Storm Chase In Another State

Jahyudom

Hi yall, I have a roofing company in DC area and I have some questions for someone who's been in storm chasing business in different state. Such as how to start, licensing, insurance, etc...

Any tips of how get started will be very appreciated.

Thanks.

rbsremodeling

Why would you leave the DC area roofing is almost recession proof here?

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dougger222

Good way to see the country I guess. I'd rather be an adjuster than a contractor going from storm to state out of state.

The locals like seeing adjusters but they hate seeing storm chasers.

Then again I'm still trying to play catch up from 06 hail storms. Got a bunch more hail storms and wind damage last year and have yet to go beyond 45 minutes for an insurance job.

Alan Hughes

most storm chasers like to partner up with an existing local company.

Slyfox

The last hail storm here in my area was in Austintown, Ohio.
I did 4 re roofs,
my friend John did 7,
Jims Roofing did atleast a couple dozen, not sure just going by counting signs i saw,
the rest were all signs, trucks and faces i had never seen before in my area,
they Came, they Roofed, they Left and i have already done 3 repairs in the area after just 3 months or so since the storm.

One of the repairs i did,
i got via the storm chaser himself "Pro Water Proofing" and he actually seemed like a good guy and was spending the monies needed to correct a mistake his guys had made,
other 2 repairs were for the home owners directly and they only called me after they were unable to contact the roofer who did the work,
"cell phone no longer in service" and the only address for him was a P.O box at the local post office which of course has since been closed.

Could they have searched the guy down via the locally purchased cell phone and post office box, sure,
but they only paid me 275.00/350.00 for the repair,
it would have cost much more than that to track down a roofer from,
Kansas, Minnisota, Michigan, DC, Alabama.

There are good and bad people in all trades and business's but Storm Chasing is for sure one of the areas commonly known for more bad than good.

Contact insurance companies, large national roofing companies and check out goverment bidding list "many are free" and you'll be chasing storms in no time at all.

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dougger222

In Minnesota insurance pays $450 for a roofing repair. If a home owner has a storm chaser do their roof when they could have had a local company do it I have no problem charging them $450+ to fix a problem.

Last year I got a few calls from storm chasers with salesman and crews ready to go. Told them friends and family only, sorry. They target companies with no issues with the BBB or state that have been in business for a while.

When the storm chasers move through and do whole blocks at a time usually every house will leak if the crews didn't know what they were doing. More often than not a home owner will only use a storm chasing company once. We get a lot of hail and high wind here and most home owners either have been burned themselves or know some one who has.

Did a tear off last week for a contractor who has been put off for five months and he said his two neighbors are fighting with their insurance company. Asked him if it was because they were getting denied and he said they got a roof but one won't stop leaking and the other has massive siding damage now from the roofer. The one that's leaking like a siv never leaked a drop before the tear off was done. Another neighbor had a roof done that looked like the roofers forgot to clean off the roof decking as it looks like they papered and then shingled over a bunch of debris.

While I was finishing the roof a neighbor across the street came over and commented on how we were the only roofer in the area to use cleats. She was a lawyer who had just worked a case were the home owner was awarded half a million for personal damages caused by falling debris. She said her son owned a construction company in Cali and sent a crew of immigrants to roof her house. She asked for a business card when I left as she said she's got some problems and will need a good roofer at some point to fix them.

Got a call on a roof leak a couple weeks ago on a porch addition I did three years ago. They built a 2/12 saddle that had 15ft valleys with 10/12 on both sides. Winterguarded the whole thing and installed roll valley with Heartstead shingles. The contractor who framed it decided to take a look at it. The first thing the home owner said was he couldn't believe his brand new roof was leaking. Brand new? The home owner hired a huge storm chasing outfit and they put down laminates and couldn't get it right!!! For three years prior it never leaked a drop with cheap four tab shingles.

Not sure how many know how the insurance game works regarding the storm chasers so here goes.

A salesman/roofer/storm chaser goes to a home owners door either by driving by or by mail, etc. and tells them they have damage usually without crawling on their roof. He hands them a piece of paper and asks them to sign it so they can contact their insurance company. What they are actually signing is a piece of paper that no only allows them to contact their insurance company but also to order an adjuster to their house and if approved they have to do the work or they have to pay 20-40% of the insurance proceeds. The home owner does have 3 days to pull out of the contract. Most storm chasers once approved are too lazy to crawl on the roof and measure so they simply go off the adjusters numbers. Most storm chasers slap a sign in the yard once the contract is signed before it's even approved. I've seen several signs in front of yards with adjusters and salesman on the roof looking for damage. Also had storm chasers bother my home owners after they see me and the adjuster leave with white chaulk on the roof.

One local storm chaser has a whopping 9 companies registered with the SOS. Gotta figure they do this so when they have big problems they simply run work through another business.

Right now I'm very set up to chase storms with Xactimate, mobile printer, three work vehicles, two dump trailers and enough tools for 3 crews. Instead I only run one crew and do all my insurance work off references. They come from past customers, friends, neighbors, co-workers, agents, and adjusters.

Last Fall my biggest problem was not having time to meet with home owners to look at their roofs. Gave a ton of good leads to my Uncles and brother.

karp76

I am new to this site I am looking for information on "storm chasing". I am not a storm chaser but I am a contractor and have been getting a few insurance claim jobs. I am new to dealing with the insurance companies to get more money for the work that needs to be done. I know you can send in supplaments to the company but I have one job that they only want to pay to have vents and metal valleys replaced. seems to me that if the vents and valleys have damage doesnt the roof have damage also. can any one help give me some tips for working with insurance companys. Thanks Jim

Grumpy

Why would you chase around storms rather than building your own brand locally and set your roots in your community?

Besides insurance companies don't pay squat, so the owner usually gets poor work... and who will honor your warranty's when you skip town to chase the next storm?

Storm chasers are a scurge to the industry, but they keep my repair crew very busy fixing all their mistakes. Pay me now or pay me later, I say.

Ed the Roofer

Firstly, you need to learn how to identify whether or not the damages you are seeing are storm related and from which recent date of a storm event or if it is wear and tear from the aging process.

Secondly, you need to know the rules that Insurance Company's play by.

Thirdly, you either need to be using the same pricing software as they do, or know how to get the clients to agree to your contract before the adjuster has made a settlement offer.

Do you have those skills?

If not, then you must use the shotgun approach and throw yourself at everyones doorstep and see what sticks.

Ed

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Jennifer D

I have been chasing storms for over 20 years and we all have heard all the stories but there are a few reputible companys that are sencerly there to help the victims of these storms so for us "the contractors" to get involved with the retoric of bashing it only fuels the fears of the scared home owners looking for the help they desperatly need yes i think that if we hear of a contractor or should i say a wana be cheating or scaming than i believe they should be outed publicly but if the company is reputible than the locals should be willing to help there is enough work after these storms that we can all work together and be helpful so dont destroy our trade with the bashing lets stick together and out the scam artist and support the good guy

Slyfox

What part of my post was 'bashing' storm chasers?

I mentioned one of the storm chasers as being a roofing contractor who was willing to pay for the repairs done by him/his crew when they were in town, meaning he was a stand up guy who gave legit information, thus the home owners were able to contact him when problems arose on thier roofs.

Than I mentioned two who were no where to be found after they packed up and moved on, leaving the home owners to pay for the repairs of workmanship mistakes themselves.

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