Roof Depreciation Recovery Check: Why Your First Check Is Short

Why your insurance check is less than the estimate: ACV vs RCV

Two numbers drive everything on your claim summary.

RCV (replacement cost value) is what it costs today to put your roof back the way it was, at today's material and labor prices.

ACV (actual cash value) is that same number minus depreciation, which is the value your old roof lost to age and wear. A 17-year-old three-tab roof has used up most of its life, so depreciation is big. A 4-year-old architectural shingle roof depreciates very little.

Your first check is usually RCV, minus depreciation, minus your deductible:

• Replacement cost value: $18,400
• Less depreciation (held back): $5,900
• Less deductible: $2,000
• First check (ACV): $10,500

The homeowner sees $10,500 against an $18,400 estimate and panics. But $5,900 of that gap isn't lost. It's sitting with the carrier waiting for proof the work got done. The only money that's truly yours to pay is the deductible.

Where to find these numbers

Look at the loss summary or "recap" page of the adjuster's estimate. You'll see columns for RCV, depreciation, ACV, and a line that reads something like "net claim if depreciation is recovered." That last line is your real total.

If your paperwork doesn't spell it out, call your adjuster and ask three things: What's my total RCV? How much depreciation is withheld? Is that depreciation recoverable?

What recoverable depreciation is (and what it isn't)

Recoverable depreciation is the portion of the claim your insurer withholds until the repair is complete, then pays out.

It exists so people can't cash a full-replacement check and skip the roof. It's not a penalty and it's not a negotiation. If your policy is written on a replacement cost basis, that money is contractually yours once you do the work and prove it.

Two things have to happen: the approved scope gets completed, and somebody sends the carrier acceptable proof.

How to get the depreciation recovery check released

1. Agree on the scope before work starts. Your contractor and the adjuster should line up item for item. If your roofer builds a cheaper, thinner scope than the insurance estimate, you're about to lose depreciation, because the carrier releases only up to what you actually spent.

2. Complete the roof. Tear-off, decking repairs, ice barrier, drip edge, underlayment, shingles, ventilation, flashing. The whole scope, not a patch.

3. Pull the permit. In the city that's a re-roof permit through City of Madison Building Inspection; outside city limits it runs through your town or village. The permit record is clean third-party proof the work happened.

4. Submit the completion package. Carriers want:

• An itemized final invoice on contractor letterhead reflecting the completed scope
• A certificate of completion signed by you and the contractor
• Photos of the finished work, plus in-progress photos of anything now hidden (rotten decking, layers removed, flashing, ice barrier)
• Permit and inspection documentation
• Any supplement approvals

5. Follow up in writing. Email the claim number and ask for written confirmation that depreciation has been released. Timing varies by carrier, often a couple of weeks to a month after a complete packet, and longer when a lender endorsement is required.

On our jobs we shoot the documentation as we go, not at the end: a chalked 10x10 test square on each slope with impacts circled, a wide-mid-close series on each, and witness shots of soft metals (gutter aprons, downspouts, furnace flue caps), because adjusters weigh collateral soft-metal damage heavily. A roof built right and documented badly still costs the homeowner money.

At Buckshot Exteriors that paperwork is part of the job, not an add-on.

If your mortgage company is on the check

Your lender has a financial interest in the house, so it's named as a payee. You endorse the check and send it to the lender's loss draft department, which either endorses it back or holds the funds and releases them in draws, sometimes after its own inspection.

Both checks usually route the same way. Start that process the day the first check arrives. Loss draft departments move on their own schedule, and this is the most common reason homeowners think the insurer is stalling when it isn't.

What if my contractor's price is higher than the insurance RCV?

Then somebody has to cover the difference, and it should be settled in writing before a single shingle comes off.

Three honest outcomes:

• The extra work is legitimate storm or code work the adjuster missed. That's a supplement, and the carrier pays it. This is by far the most common gap.
• You chose an upgrade (heavier shingle, standing seam metal, better ventilation). That's on you, and a good contractor prices it as a separate, clearly labeled line so you can see exactly what the upgrade costs.
• The bid is simply higher than the market. Then get the scopes compared side by side. A cheap bid and an expensive bid are rarely the same roof.

