Re: roof leak covered by home insurance?
Posted by:
The Realist
()
Date: October 12, 2013 10:49AM
Stabitha Wrote:
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> ^ I wouldnt follow this advice. Insurance fraud is
> serious business and can get you thrown in jail.
>
> If you have an all risk policy, it will cover any
> interior water damage from a roof leak. It will
> not pay for a deteriorated roof which is what you
> most likely have.
That's correct. Depends on the policy of course, but standard homeowner coverage would be that the water damage is covered but the leaky roof is not. There may be a remaining warranty on the roof, but after 20 years, it would not be worth much. A homeowner should expect (and be prepared) to replace the roof every 25 years or so in any case, and a little less than that with a builder-installed roof would not be far from normal. This is just one of the costs of doing business if you own your own home. Things like the furnace, a/c, and water heater are on a similar timeline with major appliances and exterior paint on somewhat shorter ones, Still, it's possible that a patch-job for the roof is all that's needed at the present time. A new roof could easly run $15K and up while a patch would cost much less than that. Best either way to have a reputable roofer or two come over and tell you what they think.
Meanwhile, insurance fraud is always a bad idea as you say, but many low-lifes do like to think of and portray themselves as randy little bad boys who are expert at beating the system and coloring outside the lines. In their minds, outsmarting such dummies as the police, insurance companies, the IRS, or the DMV is child's play. Serious folks of course grew out of that silly phase by like the 4th grade.