# Insurance Jobs Problem



## garciacontracting (May 5, 2011)

I'm a roofing contractor in Kansas City & I want to expand by getting insurance jobs. 

A question I have is: After I inspect the roof & find hail damage, then either the owner or myself call the insurance company. They then send the adjustor. If they agree to buy the roof, they tell the client to get 3 other bids from other companies. 

How can I avoid not losing the job to my competitors? 

I had one client (last year) go with another contractor after I inspected her roof for hail damage & called her insurance agent. She was told to get 3 other bids & ended up going with someone else.


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## LCG (May 30, 2011)

Welcome to a free and open marketplace.


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## larson1951 (Aug 27, 2012)

in north dakota that does not happen
only one proposal needed
if you get three prices and let the ins co pick your contractor, 
then the ins co is liable
it is illegal here for an ins co to hire a roofing contractor for a HO

ask your state ins commissioner about this issue


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## london (Apr 22, 2011)

It make sense to have another roofing company competing for the jobs, in UK the customer must get three quotes and the insurance company will chose one


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## vtroofing (Sep 27, 2009)

In Vermont it is Ok with the Insurance Commission if the Insurance Company brings in their preferred... 
However this scenario the Insurance Company must provide a lifetime of ownership warranty... slows a few... but I think it also is a little known factor for the Insured. 

Knowledge is key. Ask questions, like how much is your deductible? Collect that deductible when presenting the Scope they have to pay it anyway, this will help weed out "shoppers". 

Also with "true damage" folks are IMO more apt to at least temp. tarp, ect to stop additional damage. After all, when reporting claims... it is part of the insured responsibility to stop more damage from occurring. More so when they hear the Insurer will pay for these tarps.


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## vtroofing (Sep 27, 2009)

Sent two.


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## KevinOxford770 (Dec 14, 2012)

It is a risk you take. Hail is a tricky business. I try to avoid working directly with the insurance companies, but educate the customer on how to. The extra customer service and advice is alot of times enough to bring them back for the project.


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## larson1951 (Aug 27, 2012)

my roofing company has the HO send, drop off, FAX, or email us a copy of the statement of loss
we then review it and if we are in agreement with the charges we do the job
if the charges are insufficient we call the ins co for the HO and have them issue supplement at time of completion
the people HO's like this and here only about 1 out of every ten does not want you to see their sheet.....
.....those are jobs we don't want


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## london (Apr 22, 2011)

I get customers lying about roofing jobs, they hide the fact its an insurance roofing job because they know I won't come to have a look at their roof and then work on the quote.


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## John's Roofing (Nov 16, 2011)

Communication....Communication.....with both the Home Owner and the Insurance Adjustor....Once the Home Owner knows that you sincerely care about his/her roof...they usually go with the contractor that they know the most about and know that they will be getting a quality job.....Yes....there are some Home Owners and Insurance companies out there that just look at the cheapest.....but if you do Quality Work...That Speaks Loud and Clear and keeps you busy...


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## dougger222 (Aug 13, 2010)

Rarely do you hear "we need 3 bids". Most often it's after we turn in a detailed bid to a carrier who wants to pay peanuts. Experiance has taught me to politely turn down these leads.

A good portion of my leads come from insurance agents and adjusters so it's rare to hear the 3 bid bull crap.

More than half the insurance work we do is completed and a suppliment provided upon completion of missing scope. If the original scope is missing roof slopes, siding elevations, windows, etc. a call is made prior to work.

99% of my insurance work is word of mouth so there's no door pounding going in here!