What should never happen: a surprise invoice at the end. You should know your out-of-pocket number, deductible plus any upgrade, before work starts.

Can I keep the ACV check and not replace the roof?

You can keep the ACV money without doing the work, but you forfeit the recoverable depreciation, and you take on real risk.

Once a claim is paid on your address, the carrier knows the roof is damaged. If a later inspection or renewal review finds the damage unrepaired, common outcomes are a roof exclusion (wind and hail no longer covered), non-renewal, or denial of the next claim as pre-existing damage. Unrepaired hail bruising also keeps working on you: granule loss, mat failure, then leaks into decking and drywall.

Using storm money for something else is one of the more expensive decisions a homeowner can make.

Two different deadlines: filing and completing

Don't confuse them.

The notice deadline is how long you have to report the loss. Policies require prompt notice, and many now include a specific window (often a year or two) for wind and hail. Don't gamble on it; ask your agent for the exact language in writing.

The completion deadline is how long you have to finish the work and claim recoverable depreciation. Same idea, different clock, and it's usually measured from the date of loss.

Miss the second one and the held money is simply gone. Picture the pattern we see every hail year, and treat this as a hypothetical: ACV check arrives in July, the homeowner decides to wait for spring pricing, spring gets busy, and by the time anyone calls, several thousand dollars of recoverable depreciation has expired. Nothing to appeal. The clock just ran out.

Do this today. Find the loss settlement section of your policy, or ask your adjuster in writing: what is my deadline to complete the work and claim recoverable depreciation? Put it on the calendar.

Wisconsin adds a squeeze. Our hail season runs roughly May into August, and a late-season storm leaves a short runway before cold decking and poor shingle sealing become real problems, with every decent crew from Verona to Waunakee booked out. Waiting for spring on a fall storm is how people run out of clock.

A low first check does not mean a low settlement

Two very different things make a first check look small: withheld depreciation, which you get back, and a scope that's genuinely too thin, which you have to fix.

Adjusters move fast in a big storm event and they miss things. What we most often find missing on Madison, Fitchburg and Middleton roofs:

• Decking replacement. Plenty of 1970s and 1980s homes here have 1x6 plank decking with gaps too wide to hold a shingle nail, or delaminated OSB and rot at chimneys and valleys. You can't see it until tear-off.
• Ice barrier at the eaves. Wisconsin's Uniform Dwelling Code and the IRC ice-barrier standard used locally require a membrane running from the lowest roof edge to a point at least 24 inches inside the exterior wall line. That's code, not an upgrade, and it's a real line item.
• Drip edge. Frequently omitted, and required for a correct install and most manufacturer warranties.
• Second layer tear-off, steep pitch above 7/12, and two-story access. All change labor and disposal.
• Accessories. Ridge vent, pipe boots, step and counter flashing, chimney work, satellite or solar detach and reset.
• Related trades. Hail that bruised shingles usually dented gutters, fascia, window wraps and soft siding on the same elevations.

The fix is a supplement: a documented request to add missed items, backed by photos, measurements, code citations and material invoices. On a typical 1,800 square foot Madison-area ranch, an approved supplement package of decking sheets, roughly 150 lineal feet of drip edge, eave ice barrier and a bath fan vented properly through the roof commonly adds four figures to RCV. Every dollar added raises your recoverable depreciation with it. Your deductible doesn't change.

Ordinance and Law coverage funds the code items

Ask whether your policy includes Ordinance or Law coverage, sometimes shown as "code upgrade" coverage. Limits vary widely, so check your declarations page rather than assuming you have it.

That's the coverage that pays to bring the roof up to current code during a covered repair: eave ice barrier, drip edge, ventilation, decking. Without it, carriers sometimes argue those items are betterment. With it, they're payable.

Partial repair, one slope, and shingle matching

Insurers do sometimes approve a single slope, and that's a legitimate fight worth having on the facts.

