the initial check.
It really shouldn't matter if the adjuster is on the CAT team or not, the adjuster should still do his/her job correctly the first time when possible. Also, you'd think they'd know ahead of time if they needed a ladder assist or not. I have to admit that I don't know exactly how a CAT team operates when it comes to assigning claims.
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