How do I file a roof insurance claim in Texas?

Start by reporting the damage to your insurer as soon as possible, photographing everything before cleanup, and keeping receipts, per Texas Department of Insurance guidance. Once you file, Texas Insurance Code chapter 542 sets response deadlines: acknowledgment by the 15th day, an accept/reject decision within 15 business days, and payment within 5 business days of acceptance.

Texas law gives homeowners real, enforceable rights once a roof insurance claim is filed: specific response deadlines for the insurer, a rule against your own contractor acting as your adjuster, and a ban on contractors waiving your deductible. Here’s what the Texas Department of Insurance and the Texas Insurance Code actually say, step by step.

What should I do first after my roof is damaged in a storm?

The Texas Department of Insurance recommends reporting roof damage to your insurer as soon as possible, photographing and video-recording everything before cleanup, and holding off on throwing anything away until your adjuster says it’s fine. Make only temporary repairs to stop further damage, and keep a running list of repairs and receipts.

The Texas Department of Insurance’s full post-storm checklist is worth following in order:

1. Report the damage to your insurer as soon as possible.
2. Take photos and video of all damage before doing any cleanup.
3. Don’t throw away damaged materials until your adjuster tells you it’s okay.
4. Make only temporary repairs to prevent further damage.
5. Keep a written list of repairs needed and save every receipt.
6. Be present for the adjuster’s visit and personally point out all damage.
7. Get multiple contractor bids and compare them against the adjuster’s report.
8. Save proof that you paid your deductible.

Is there a deadline to file a roof insurance claim in Texas?

There’s no universal filing deadline for a standard Texas homeowners policy — each policy sets its own, so check yours or ask your insurer directly. The Texas Department of Insurance does confirm one specific deadline: Texas Windstorm Insurance Association (TWIA) claims must be filed within one year of the date of loss.

TWIA also gives you two years to provide notice and file suit against the association if a dispute isn’t resolved. Many online guides describe a flat “one-year deadline” for all Texas storm claims, but that appears to describe the TWIA-specific rule — a standard homeowners policy (the kind most Cypress-area homeowners carry) sets its own proof-of-loss deadline in the policy itself. Check your declarations page or call your insurer to confirm the actual date that applies to you.

How quickly must my insurance company respond after I file a claim?

Under Texas Insurance Code chapter 542, an insurer must acknowledge your claim, begin investigating, and request any needed items by the 15th day after receiving notice (30 business days for surplus lines). It then has 15 business days after getting everything it requested to accept or reject the claim in writing.

Once your insurer accepts the claim, it must pay within 5 business days of notifying you of that acceptance (Sec. 542.057(a)). If it suspects arson, the accept/reject window extends to 30 days, and can be pushed to the 45th day with written reasons (Sec. 542.056). If a weather catastrophe is involved, every deadline above extends by 15 days (Sec. 542.059(b)). One wrinkle worth flagging: the Texas Department of Insurance’s own consumer blog describes the acknowledgment step as due in “15 business days,” but the statute itself sets it at the 15th calendar day after notice — those aren’t the same number of days, so don’t assume the rounded version is the legal deadline.

What happens if my insurer misses these deadlines?

Texas Insurance Code section 542.058 makes an insurer that pays a claim more than 60 days late liable for statutory damages on top of what it owes, with section 542.060 setting out how those damages apply. These provisions exist to give the prompt-payment deadlines real teeth beyond a written promise.

You don’t have to do anything extra to trigger this protection — it exists specifically so insurers face a real cost for sitting on a claim past the deadlines described above.

Can my roofing contractor act as my insurance adjuster?

No. Texas Insurance Code chapter 4102 requires a license to act as a public insurance adjuster, and a contractor may not act as one or advertise adjusting services for a property it’s also working on. A licensed adjuster, in turn, can’t participate in repair work on a claim they adjusted.

Contracts signed with an unlicensed adjuster are voidable by the homeowner (Sec. 4102.207). The ban on contractors acting as adjusters was added to the Insurance Code in 2013 by House Bill 1183, then amended in 2019 by House Bill 2103 — not the similarly numbered House Bill 2102, which is a separate 2019 law addressing deductible-payment procedures under Insurance Code chapter 707. A contractor can still support and document your claim — pointing out damage, providing a bid, meeting the adjuster on-site — it’s acting as the adjuster itself, or advertising that it will, that the law prohibits.

Can a contractor legally waive or “absorb” my insurance deductible?

No — the Texas Department of Insurance says a contractor who waives, rebates, or otherwise absorbs your insurance deductible is breaking the law, with penalties of up to a $2,000 fine and up to six months in jail. Your wind/hail deductible may also differ from your standard homeowners deductible.

This is one of the most common storm-chaser tactics (see our guide on spotting a storm-chaser scam), because “we’ll cover your deductible” sounds like a discount rather than a crime. Confirm what your policy actually charges for wind/hail damage — insurers are allowed to set a separate wind/hail deductible that differs from your standard deductible — and keep your payment receipt as proof, per the post-storm checklist above.