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Rob Landers, Florida Today
Shawn and Kim have lived in their dream home for over 20 years. They noticed the tile roof started to look a little worn and inquired about a new roof. The quote for the new roof was over $50,000. They decided to hold off on getting a new roof due to the expense.
A few weeks later, Matt, a neighborhood solicitor with a roofing company, knocked on their door, informing them that they can get a new roof for free from Shawn and Kim’s homeowner’s insurance company. This sounded like a dream come true. They won’t have to spend $50,000 and get a free roof.
Sounds great, right?
On a daily basis, many people become victims of this hustle where the roofing solicitor “takes care of everything,” submits an inflated claim with the insurance company, and then threatens a lawsuit if the company challenges the overpriced roof costs submitted. If the company doesn’t pay, a handful of law firms have a cottage industry filing hundreds of roof lawsuits, knowing they will win several for millions in attorney’s fees.
Who loses in this scenario? The average homeowner. Every day, all Floridians who are homeowners are paying for these free roofs with increased premiums that, in some cases, are double last year’s premiums.
This practice of knocking on doors and soliciting for claims, so that third parties (roofers and attorneys) can make money off of you, the homeowner, has cost every person in this state. Even if you don’t own a home and you rent, the landlord is raising the price because their insurance has shot up.
The shift in mentality is that you pay a premium that has gotten crazy expensive; therefore, you are owed a return on investment from that policy. This is crushing the purpose of insurance. It is meant to be there when you have a claim of what’s called a peril.
If your roof leaks because it’s 15 to 20 years old, that is normal wear and tear and not a reason to file an insurance claim. Normal wear and tear repairs are to be paid by the homeowner and should not …….