Two arguments carry weight. First, function: if a slope shows damage across multiple test squares, it isn't repairable, and hip and ridge caps can't be reused. Second, availability: if your shingle line or color is discontinued, get written documentation from the supplier or manufacturer. A repaired slope in a near-match color is visible from the street and won't carry a system warranty.

Wisconsin has no statute forcing a uniform-appearance match, so this gets won with documentation, not opinions. That's a big reason we ask to be on the roof with your adjuster.

Not sure whether your estimate matches your damage? Call Buckshot Exteriors for a free inspection and a straight read of your claim paperwork. No cost, no pressure, and we'll tell you if you don't have a claim.

Can you choose your own contractor?

Yes. In Wisconsin you decide who works on your home. Your carrier may recommend a program contractor, and that route works fine for some homeowners, but you're never required to use it. The carrier controls what it owes under the policy, not who does the work.

If the carrier denies or lowballs after your supplement

Each rung here is real.

1. Request a reinspection in writing with your contractor present, attaching photo documentation and code citations. Most disputes end here. We meet the adjuster on the roof, which is how storm damage restoration in Dane County claims get settled before they become fights.
2. Escalate internally. Ask for a field supervisor or reassignment, in writing, referencing specific line items rather than "the estimate is too low."
3. Invoke the appraisal clause. Nearly every policy has one. Each side hires an appraiser, the two pick an umpire, and the result binds the amount of loss (not coverage).
4. File a complaint with the Wisconsin Office of the Commissioner of Insurance (OCI). It's free, the insurer must respond, and it frequently unsticks stalled claims.

Keep every email. Documentation wins claims, not arguments.

Non-recoverable depreciation and ACV-only roof policies

Some depreciation never comes back. No paperwork releases it. You'll see it with:

• An ACV-only roof endorsement, where older roofs (often 15-20+ years) settle at actual cash value on the roof surface while the rest of the house stays replacement cost
• A roof payment schedule paying a declining percentage of RCV by age; a 20-year-old roof might settle at 40%
• Landlord and investment policies written ACV
• Cosmetic damage exclusions, which can gut hail claims on metal roofing and some siding

If you're on an ACV settlement, the gap is real, and the smart move is planning around it. We'll give you an honest asphalt shingle roof replacement number so you know your exact out-of-pocket before you commit.

When you do replace, ask about Class 4 impact-resistant shingles. Many carriers give a premium credit, and a properly built, well-documented fortified roof system is the strongest argument you have at renewal or reinspection.

Wisconsin deductible law, and how to cover your gap legally

Under Wis. Stat. section 100.65, a residential contractor may not advertise or promise to pay, rebate, waive or absorb any part of your insurance deductible. The statute also requires written notice of your right to cancel if the claim is denied.

So when a storm chaser says "we'll eat your deductible," understand the proposal: inflate the invoice so the carrier covers a cost you're legally required to pay. That's fraud with your name on the claim.

Legal ways to handle the money:

• Match the payment schedule to the claim payments. Little or nothing down, ACV applied at completion, balance when depreciation and supplements release.
• Third-party financing or a payment plan through the contractor's lender, a HELOC, or your own credit union.
• Contribute labor or accept a scope you actually chose, documented honestly.

Other red flags: pressure to sign on the first visit, no local address, a large cash deposit before materials are ordered, and a promised "free roof" before anyone has been on the roof.

Ready to get your second check released?

If you're staring at a check that looks too small, get someone qualified on the roof before you decide anything. We inspect, photograph and measure at no cost, then compare the actual damage line by line against what your adjuster wrote.

Buckshot Exteriors has been family-owned and working on south-central Wisconsin homes since 1979. Roofing, siding, gutters, windows and doors, 24-hour emergency storm response, and we meet your adjuster on-site to document hail and wind damage. We write the supplements when items get missed, and we assemble the completion packet that gets your depreciation recovery check released.

Two things before you call. The inspection and estimate are free, so finding out costs you nothing. And we don't do pressure. If your roof is fine, we'll say so.

Call Buckshot Exteriors today, or request a free inspection here, and we'll get on your calendar. If there's a deadline on your depreciation, the sooner we look, the more of that money stays yours.