Onward
A storm just rolled through. Maybe you heard shingles flapping, found branches in the yard, or spotted a stain creeping across the ceiling. Your heart is racing, and you’re not sure what to touch first. Take a breath. There is a calm, proven order to the next two days that keeps you safe, protects your home, and sets up a smooth insurance claim. This guide walks you through it, step by step, in plain English.
Quick answer: After a storm, stay safe first (don’t climb the roof; avoid downed power lines), check inside for leaks and contain water, document everything with photos and video plus the storm date, make safe temporary repairs like a tarp and keep receipts, call your insurer to open a claim, then get an independent inspection from a licensed local roofer.
First, the calm order: your storm-damage game plan
Here’s the thing about roof storm damage: panic makes it worse, and so does waiting. The homeowners who come out ahead follow a clear sequence instead of reacting all at once.
The order matters. Safety comes before everything, because no roof is worth a fall or an electrical shock. Documentation comes before repairs, because once you cover a hole with a tarp, you’ve changed the evidence. And an independent inspection comes before you sign anything, because a calm expert assessment beats a stranger’s sales pitch every time.
This guide follows that sequence: stay safe, check inside, document, make temporary repairs, file your claim, get inspected, and steer clear of scams. We’ll also cover how to tell wind from hail, what each type of damage looks like, and how a vetted local pro fits in.
Key takeaway: The right order is safety → check inside → document → temporary repairs → file claim → independent inspection. Don’t skip ahead, and don’t let anyone rush you.
If you’d rather hand the hardest part to a professional, you can get matched with a vetted local roofer for a free inspection and a clear, written assessment. But knowing the steps yourself keeps you in control.
Step 1: Stay safe — don’t climb, watch for downed lines
Before you inspect a single shingle, make sure everyone in your home is accounted for and safe. Storm injuries often happen in the cleanup, not the storm itself.
The biggest rule: do not climb on your roof. A wet, hail-battered, or wind-loosened roof is slippery and structurally unsettled, and falls from ladders and roofs send tens of thousands of people to the ER every year. The view you’d get isn’t worth a broken back.
Watch for these hazards before you go outside:
- Downed power lines. Treat every fallen line as live. Stay far back and call your utility. Per NOAA National Weather Service guidance, never touch anything in contact with a power line.
- Standing water. Water near your foundation or in the yard can hide debris or carry an electrical charge from a submerged line. Don’t wade through it.
- Hanging branches and debris. Limbs caught in trees or on the roof can fall without warning.
- Sagging ceilings indoors. A bulging, water-heavy ceiling can collapse. Keep people clear and poke a small drain hole only if it’s safe.
Key takeaway: No roof inspection is worth your safety. Stay off the roof, keep clear of downed lines and standing water, and let a licensed pro handle the rooftop look.
You can learn a lot from the ground. Use binoculars or zoom in with your phone camera to scan the roof edges, ridges, and any visible slopes. Most real inspection happens later, safely, by a pro.
Step 2: Check inside — ceilings, attic, and walls
A leak shows up inside long before you’d ever see the hole outside. Your attic and ceilings are the early-warning system, so check them as soon as it’s safe.
Walk every room and look up. You’re hunting for these signs:
- Ceiling stains — yellow, brown, or rust-colored rings that mean water is sitting above.
- Active drips or wet spots that grow when it rains again.
- Bubbling or peeling paint on ceilings and the tops of walls.
- Damp or matted attic insulation, water trails on rafters, or daylight showing through the roof deck.
- A musty smell, which can mean water has been getting in.
Contain leaks right away
If water is coming in, slow the damage now. Put buckets or bins under drips. Move furniture, electronics, and valuables out of the way. Lay down towels and plastic sheeting. If a ceiling is bulging with trapped water, carefully drain it from below into a bucket so it doesn’t burst and ruin the whole ceiling.
This isn’t your final repair. It’s first aid. The goal is to keep a small problem from becoming a flooded floor and a mold problem while you line up the real fix. If you’re not sure where the water is coming from, our guide on how to find a roof leak can help you trace it.
