Insurance Claim Siding Work on Long Island

Most contractors will not talk about insurance claims plainly because there is so much fraud in the space that carriers are suspicious of everybody. We would rather be straight with you.

Here is how a real insurance claim on siding damage works from the day you call your carrier to the day we finish the repair.

Step 1: You file the claim with your carrier. Call the number on your policy. Describe the damage (storm, tree, impact, fire). Get a claim number. This has to happen first. We cannot file a claim on your behalf.

Step 2: The adjuster is assigned. Your carrier assigns a field adjuster (an employee or a contractor working for the insurance company) within 1-7 days, depending on how busy they are and whether it is a mass storm event.

Step 3: Initial damage estimate. The adjuster will come out, walk the house, take photos, and write their own estimate of what the repair should cost. This is usually in Xactimate and it is their opening number.

Step 4: You get your own contractor involved. This is where we come in. You hire us (no money changes hands yet) to represent your side of the estimate. We walk the house, document everything, and prepare our own Xactimate estimate. We always find things the adjuster missed because we are climbing ladders and pulling siding panels that they only photographed from the ground.

Step 5: Supplement negotiation. If our estimate is higher than the adjuster's (it usually is, by 15-40%), we submit a supplement with photos and explanations of why additional scope is warranted. This is back-and-forth paperwork with the adjuster, and it is where we earn our money as your contractor. Most supplements get approved in 1-3 weeks.

Step 6: Approved claim amount is finalized. Once the adjuster agrees to a number, that becomes the approved claim amount. Your deductible comes off the top. You pay the deductible, the insurance covers the rest.

Step 7: Work happens. We do the repair or reside, on the timeline we agreed to, at the approved scope. You get progress photos.

Step 8: Final invoice and payment. When the job is done, we submit a final invoice. Your carrier either releases the full amount to you (who then pays us) or, if you signed an Assignment of Benefits, directly to us.

We are Xactimate proficient. Ryan is trained on Xactimate and writes estimates in the format carriers expect. Supplements written in Xactimate get processed faster than Word documents or hand-written line items.

We meet the adjuster on site. We will schedule our walk-through for the same day and time the adjuster comes out. Being on the ladder with them, pointing at the damage, speeds up the process dramatically. Most adjusters appreciate contractors who show up and speak the language.

We photograph everything, including hidden damage. We pull the siding panel or two in affected areas and photograph the sheathing and wall wrap underneath. Hidden damage discovered during inspection is almost always covered under the same claim as the visible damage, but it has to be documented in a supplement.

We do not inflate the claim. We give the adjuster an honest number. We do not pad line items to make the claim "bigger". This matters because (a) insurance fraud is a crime, and (b) contractors with a reputation for inflating claims get their supplements denied faster and their work flagged.

We do not waive your deductible. This is also fraud. Any contractor offering to "cover the deductible" in exchange for the job is committing a crime that implicates you too. Your deductible is your deductible. We will not cheat the insurance company with you.

We explain the Assignment of Benefits honestly. AOB is a form that assigns your insurance payment directly to us, so the check does not go to you first. It is standard practice and it is legal in New York. We will explain exactly what it means before you sign, and we will never sneak it into the contract.

• Wind damage (nor'easters, hurricanes, thunderstorms)
• Tree impact damage (falling limbs, whole tree strikes)
• Hail damage (rare on LI but it happens, especially in summer pop-up storms)
• Fire damage (siding melted, scorched, or smoke-damaged)
• Vehicle impact (somebody backed into the house)
• Ice dam damage (rare, but we see it on North Shore homes after hard winters)
• Vandalism
• Water intrusion from a failed neighboring structure (a tree on the neighbor's property fell on your house, etc.)

What is NOT usually covered:

• Wear and tear from age
• Maintenance issues (missed stain refresh on cedar, for example)
• Improper installation from a previous contractor (unless you have a specific rider)
• Cosmetic fading
• Termites or carpenter bees (pest damage is almost never in the homeowners policy)

If you are not sure whether your damage is covered, call your carrier and describe it. They will tell you yes or no.

We have handled successful claims with every major LI homeowners carrier:

• Allstate
• State Farm
• Liberty Mutual
• GEICO Homeowners
• Travelers
• Chubb
• Nationwide
• Farmers
• USAA
• Erie Insurance
• NYCM Insurance
• New York Central Mutual
• Plus most of the smaller regional carriers

Each carrier has its own quirks in how it processes claims. State Farm moves fast on straightforward claims. Chubb is meticulous on high-end homes. Allstate tends to write low initial estimates and requires supplements. We know the patterns.