How a roof insurance claim actually works in Colorado.
A storm hits, three strangers knock on your door, and everyone tells you something different. Here is the process in order, in plain language, including the parts Colorado law controls.
Updated August 2026
Step 1: document the damage while it is fresh
Take photos from the ground the day it happens: dented gutters and downspouts, shingle granules washed into the driveway, dinged window screens, damaged siding, and anything in the yard that took a hit. Write down the storm date. Do not climb onto the roof to get a better picture. That is how people get hurt, and it is the one part of this we can do for you.
Step 2: get a contractor inspection before you file
You want to know whether you have a real case before a claim goes on your record. A proper inspection means someone on the roof, plus drone imagery, photographing bruised shingles, fractured mats, dented vents and flashing, and any wind creasing. You should end up with a photo report you keep either way, including when the finding is that your roof came through fine.
Step 3: file with your insurer if the damage supports it
You file, not your contractor. In Colorado a roofing contractor cannot file, negotiate, or settle a claim on your behalf. Give the carrier the storm date and your documentation, and note the claim number and adjuster contact when they come back to you.
Step 4: the adjuster inspection
The carrier sends an adjuster to look at the roof and write their own scope. Your contractor should be there. Adjusters are working fast and covering a lot of roofs after a big storm, and damage on a back slope or a detached garage gets missed when nobody is standing there with photos. We attend and point at documented damage. We do not argue the settlement, because that is not our role.
Step 5: scope and supplements
The carrier issues a scope and an initial payment. If covered damage turns up once the roof is open, decking, flashing, or code-required items that were not visible during the inspection, that gets photographed and submitted as a supplement rather than quietly absorbed or quietly skipped. You see the photos too.
Step 6: the work
Materials get ordered, the crew shows up, and the roof gets built to the approved scope. Where a permit is required, we pull it and schedule the required inspection. Cleanup happens every day, and you walk the property with us at the end.
Colorado specifics worth knowing
- SB 38 means no roofer can pay, waive, absorb, or rebate your deductible. Any offer to do so is illegal and a red flag.
- You have the right to choose your own contractor. Your carrier can suggest a preferred vendor. They cannot require one.
- Policies have claim-filing windows. Check yours after any storm, because missing the window is the most common reason a real claim gets denied.
- Contractors cannot act as public adjusters. Documenting damage and providing a scope is legal. Negotiating your settlement is not.
- Storm chasers who skip permits leave you holding unpermitted work. Mesa County's building department publicly warned homeowners about exactly this after the June 2025 hailstorm, and unpermitted work becomes your problem at resale.
If you are at the beginning of this and want somebody to look before you call your insurer, that is what our insurance claim service is for.