Key takeaway: Inside leaks are your earliest signal. Contain water fast with buckets and plastic, and protect valuables, but treat it as temporary first aid, not the repair.
Step 3: Document everything — photos, video, and the storm date
This is the step that wins or loses insurance claims, and almost everyone rushes it. Slow down here. Thorough documentation is your evidence, and it’s hard to recreate once you start cleaning up.
As soon as it’s safe, photograph and film everything:
- The big picture. Wide shots of the whole house and roof from the ground, plus the yard, so the scale of the storm is clear.
- Every damaged area. Close-ups of missing shingles, dented gutters, broken vents, cracked skylights, and torn flashing.
- Interior damage. Ceiling stains, drips, wet insulation, damaged walls, and any ruined belongings.
- Collateral clues. Dents on gutters, downspouts, AC units, garage doors, and even your car. These help prove hail hit hard.
- The temporary repairs in progress. Photograph the tarp going up and the finished cover, so the insurer sees what you were dealing with.
Two details make your file much stronger. First, write down the storm date and time. You can confirm it later against NOAA weather records, which insurers and adjusters trust. Second, keep a simple log of when you noticed damage, who you called, and what you spent.
Key takeaway: Document before you repair. Photos, video, the exact storm date, and a written log are the backbone of a smooth claim, and you can’t recreate them later.
[VISUAL: annotated roof photo showing where to point the camera — missing shingles, dented gutter, granule loss, flashing.]
Step 4: Make safe temporary repairs — tarp and keep receipts
Most insurance policies expect you to prevent further damage after a covered storm. This is called your “duty to mitigate,” and doing it both protects your home and strengthens your claim.
The most common temporary fix is a roof tarp. A heavy-duty tarp anchored over the damaged area keeps rain out until a permanent repair happens. If you’re not comfortable doing this safely, hire a pro or wait for your matched roofer. A fall isn’t worth it.
Whether you DIY or hire it out, keep records of everything:
| What to keep | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Receipts for tarps, plywood, nails, sandbags | Insurers usually reimburse reasonable mitigation costs |
| Any contractor invoice for emergency work | Proves the work was done and what it cost |
| Photos of the work in progress and finished | Shows the damage was real and the repair was necessary |
| A note on why each step was needed | Counters an insurer arguing you did too much |
Insurers often reimburse “reasonable and necessary” temporary repairs after a covered event, but the burden is on you to show it was needed. That’s why the photos and receipts matter. According to FEMA guidance, prompt temporary protection that prevents further loss is exactly what you’re supposed to do.
Key takeaway: A tarp is your home’s bandage. Make safe temporary repairs to stop water, and save every receipt and photo — most policies reimburse reasonable mitigation.
Step 5: Call your insurer and open a claim
Once your home is safe and stabilized, call your insurance company to report the loss and open a claim. Have your policy number, the storm date, your documentation, and a short description of the damage ready.
When you call, ask these questions and write down the answers:
- What is my claim number, and who is my assigned adjuster?
- What is my deductible for this type of loss? (Wind and hail sometimes carry a separate, higher deductible.)
- Is my roof covered at replacement cost value (RCV) or actual cash value (ACV)?
- What is the deadline to file, and what documentation do you need?
- Will you reimburse my emergency tarp and temporary repairs?
Knowing whether you have ACV or RCV matters a lot. ACV subtracts depreciation for the roof’s age, so an older roof pays less. RCV pays the full replacement cost minus your deductible, usually in two payments. Our full walkthrough on how to file a roof insurance claim covers the adjuster meeting, supplements, and appeals in detail.
One caution: report the facts plainly and avoid guessing at causes or dollar amounts on that first call. Let the inspection establish the real scope. The Insurance Information Institute (III) recommends prompt, accurate reporting and good documentation as the foundation of a clean claim.
Key takeaway: Open the claim promptly, get your claim number and deductible in writing, and confirm whether you have ACV or RCV coverage before the adjuster visits.
Step 6: Get an independent inspection from a licensed local roofer
Here’s where many homeowners go wrong: they let the insurance adjuster be the only set of eyes on the roof. The adjuster works for the insurer. You want your own licensed roofer working for you.
