Waiving or absorbing deductibles is a practice that some roofing companies use to keep costs down for homeowners to help them save money for roofing projects. Essentially, waiving/absorbing a deductible involves a roofing company inflating the cost of a roof repair job so that the insurance company ends up slightly overpaying for the project. Then, the roofing company may not charge the homeowner the deductible.
Essentially, deductible absorption allows roofing companies to transfer deductible costs from homeowners to insurers in order to let homeowners save money. There are other ways that this can be done too. For example, a roofing company may tell an insurance company that the job costs $10,000 to complete. However, the company may then use cheaper materials to make the job only cost $9,000 to complete. They may then pass these savings onto the homeowner by not charging him or her the deductible, or “absorbing it.”
The only way a roofing company can waive a deductible is by sending the insurance company a fraudulent invoice. This is unequivocally insurance fraud on the part of the roofing company and on the part of the homeowner. We would never ask our customers to take part in that.
In an ethical sense, yes, absorbing deductibles is wrong. This is because it involves deceiving the insurance company and making it pay more money that it would otherwise have to. Absorbing deductibles is also wrong in a legal sense. This is because it is a type of insurance fraud, and is identical to stealing from the insurance company.
Homeowners who attempt to have their deductibles waived can not only have their insurance policies voided for breach of contract, but they can also face legal action for insurance fraud.
There are several other major problems with the practice of absorbing insurance deductibles for roofing projects. The first is that because roofing companies often use cheaper materials to absorb deductibles, the end result is often subpar. This means that the roof will be more likely to experience another problem, which could actually result in the homeowner having to spend significantly more money.
Further, roofing companies also frequently try to use cheaper labor or rush jobs in order to absorb the deductible. Hiring less experienced workers, or trying to rush work in order to reduce billable hours can also result in a subpar end result. This too can make the homeowner actually have to spend more money since it increases the chances of the roof experiencing another major problem.
If you have recently experienced damage to your roof and if you need to have a roof repair job done, then you should definitely not attempt to have your deductible waived. This is because it is not only unlawful, but it could void your insurance coverage and result in negative legal consequences. Further, if you do attempt to waive your deductible, you can end up with a poorly completed job. The roof of your home is one of the last things that you want to skimp on. So, you should always make sure that repairs are done correctly and not done with low-quality materials just to waive your deductible. Here at NewRuf, we never compromise our ethics or our relationships with our clients and insurance companies by offering to absorb deductibles. Instead, we make sure that everything is done ethically and in full compliance with the law. We also do not rush jobs or use poor quality materials. For your upcoming roofing project, please contact us at any time to get started.
If your roofer suggests waving your deductible, the best practice is to run the other way. It’s not worth it. Club Fed? No Way!
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