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## larson1951 (Aug 27, 2012)

dougger222 said:


> Rarely do you hear "we need 3 bids". Most often it's after we turn in a detailed bid to a carrier who wants to pay peanuts. Experiance has taught me to politely turn down these leads.
> 
> A good portion of my leads come from insurance agents and adjusters so it's rare to hear the 3 bid bull crap.
> 
> ...



it looks like we do things very similar up north here
we started out 35 years ago and always tried to help the adjusters by being honest and helping them settle tie breakers and deal with neighboritis we help the ins co's as much or more than they help us
they are not allowed to recommend contractors but...when a HO asks the question"how do i know this is enough?" they say to call my company and give them a copy of the statement of loss theysay we WILL work with them if they call me and need more or say i missed something i will make it right around here a claim does not matter if it is one thousand or thirty thousand, what matters is whether or not it is storm damage or something that happened all of a sudden
well over 50% of our business is ins work, anyone not getting into this the right way is in my opinion 'missing out' why would anyone turn down basically blank checks?
around here new construction on average homes is the worst cheap cut throat thing a roofer can do

i have heard it is good a lot of other places but here on the 100K-300K homes it is only about the builder stuffing his pockets with no regard for quality
steve


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## dougger222 (Aug 13, 2010)

Ya, a lot of builders are just looking for low ballers for the new stuff. Can't count on one hand the builders I've done work for who either went belly up or turned into "insurance restoration specialist".

The 4 builders left all pay my price which is a bit higher than average. One has been using me for almost 15 years and another for 10 years. Two were picked up in the past two years and pay good. 

New new construction work always leads to insurance work and out of pocket tear offs. Most builders are realtors and they are always meeting with homeowners both buying and selling. One builder turned us onto half a dozen large tear offs this year most were insurance.

I'll tell you what. It's a lot better being the contractor than a sub contractor. Some of these builders sup's think you need to wait on them hand and foot. They think they can call the day before a roof is ready and your just waiting by the phone in your work truck...

What area of North Dakota you in? My Uncle a semi retired roofer of 35 years moved to Cando a few years ago as he got sick of the Twin Cities. My cousin also works on the oil fields out there near the Montana border.

You know were the jumbo's are biting!!!


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## larson1951 (Aug 27, 2012)

dougger222 said:


> Ya, a lot of builders are just looking for low ballers for the new stuff. Can't count on one hand the builders I've done work for who either went belly up or turned into "insurance restoration specialist".
> 
> The 4 builders left all pay my price which is a bit higher than average. One has been using me for almost 15 years and another for 10 years. Two were picked up in the past two years and pay good.
> 
> ...


i am from bismarck
i am president of bismarck roofing and sheet metal

i agree with you on the new construction thingy
we have some builders we help out for many years
steve


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## Gladys_christabel (Dec 13, 2012)

Your communication and talking skills must be more important in that situation improve on that.so you wont lose your employees.
_________________________________
contractors Los Angeles


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## larryb (Jul 22, 2010)

Contingency agreement (i.e., legal and binding contract)

www.burcos.com/recover.htm


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## london (Apr 22, 2011)

this looks an idiot topic and we all play along


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## GAZ (Aug 23, 2012)

In the uk if your property is hit by storms and there is a possibility
of water damage or falling debris that might be a danger to you or the public, no need for your customers to get 3 estimates, you just carry out the work as an emergency
and invoice the customer


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## GAZ (Aug 23, 2012)

london said:


> It make sense to have another roofing company competing for the jobs, in UK the customer must get three quotes and the insurance company will chose one


In my 35 years of experience in roofing, insurance companies do not choose which contractor should carry out the works, if this was the case the insurance companies could be liable with all sorts of legal ramifications.


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## Dallas-Roofing (May 10, 2013)

There really is nothing that you can do to remedy this. The insurance company is going to want the homeowner to go with the best and cheapest roofer. Offer a good quality roof at a competitive price. Remember, there is not any laws that I'm aware of that states that the homeowner must have 3 quotes. It is just good practice for the homeowner to do so. 

Devin Mahdi
DFW Roofers


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## hotrodo351 (Mar 18, 2012)

your worried about the home owner getting other bids. better get another job. how would you like going to home depot and having some one tell you thats the only place you could buy your items. cant buy from walmart or lowes just home depot. if your that worried about it then you must be unsure about your prices. hey that would be great to be the only bid, youd get every job hands down.


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