Roofing Supplements

A roofing supplement or contractor supplement is when a contractor asks for additional materials, labor, or trades to be added to the insurance claim. An adjuster may not include enough shingles, ice and water shield, siding, etc. on the scope of loss to get the job done correctly. In some cases, these missing items are required by local building code. When this happens, a contractor writes a new Xactimate Estimate to include those missing items and submits it to the insurance company for approval. Contractors must also include supporting documentation such as photos, measurements, local code requirements, and invoices to explain why these funds are needed.

This largely depends on the type of documentation you provide with your supplements, and how much time you are willing to allow a job to remain in the “settlement” phase of the supplementing process. Contractors that want to make the most money on supplementing train their sales reps to gather all the necessary documentation (inspection checklists, photos, invoices, etc). They prepare each job as though it will require a full supplement and have systems in place to organize their jobs so multiple team members can easily access all the information. Contractors who earn the highest average supplements also create larger scheduling backlogs. This can allow more time to settle more complicated claims, challenge denials & partial trade approvals.

On average it takes 10-20 days for a roofing supplement to be approved by the insurance carrier. On more complicated jobs it can take 20-40 days. Funds are typically released within 1-3 business days following an approval on pre-production and 4-7 business days on post-production supplements. There are many factors that impact how long it takes for a supplement to be approved. While many of these factors are outside of the contractor’s control (such as carrier inspection backlog following a storm), having all of the necessary documentation at the beginning of the process can actually speed up approval times by several days. The more prepared the contractor is during the initial inspection, the better the outcome in terms of both money and speed. Having all of the necessary photos and paperwork with a correctly written Xactimate estimate can result in a “Desk Approval,” which is a much more simple claim settlement process. If certain photos are missing or are not clear, then the insurance company may deny certain line items or request additional documentation for the supplement to move forward. Each time this happens an additional 3-5 days can be added to the process. The same is true with invoices and receipts.

The simple answer is yes. Whomever is actually writing a revised estimate needs to know how to write an Xactimate Estimate….and pay a monthly fee to license the Xactimate Software.

BUT that person doesn’t necessarily need to be YOU; it can be anyone on your team or a supplement specialist with an outside company. It is a good idea to have some basic knowledge of Xactimate because it allows contractors to read Xactimate Estimates and quickly notice items missing on the scope. Many contractors that hire 3rd party supplementing companies know how to write Xactimate Estimates, but they realize that their time is better spent selling or managing their other projects. OR they know how to write them but are much slower at creating the polished professional supplement that a 3rd party will submit.

In our experience, insurance companies only get mad if you waste their time, are dishonest, or unprofessional. Having a well crafted, well documented roofing supplement makes their job easier. Submitting quality, honest supplements and being courteous to the adjuster is how you build solid professional relationships with adjusters. Over time contractors will work with the same adjusters in their market. If you are consistently honest and professional, then even the grumpiest adjusters will come to learn that when you submit a supplement it’s legit. We have seen this happen time and time again. Occasionally, adjusters will become frustrated when you challenge their findings or push hard during the settlement process. This is where it is most important to let the facts (i.e. documentation) do all the talking. Keeping the argument purely factual on things that you can prove keeps emotions in check and prevents things from escalating.

Absolutely! And we know a good one 😉

There are many reasons why it makes sense to hire a 3rd party to supplement your roofing jobs. The most obvious is that contractors are too busy to write new Xactimate Estimates for all of their jobs. Or they’re simply not that good at writing supplements. Another reason roofing contractors hire a supplementing company is to help ensure that newly hired sales reps are producing profitable roofing jobs. Even companies that have their own internal staff to write supplements may need a hand if a hurricane or 100-year hailstorm hits in their market. In this situation, you don’t have time to hire and train someone new, but a 3rd party roofing supplement specialist can easily step in and handle the overflow of claims. Legacy roofing businesses that focus primarily in retail work sometimes have insurance jobs fall into their lap. At Elite, we help these types of companies manage occasional insurance claims or even help them transition their business into becoming a storm restoration business. Lastly, we serve a lot of clients that are starting a new roofing business. For new companies, the owner is typically selling and wearing lots of other hats and simply does not have the capacity or knowhow to supplement insurance roofing claims.