The adjuster is coming Thursday. The tarp has been on the roof since the storm, and you are not sure what to show her or what the contractor is supposed to hand over. This site connects you by phone with an independent local roofing contractor who documents storm damage in Lee County. It does not adjust claims, and nobody here can tell you what your policy will pay.
The adjuster works from what is visible and documented. A contractor's job on a claim is the trade side of that record: photos of every damaged area taken before the tarp went on, the roof's material and apparent age, the entry points, the attic side, and a line-item written scope for the repair or replacement with materials and the permit office named. Many contractors will meet the adjuster on the roof so the damage is seen rather than described.
That is the whole role. The contractor does not file the claim, negotiate it, or decide coverage. You file. The insurer decides. If a claim becomes disputed, a licensed public adjuster or an attorney is the right professional for that, not a roofer.
Photograph everything, inside and out, before anything is covered or moved. Then get the roof tarped. Florida policies require you to take reasonable steps to prevent further damage, and receipts for protection are part of the claim record. Notify your insurer promptly. Write down the date of the storm and the date you first saw damage.
Do not sign anything on the doorstep. Florida ended assignment-of-benefits agreements for property policies issued on or after January 1, 2023, so a document that hands your claim to a contractor or anyone else is a warning sign.
The state changed its property insurance law in December 2022. A new hurricane claim must be reported within one year of the date of loss, which for a named storm is the landfall date, not the day you found the leak. A supplemental claim has eighteen months. Ian claims from September 2022 fell under the older, longer window.
A named-storm deductible is a percentage of the dwelling coverage rather than a flat amount, and on most Florida policies it is far larger than the deductible for other losses. Replacement-cost and actual-cash-value policies pay differently on an older roof, and some policies apply a roof-specific schedule. Read the declarations page before setting expectations.
Roof age is its own issue. An insurer cannot refuse a policy solely because a roof is under fifteen years old, and for older roofs it must accept an inspection showing five or more years of useful life. That is why a roof inspection with written findings is often the first step when the letter is about renewal rather than a storm.
Ian produced more roof claims in Lee County than any storm in its history, and the pattern that followed is worth knowing. Claims that were photographed before tarping and documented by a contractor moved. Claims where the roof sat open for weeks and water spread through drywall turned into arguments about neglect. Milton's October 2024 tornadoes in Fort Myers and Helene's surge along the coast the month before produced a smaller second wave.
Many Lee County homes are insured through Citizens Property Insurance, the state-backed insurer of last resort, which has its own claim reporting line and inspection process. Questions about a policy, a deductible, or a dispute with any insurer can go to the Florida Division of Consumer Services, which runs the state's insurance consumer helpline.
Once the claim is resolved, the work itself is storm damage roofing or a roof replacement under a permit, and the permit number closes the loop on the file.
Have the address and say what storm caused the damage and when. Say whether the roof is tarped, whether you have photos, and whether an adjuster visit is scheduled. Say what kind of roof it is and roughly how old. Call (239) 306-8745.
Standing byDescribe what you see in plain words. The call goes to an independent local roofing contractor who works your part of Lee County and decides what to look at first.
A leak, lifted shingles, or cracked tiles traced to the source and fixed before the next rain band reaches Lee County.
Tear-off to the deck, new underlayment, and a new roof permitted and inspected under the Florida Building Code.
Tarping and repair after wind, tornado, or hurricane damage, with photos taken before anything is covered.