Should I let the roofer deal with my insurance claim?

You can accept help preparing a scope and photographs, and that is genuinely useful. What to avoid is signing anything that assigns the claim or gives a contractor authority to deal with the insurer on your behalf, because it removes your ability to change your mind about who does the work.

Why do roofers door-knock after storms?

Because demand spikes and the householder is under pressure to decide quickly, which is the condition under which people sign things they would not otherwise. Legitimate businesses do it too — but the pattern is well enough established that an unsolicited post-storm approach deserves the licence check you would otherwise skip.

Who to hire after storm damage to a roof

Short answer

A roofer for the emergency make-safe, and your insurer's claims line at the same time — many policies cover make-safe work and some require you to use their process. Photograph everything before anything is moved or covered, because that evidence is what the claim is assessed on.

Treat as urgentThis is one to act on now rather than book for next week.

When it is someone else

Calling the wrong trade costs an attendance fee to be told so. These are the cases where this problem belongs to someone other than a Roofer.

your insurer, before you authorise permanent repairs
the damage is significant. Permanent repairs done before assessment can complicate a claim; make-safe generally does not.
an arborist
a tree or a limb is on the roof. Removing it is arborist work, and doing it badly causes more damage than the fall did.
an electrician
the service line has been pulled off the house or wiring is exposed. Treat any down conductor as live and ring the distributor first.

What to do before anyone arrives

Photograph and video everything from the ground, including the debris, before anyone touches it.
Ring your insurer's claims line and ask specifically what is covered for make-safe and whether they require their own contractor.
Be sceptical of the roofer who knocks on the door the morning after a storm. Storm-chasing is a recognised pattern and the trading name that arrives with it is often gone before the warranty is tested.
Do not sign anything that assigns your insurance claim to a contractor.
Keep every receipt, including for a tarpaulin and for accommodation if the house is unliveable.

What to ask when you book

Are you licensed in this state, and can I have the licence number to check on the regulator's register?
Is the make-safe separately priced from the permanent repair?
Will you provide a written scope and photographs suitable for an insurance assessment?
Where is your business actually based?

What changes the price

No dollar figures here: this directory holds no price data and an invented range is worse than none. What follows is what makes one of these jobs cost more than the same job next door, which is the part you can actually use when comparing quotes.

Extent of damage and whether the roof structure itself moved.
Whether matching materials exist.
Demand — after a widespread storm every roofer in the region is booked, and that is also when out-of-area operators arrive.
Access and scaffolding.

What you can do yourself

Is this licensed work?

Building work licensing applies to the repair. Insurance repairs are often done by contractors on the insurer's panel, and you generally retain the right to ask questions about who is doing the work and to what standard.

There is no national register. Search the licence number with the regulator for the state the work is happening in.

NSWNSW Fair Tradingbuilders, electricians, plumbers and specialist trades
VICBuilding and Plumbing Commission, and Energy Safe Victoria for electricalbuilding practitioners and plumbers; electricians are Energy Safe Victoria
QLDQueensland Building and Construction Commission (QBCC)building and most trade contractor licences
WABuilding and Energybuilders, electricians, plumbers and gas fitters
SAConsumer and Business Servicesbuilding work contractors and supervisors
TASConsumer, Building and Occupational Services (CBOS)building and occupational licences
ACTAccess Canberraconstruction occupations licensing
NTNT Government building practitioner registrationbuilding practitioners and electrical workers

Licensing thresholds and certificate requirements differ by state and change with amending regulation, so this page describes the mechanism rather than quoting a figure. The regulator’s own page is the current answer.

Common questions

Who should I hire for storm damage to a roof: A roofer for the emergency make-safe, and your insurer's claims line at the same time — many policies cover make-safe work and some require you to use their process. Photograph everything before anything is moved or covered, because that evidence is what the claim is assessed on.
Should I let the roofer deal with my insurance claim?: You can accept help preparing a scope and photographs, and that is genuinely useful. What to avoid is signing anything that assigns the claim or gives a contractor authority to deal with the insurer on your behalf, because it removes your ability to change your mind about who does the work.
Why do roofers door-knock after storms?: Because demand spikes and the householder is under pressure to decide quickly, which is the condition under which people sign things they would not otherwise. Legitimate businesses do it too — but the pattern is well enough established that an unsolicited post-storm approach deserves the licence check you would otherwise skip.

Find a Roofer near you

1,369 roofers in this directory, ranked on published evidence rather than on advertising.

Businesses that say they take emergency callouts

Who to hire for

General information about who does what, not advice about your specific job. Licensing, consumer law and council rules differ by state and change; the regulator for your state is the current source. More guides to hiring a tradesperson.