Claims high, roofers plentiful following Tuesday hailstorm – Chanute Tribune

Repair companies should be vetted thoroughly, say agents

JOSHUA VAIL

Tribune reporter

Tuesdays hailstorm did some damage in Chanute. Local insurance agents and others involved in the business of roof and vehicle repair talked about the extent of the damage and warned people to be careful about who they pay for the jobs.

Farmers Insurance Agent Mitch Love said there have definitely been a lot of calls about building and vehicle damage. It seems that the west side of town generally got hit a bit harder than the east side, but damage is scattered all over.

Weve filed quite a few claims, he said.

Love recommended that those who think their roofs have been damaged contact a local, licensed roofing contractor and have them look at the roof.

State Farm agent Ryan Disbrow said that business has been brisk.

Weve found that a large majority of our customers have fairly significant damage to their roofs, he said, and on the cars, weve had a lot of damage as well.

Disbrow said he knew the numbers were going to be pretty significant. He said his agency is already looking at 50-100 roofs and a couple hundred cars.

State Farm assessors are doing estimates for their customers and they are telling customers not to take their cars to someone they dont trust.

Disbrow has local contractors he will recommend. Insurance companies cannot steer customers to one contractor or another, but they do recommend that customers contact them if a roofer comes to their door wanting to do an estimate or repairs.

The biggest issue in these situations is a lack of communication, he said.

Chris Cleaver with Cleaver Farm & Home, which provides roofing and other exterior supplies, said it is still early to know the full extent of hail damage in Chanute and business has been slow so far on that front.

We havent really sold any roofs, he said.

Cleaver said they have sold some shingles to people, but in talking to local insurance agents he thinks it will be a good year to be in the shingle business.

Eighty-five percent of roofs might be a total loss, he said.

Cleaver said he hopes that hail is as bad a storm as Chanute gets this year, as fewer people are hurt by hail than by tornadoes.

Cleaver said that roofing contractors should be vetted carefully before any money is exchanged, and he would personally prefer to know a little about a contractor before allowing them to look at a roof or a house.

The state of Kansas has a roofing license through the Attorney Generals Office, he said. In order to legally shingle in the State of Kansas, you need to be licensed.

The web page at http://www.ag.ks.gov/in-your-corner-kansas/resources/roofing-registration/roofer-search is a searchable database of all licensed roofers in the state.

They can be searched by name, contact person, city and registration number. Information displayed includes the company name, registration number, contact person, city and state and whether they are in good standing.

After determining if they are licensed with the state, Cleaver recommends ensuring they have insurance and making sure they have a Chanute business license.

Do a little research on your own and make sure, before you spend your money, that you know what kind of work youre going to get, he said.

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Claims high, roofers plentiful following Tuesday hailstorm - Chanute Tribune