Are Free Roofs Sustainable - March 2020

Are "Free" Roofs Sustainable? - March 2020 
Mike Silvers, CPRC, Owner, Silvers Systems Inc., and FRSA's Director of Technical Services

Is it our lucky day or what? A guy just knocked on our door and said he could get us a free roof!

This is a discussion that is taking place in Florida’s subdivisions more often every day. We used to call them storm chasers, but recently this has become standard year-round business practice for some. In far too many cases, the roof may be in a serviceable condition and not require replacement at all. But armed with one of several documents, they convince the owner and then the insurer that the roof must be replaced. So, everybody wins right? Unfortunately, this is not a win-win. Someone must pay for replac­ing roofs that don’t need replacing and unless you’re someone who profits from this, it’s everyone who pays through their homeowner’s policy. Don’t misun­derstand me, if you have a legitimate damage claim that can’t be properly repaired, then by all means your insurer should cover that cost. But far too often that isn’t the case. Homeowners who agree to this too good to be true offer may find that the quality of their free roof is not as good as the trouble-free roof it replaced. If the new roof is done improperly, it may require replacement long before their old roof would have. They may very well have to pay for the next roof. So, it may not be a win for some unsuspecting homeowners. Read more.