A good independent inspection does three things. It finds damage the adjuster might miss, like subtle hail bruising or lifted shingles. It produces a detailed written scope and estimate. And it gives you someone who can meet the adjuster, speak the same technical language, and make sure the estimate reflects the real job.
You’re allowed to choose your own contractor. You are never required to use one the insurer suggests. Picking your own pro means someone who answers to you, uses quality materials, and advocates during the claim.
This is exactly where Onward fits. Tell us your ZIP and what happened, and we match you with a few vetted local roofers who can give you a free inspection and a clear, written assessment. Every one of them clears The Onward Shield, our 6-point vetting:
- State license verified
- Liability and workers’ comp insurance verified
- Background and track-record check
- Written workmanship warranty required
- Real reviews from finished jobs, plus BBB
- Re-checked every year
Nearly 1 in 3 roofers who apply don’t make it in. You can see exactly how we verify roofers, or start a free roof inspection and storm damage assessment now.
Key takeaway: Get your own licensed roofer to inspect and document the damage before and during the adjuster’s visit. An independent pro works for you, not the insurer.
How to tell the type of damage: wind, hail, trees, and ice
Different storms leave different fingerprints on a roof. Knowing what you’re looking at helps you describe the damage accurately and spot it from the ground.
| Damage type | How it shows up | Where to look |
|---|---|---|
| Wind | Missing, curled, creased, or lifted shingles; horizontal crease lines; peeled flashing | Roof edges, ridges, corners (highest pressure) |
| Hail | Random dents; dark, soft bruised spots; bald patches with lost granules; dimpled metal | Shingle field, gutters, downspouts, vents, AC fins |
| Fallen trees / debris | Punctures, cracked deck, crushed shingles, structural sagging | Wherever a limb hit; check the attic underneath |
| Ice / snow | Leaks at the eaves, sagging gutters, water stains near outside walls | Roof edges, attic, ceilings along exterior walls |
Wind vs. hail: the quick test
Wind damage is about lifting and tearing. You’ll see shingles that are gone, curled at the edges, or showing a thin horizontal crease where the wind folded a tab back. It clusters at the edges and ridges.
Hail damage is about impact. Per Travelers’ inspection guidance, hail leaves random hits, soft bruised spots that feel like a bruise on an apple, and bald patches where granules were knocked off, exposing shiny asphalt. The giveaway: matching dents on aluminum gutters and metal vents. If your soft metals are dimpled, your shingles probably took the same hits.
One common mix-up is a hail bruise versus a heat blister. A blister is small, uniform, and clustered, and the mat underneath isn’t soft. A hail bruise is random and feels soft. When in doubt, a roofer can tell the difference fast. For more, see signs you need a new roof.
Key takeaway: Wind lifts and tears at the edges; hail dents and bruises at random and dimples your gutters. Trees puncture; ice leaks at the eaves. Match the pattern to the storm.
Step 7: Avoid storm chasers and door-knockers
After a big storm, your doorbell will ring. Out-of-town crews monitor hail and wind maps and pour into damaged neighborhoods within 24 to 48 hours, knocking on doors and pushing fast deals. These are “storm chasers,” and they are the single biggest hazard to your wallet right now.
Watch for these warning signs:
- Uninvited door-knocking right after the storm, often claiming your roof “looks bad from the street.”
- Out-of-state plates and no local office or verifiable address.
- Pressure to sign today or to let them climb your roof immediately.
- A push to sign an “Assignment of Benefits” (AOB) before your adjuster has even looked. That hands your claim rights to the contractor and you lose control.
- “We’ll waive your deductible.” This is the loudest alarm of all.
Why “we’ll waive your deductible” is fraud
Your deductible is your share of the cost, and you legally owe it. A contractor who offers to “eat,” “waive,” or “work around” it almost always plans to inflate the invoice to your insurer to cover the gap. That is insurance fraud, and it’s illegal in most states. If your insurer figures it out, you can be on the hook too, not just the contractor.
