Storm damage is the one category of roof repair where the money question isn’t really about our bill. It’s about your insurance company. And the insurance side of roof repair, in the Capital Region as everywhere else, has been getting more adversarial year after year. Homeowners who assume the claim will go smoothly are often unpleasantly surprised. Homeowners who understand what they’re walking into can get the claim handled properly.
I want to lay out the honest picture. When storm damage is covered. When it isn’t. What we do on the roof side, and what we do on the paperwork side. This is the piece I’d tell every Capital Region homeowner to read before they file the first claim.
What insurance typically covers
Homeowner’s insurance in New York generally covers sudden, accidental damage to the roof from specific events:
Wind damage. If a wind event lifts or removes shingles, breaks flashings, or causes structural damage, that’s typically covered. The event needs to be identifiable — a specific storm with a specific date.
Hail damage. Ice impact that bruises, cracks, or fractures shingles is generally covered. Hail damage is a specific pattern the insurance adjusters look for and that we can document from the roof.
Fallen tree or branch impact. When a tree comes down on the roof, coverage usually applies for both the roof damage and the tree removal from the roof surface. The tree in your yard afterward is a separate homeowner problem.
Fire, lightning, sudden storm damage. Rare but covered when they happen.
Sudden water intrusion from a covered event. If storm damage results in an interior water event, that damage is usually covered too, subject to your specific policy.
What insurance usually doesn’t cover
Wear and tear. If your roof is 22 years old and shingles are curling and shedding granules and eventually one of them lifts in a moderate wind, that’s not a storm damage claim. That’s a maintenance issue that has failed, and the insurance company will decline. Distinguishing between wear and tear versus storm damage is where most claims get contested.
Poor maintenance. If shingles were already loose because of a previous unaddressed problem, the insurer may deny on the grounds that reasonable maintenance would have prevented the failure.
Cosmetic damage. Some policies specifically exclude cosmetic hail damage that doesn’t affect the roof’s function. This exclusion has become more common in the last five years and is worth checking on your policy.
Interior damage from long-term leaks. If a leak has been slowly staining ceilings for six months and you’re only now filing a claim, the interior damage is often denied even if the original cause was covered.
Damage during construction or by another contractor. Not our concern most of the time, but worth knowing.
How we handle the claim process
For homeowners who ask us to handle the claim end-to-end, here’s what actually happens.
Same-day emergency tarping if needed. If you have active water intrusion or an opening in the roof, we tarp it the day you call — before the insurance conversation starts. Protecting the property is what matters first. The tarp is included in the repair bill later.
Full documentation on the roof. We take photographs of every damaged area, every affected flashing, every impacted shingle. We measure the affected area. We photograph the roof condition immediately adjacent to the damage so it’s clear this isn’t age-related wear. We write a written diagnosis of what caused the damage and what the repair needs to include.
Meeting the adjuster on the roof. When the insurance adjuster comes out, we’re there with them. This is important. Adjusters are experienced but they see thousands of roofs a year and they can miss things. Being on the roof together, walking the damage with them, and making sure the scope of what needs to be repaired is fully captured in their report is the single highest-leverage moment in the claim process. We do this at no charge on claims we’re handling.
Writing the estimate to insurance-industry specifications. Our estimate for the repair uses the same line items and pricing structure that Xactimate — the software most insurance companies use — expects. This dramatically reduces back-and-forth about pricing.
Handling supplement requests. If damage is discovered during the actual work that wasn’t visible in the initial adjustment, we submit supplement documentation to get it added to the claim. This is common. Sheathing damage under shingles isn’t always visible until we open the roof.
Direct payment or homeowner reimbursement. Depending on your policy and the claim structure, insurance may pay us directly or reimburse you. Both work.
Where the process goes wrong
The “free roof” pitch. After every major storm, roofing companies canvass Capital Region neighborhoods offering “free roofs” through insurance. Some of them are legitimate; some are running claim-inflation schemes that end with the homeowner facing insurance fraud allegations. If someone is knocking on your door promising a whole new roof at no cost with no diagnosis, be careful.
The undocumented claim. Filing without documentation of the specific event and specific damage often leads to denial. Even if you’re going to do the claim yourself, get someone up on the roof to document what happened before you file.
The adjuster-only visit. If the adjuster comes without a contractor present and misses damage, that damage becomes hard to add later. Have somebody there.
The delayed claim. Most policies require prompt notification. Waiting six weeks to file a wind damage claim from a specific storm event opens the door to denial.
What to do the day storm damage happens
If you can see visible damage from the ground — missing shingles, a branch on the roof, a wind-lifted section — take photos with your phone from every angle you can safely reach. Note the date and the storm. Call your insurance company to report the claim. Call us and we’ll come out for the diagnosis and tarp anything that needs tarping. That’s the sequence.
Paul Sandul, Elite Contracting. Family-owned. Clifton Park.
Storm damage repair fits inside the broader diagnosis-first process in our pillar: The Cohoes Chimney Drip. Service page: Roof Repair. Storm-specific service page: Storm Damage Roof Repair Albany NY.