Our News

Fear of Increased Insurance Rates Often Prevent Homeowners From Filing A Much Needed Claim.

Increased Rates Are A Top Concern For Homeowners

One of the most frequent concerns we hear from homeowners filing an insurance claim to repair hail damage to roofs, gutters, or siding, is the increase in premiums or being dropped from coverage.

So you are not alone and that is why we wanted to publish this article.  We understand why you would feel that way.

After all, if you get into an at-fault accident with your vehicle or get caught speeding, your insurance rates typically go up, right?

When Hail Damage Claims Do Not Raise Home Insurance Rates

When it comes to home insurance, claims due to fault and neglect usually result in an increase in rates.

But, you can’t control the weather or natural acts of God.

“Act of God” is a common insurance term for natural occurrences of hail, high winds, hurricanes, tornados, wildfires, and more.

Many standard insurance policies already cover some Acts of God but there are those that are not.

The coverages generally include hail, high winds, hurricanes, tornados, and the sort.

Natural occurrences or Acts of God that are not covered are more typically flooding and earthquakes.  These require extra coverage in your homeowner’s insurance.

If you are not sure whether your home owners insurance covers Acts of God, give them a call or ask us to find out during our insurance claim assistance.

If you have the standard coverage over Acts of God don’t be afraid to file a claim for hail damage on shingles or siding due to storms— that’s why you pay premiums!

Therefore, if you’re dealing with storm damage and need it fixed up, go ahead and make a claim or call us for help— the worst that can happen is that nothing changes.

Why Do So Many Websites Say Filing a Hail Damage Claim Will Raise My Rates?

While researching this topic we came across many websites adamantly stating that yes it will raise your rates.

We also noticed that most of the available answers were coming from insurance companies.

Our personal and professional experience is we are right. Some of our staff have personally made an insurance claim for hail damage and suffered no increase.

In addition, to date, none of our client homeowners have contacted us to contradict this fact after we have given them our advice.

It is our opinion, that insurance companies are like any other business, some do everything they legally can to reduce costs.

And yes, they can legally claim in a website post that it will raise rates to prevent homeowners from filing claims. 

Our advice is to contact YOUR insurance company and ask about YOUR specific policy. 

We are confident you will get the answer we predict if you have the right coverage.

When Hail Damage Claims Can Raise Home Insurance Rates

It is unfortunate, but while insurance companies cannot raise your individual rates after a storm causes damage, they can raise an entire region, based on the number of claims.

This means that even if you decide not to file a claim for hail damage repair costs, your home insurance rates will still go up just because other homeowners have filed claims.

So while they’re restoring their homes to pre-storm condition, your may remain damaged as you unfortunately share in the cost of these higher rates.

In conclusion, never let fear stop you from filing an insurance claim for hail damage – because in terms of home insurance claims due to weather-related events, filing these claims won’t result in higher rates.

If you are still hesitant to call your insurance company or just want a professional opinion, On The Roof Contracting can provide a free inspection and honest assessment of your roof, gutters, or siding and whether or not hail damage on shingles or siding is worth filing a claim.