Before you hire anyone, ask for their state license number, proof of liability and workers’ comp insurance, and a local address you can verify. A legitimate pro answers all three without flinching. If you want the warning signs in detail, read how to spot a roofing scam. The simplest defense is to skip the door-knockers entirely and use a vetted local roofer you can trust.
Key takeaway: Never hire a door-knocker on the spot. Out-of-state plates, AOB pressure, and “we’ll waive your deductible” are red flags. Verify license, insurance, and a local address before signing anything.
Your first 24–48 hours: the storm-damage checklist
When the adrenaline is high, a checklist keeps you on track. Work through these in order, only doing each one when it’s safe.
- Confirm everyone is safe and account for pets. Watch for downed lines and standing water.
- Stay off the roof. Scan from the ground with binoculars or a zoom photo.
- Check inside — ceilings, attic, and walls — for stains, drips, and wet insulation.
- Contain any leaks with buckets, towels, and plastic; protect valuables.
- Document everything with wide and close-up photos and video, plus the exact storm date.
- Make safe temporary repairs (tarp) or have a pro do it; keep all receipts.
- Call your insurer to open a claim; record your claim number and deductible.
- Get an independent inspection from a licensed local roofer and a written estimate.
- Ignore door-knockers. Verify license, insurance, and a local address before hiring.
- Compare written quotes and pick the pro you trust. Never pay a large deposit upfront.
Key takeaway: Safe first, document before you repair, file promptly, and let a vetted pro handle the roof. Following this order in the first 48 hours protects both your home and your claim.
Want this handled without the guesswork? Onward can match you with a few vetted local pros for free, so you compare fair, written quotes instead of fielding cold calls.
Common mistakes that cost homeowners after a storm
Even careful homeowners trip over the same few errors. Avoid these and you’ll save money, time, and stress.
- Climbing the roof to “just take a look.” This causes serious falls every year. Let a pro with safety gear handle it.
- Cleaning up before documenting. Once the tarp is on and the debris is gone, you’ve erased your best evidence. Photograph first.
- Hiring the first door-knocker. The crew that shows up uninvited is rarely the one you want. Vet before you sign.
- Filing a claim for damage smaller than your deductible. If a pro finds $800 of damage and your deductible is $2,000, filing only adds a claim to your record. Get a written estimate first.
- Letting the adjuster be your only inspector. Bring your own licensed roofer so nothing gets missed.
- Paying a big deposit upfront. Reputable roofers don’t demand large cash deposits before work starts. The Onward Promise backs every matched job, so you’re never alone in the process.
Key takeaway: The costliest mistakes are climbing the roof, cleaning up before documenting, and hiring a door-knocker. Slow down, document, and vet your pro.
How Onward takes the fear out of the next call
After a storm, the hardest part isn’t the damage. It’s not knowing who to trust. That’s the exact problem Onward was built to solve.
Tell us your ZIP and what happened, and in about 60 seconds we match you with a few vetted, licensed, insured local roofers. They give you a free inspection and a clear, written quote, and they can meet your adjuster if you’re filing a claim. We send your details to only a few matched pros, never to a crowd of cold-callers, and we never sell your information.
Every pro clears The Onward Shield, our 6-point vetting, and gets re-checked every year. The Onward Promise, our homeowner-protection guarantee, backs every matched job. So instead of fielding door-knockers and guessing whether a license is real, you compare fair quotes from pros who already passed a tough screen.
If your roof took a hit, the calm next step is simple: get a free inspection and quote from a vetted local pro. You can also learn how it works or browse storm damage help.
Key takeaway: Onward replaces the storm-chaser gauntlet with a short list of vetted local pros, free inspections, fair written quotes, and a guarantee behind every job.
The bottom line
Roof storm damage is stressful, but the path through it is clear. Stay safe and stay off the roof. Check inside and contain leaks. Document everything with photos, video, and the storm date before you repair anything. Make safe temporary repairs and keep the receipts. Open your claim promptly, get an independent inspection from a licensed local roofer, and ignore the door-knockers and “we’ll waive your deductible” offers.
Do those things in order, and you protect both your home and your insurance claim. When you’re ready for a calm, no-pressure look at the damage, get a free quote and inspection from a vetted local pro who works for you, not the insurance company.
