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It’s Hard To Deny That Your Roof Is The Most Important Part Of Your Home. After All, It’s The Part That Gives You The Most Shelter From The Elements. It Shields You From Rain, Snow, And Hail, All While Helping Keep The Interior At An Acceptable Temperature.
Most roof leaks begin in fairly predictable locations. They can occur in ventilation components, or in structural components that are damaged by weather events. Touch a spot to learn more about how leaks can form there.
Although these vents are angled to prevent water from getting in, the strong winds in a rainstorm can sometimes blow water into them.
Commonly, exhaust vents include a damping system that is supposed to keep water from channeling in. However, dampers can sometimes leak and often fail over time.
Roof overhangs are not very aerodynamic, and can take significant damage in a strong storm. They’re often the spark that causes a roof to detach. Most eaves leaks occur when flashing or gutters are damaged, allowing moisture to soak into the trusses beneath.
Gables go against the regular slope of a roof, creating angles that capture, rather than deflect wind and rain. This makes them more susceptible to having cracks or seams open that can allow water into the roof.
Like any ridge or valley on a roof, hips are more susceptible to leaks because they represent a change in the direction of roof tiles or shingles. That requires a seam to be formed between the angles. Hips are also more exposed because they must take winds from more directions than flat areas.
Like hips and valleys, tiles and shingles must be seamed at ridges. Weakness in the seam or exposure to winds from various directions can weaken the ridge and allow water into the seam.
In addition to requiring a seam in the tile or shingles like ridges and hips, valleys are also natural channels for both rain and wind, making them prime locations for roof leaks to occur.
For angled roofs, shingles are usually the least expensive option. Shingles are made of a variety of materials which vary in strength and durability. While shingles are relatively easy to install or replace, they are also easily damaged by extreme weather, and are therefore susceptible to leaks.
Tile is both more durable and more expensive than shingles. The heavy, concrete tiles are interlocked to each other, making them more weather-resistant, but they are still subject to breakage and are susceptible to leaks that form at seams, such as ridges and valleys, or at any points where water can make its way under the tiles.
Generally more common in commercial rather than residential buildings, flat roofs are built with a variety of different materials and techniques to make them waterproof. While flat roofs are not as vulnerable to high winds, they are not able to quickly shed water, which often makes them more susceptible to leaking. And because there are no focus points of vulnerability (see above), it is often difficult to determine where the point of the breach is located.
Metal roofs are durable and relatively expensive. The metal sheeting is generally better at absorbing impacts from hail or windborne debris than shingles or tile, but seams between the sheets are still vulnerable to ingress by water. And because water can channel the length of seams and get beneath the metal sheets, it can be difficult to trace the location of the leak on a metal roof.
The good news is that roofs are so essential that they are usually well-covered by homeowners or business insurance policies.
The bad news is that insurance companies don’t make money by paying out on claims, which means they are going to do their best to reject as much of your claim as possible.
That’s why you need roofleak.com when your roof starts leaking. We make insurers pay you the maximum that your claim deserves.
| TIME PERIOD | BILLION-DOLLAR DISASTERS | EVENTS/YEAR | COST | PERCENT OF TOTAL COST | COST/YEAR | DEATHS | DEATHS/YEAR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s (1980-1989) | 29 | 2.9 | $178.1B | 9.5% | $17.8B | 2,870 | 287 |
| 1990s (1990 - 1999) | 53 | 5.3 | $274.0B | 14.6% | $27.4B | 3,045 | 305 |
| 2000s (2000-2009) | 62 | 6.2 | $519.0B | 27.7% | $51.9B | 3,091 | 309 |
| 2010s (2010-2019) | 119 | 11.9 | $810.5B | 43.2% | $81.1B | 5,217 | 522 |
| Last 5 Years (2016 - 2020) | 81 | 16.2 | $606.9B | 32.3% | $121.4B | 3,969 | 794 |
| Last 3 Years (2018 -2020) | 50 | 16.7 | $234.3B | 12.5% | $78.1B | 553 | 184 |
| Last Year (2020) | 22 | 22.0 | $95.0B | 5.1% | $95.0B | 262 | 262 |
| All Years | 285 | 7.0 | $1,876.6B | 100.0% | $45.8B | 14,485 | 353 |
Source: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) U.S. Billion-Dollar Weather and Climate Disasters (2021). https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/billions/, DOI: 10.25921/stkw-7w73
A Public Adjuster (PA) is a state-licensed insurance professional who manages claims on behalf of the policy holder. PAs are claim specialists who are able to negotiate directly with insurance companies in advocating for their clients to ensure that the claim is settled in a fair and timely manner.
Not necessarily. Most policies don’t specifically cover a leaking roof. But they do commonly provide coverage for weather events like hurricanes or hail, and any damage that results. This is one of the primary reasons you need a Public Adjuster. Often roof leaks won’t appear until some time after damage occurs, which allows insurers to deny claims. A Public Adjuster like RoofLeak.com works to substantiate the cause of the damage and impel the insurer to accept and pay out the claim.
Under Florida law, an insurance company has 90 days from the date the claim is made to either pay or deny that claim unless “factors beyond their control” impede them from doing so. These “factors” are not clearly defined under the law, which gives insurers a loophole to avoid paying claims promptly. A Public Adjuster like RoofLeak.com is able to legally question the validity of insurer stall tactics and impel them to pay out claims promptly.
Policies vary between insurers, but generally you can expect your policy to cover everything that is not specifically excluded in the text of the policy. Commonly, this includes severe and sudden catastrophic events while excluding damage that occurs due to long-term neglect or poor maintenance.
Under Florida law, an insurance company has 90 days from the date the claim is made to either pay or deny that claim unless “factors beyond their control” impede them from doing so. These “factors” are not clearly defined under the law, which gives insurers a loophole to avoid paying claims promptly. A Public Adjuster like roofleak.com is able to legally question the validity of insurer stall tactics and impel them to pay out claims promptly.
If the insurance company denies your claim wrongfully, you can file a lawsuit against them. If you win, you are entitled to receive compensation from the insurer for any legal fees you may have incurred. However, before you retain an attorney, you should contact a Public Adjuster such as RoofLeak.com to determine whether you should instead retain them to re-file the claim on your behalf.
Under Florida law, you have 5 years from the date of your loss to file a suit against your insurer. It does not matter how long it takes for your insurance company to deny your claim, the statute of limitations begins on the date that damages occur.
