Identifying and proving damage is an integral part of your job as a contractor.
If you are thorough and properly note all the damage you find, you can use it as part of your sales tactic and point out the damage to an adjuster.
Best practices for inspecting and documenting siding:
Doing a thorough inspection will position you as the expert.
- Start at the front of the house.
- Look for damages to the soft metals – gutters and downspouts, as well as the siding.
- Take pictures of all of the damage and note it on the inspection report.
- Move clockwise around the house, completing steps 2 & 3 on the remaining sides.
It’s very important to do a full inspection of the property. Look for damage to screens, the mailbox, decks, fences, sheds, grills, swimming pools, swing sets, yard lights and ornaments, window well covers, etc.
* Use our inspection sheet as a guide for what to look for and check off your findings.
* Use a damage inspection sheet to draw your damage. This will help you bring validity to the homeowner when you show him/her your findings. You can use the sheet to show where you found damage and then show them the corresponding photos.
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Best practices for inspecting and documenting the roof:
- On the damage inspection sheet, draw a picture of the roof from a bird’s eye perspective.
- Using an imaginary test square (10ft x 10ft), see if you can identify six or more hits per square on each slope.
- Note the location of the hail hits using “x” on your roof diagram.
- Fill out the inspection sheet while you’re on the roof. Make sure your counts and sizes are accurate.
- Take pictures of hail damage to the shingles, vents, furnace cap, pipe jacks and skylight(s) if applicable. Check off the photos from your photo checklist (you can use the one on the inspection sheet).
- When you upload your photos, label them by the order of the photo checklist on the inspection sheet.
Watch this video to see how you turn documentation from your thorough inspection into a pitch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-rvQwXkWZo “Door to Door Roofing Sales Pitch: 6 Steps to Closing a Roofing Sale.”