Storm Damage Claims: How Insurance Restoration Actually Works
- MTR Contractors
- 12 hours ago
- 4 min read
Updated: 4 hours ago
North Texas gets hail, straight-line wind and the occasional freeze event, and every one of them produces a wave of confusion about how insurance restoration actually works. Here is the process, without the door-knocking sales pitch.
Step one: document before anyone touches anything
Photograph and video everything, wide shots and close-ups, with timestamps intact.
Make only temporary repairs necessary to prevent further damage, and keep every receipt. Your policy generally requires you to mitigate.
Do not discard damaged materials until the adjuster has seen them or you have thorough documentation.
Write down the date and time of the event and check it against local weather records.
Understand what your policy actually pays
ACV, actual cash value. Replacement cost minus depreciation. This is usually the first check.
RCV, replacement cost value. The full cost to replace. On an RCV policy the difference, called recoverable depreciation, is released after the work is completed and documented.
Deductible. Yours to pay. It comes out of the claim, not on top of it.
Cosmetic damage exclusions and roof payment schedules. Increasingly common on Texas policies. Read these two provisions before you assume a full roof is covered.
The practical consequence of ACV and RCV: your first check will look too small. That is usually the policy working as written, not the carrier underpaying.
The adjuster meeting
Have your contractor present. Not to argue, but because a scope written without a builder in the room routinely misses items that are obvious once you are on the roof or in the attic: decking, flashing, ventilation, code-required upgrades, matching issues, and interior damage from a leak that was not visible on day one.
Supplements are normal
A supplement is a request to revise the scope when the work reveals something the original inspection could not see. Rotten decking under shingles, damaged underlayment, or a code item triggered by the repair. Supplements are documented with photos and measurements and submitted to the carrier. They are a routine part of the process, not a sign something has gone wrong.
What Texas law says, and why it matters to you
Under Texas Insurance Code Chapter 707, a contractor may not pay, waive, absorb, rebate or otherwise offset your insurance deductible, and may not advertise that it will. If someone offers to make your deductible disappear, they are offering to break the law using your claim, and you are the one holding the policy. Separately, Texas law restricts a contractor from acting as a public adjuster on a claim it is also contracting to repair. A legitimate restoration contractor scopes and builds. It does not negotiate your claim for you.
How to pick the contractor
Local, with a physical address you can drive to and a history that predates the storm.
Properly insured, and willing to send you the certificate directly from the agent.
Prices the repair as a construction project with a written scope, rather than promising to make the number work.
Pulls the permits the repair requires and does not suggest skipping them.
Will still be reachable next year when the workmanship warranty matters.
Storm Damage Restoration in Frisco and North DFW
North Texas sits in one of the most active hail corridors in the country, and Frisco, McKinney, Prosper, Little Elm and Celina take direct hits on a near-annual basis. That is also why out-of-state storm chasers appear in these neighborhoods within days of an event. A contractor with a Frisco showroom you can walk into is a different proposition than a phone number that will not exist next spring.
Frequently asked questions
Can a contractor handle my insurance claim for me?
No. Under Texas law a contractor cannot act as a public adjuster on a property they are contracted to repair. We document damage and meet your adjuster on site; we do not negotiate the claim for you.
Can my deductible be waived or absorbed?
No. In Texas it is illegal for a contractor to pay, waive, or rebate your deductible. Anyone offering it is telling you how they run their business.
What should I do first after a hail storm?
Photograph everything, file with your carrier, and get a written scope from a contractor before the adjuster visit so you are comparing like for like.
Keep reading
Learn more about insurance restoration
Learn more about roof replacement
Learn more about request an inspection
About MTR Contractors
MTR Contractors is a general contractor based in Frisco, Texas, serving North DFW: Frisco, Little Elm, Prosper, Celina, Aubrey, The Colony, Plano, McKinney and the surrounding Collin and Denton County communities. The company holds a 2025 BBB Torch Award for Ethics and Best of Houzz recognition, and you can walk into the showroom at 1647 Witt Rd Ste 102, Frisco TX 75036. Call (972) 432-7011 or request an estimate.
Still have questions?
Our Roofing section covers hail claims, Texas deductible law, supplements, and how to spot a storm chaser. Same answers we give at the showroom, written down so you can read them at 11pm without waiting on a callback.
Browse the full MTR Contractors FAQ, or come see it in person at our Frisco showroom on Witt Road.
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