Before You Step Outside
Safety first — the storm's leftovers hurt more people than the storm.
1. Treat every downed line as live
Downed power lines, and anything they're touching — fences, puddles, tree limbs — can be energized. Stay far clear and report them to Gulf Power/FPL. Don't wade standing water in the yard until you know what's in it.
2. Check for gas, structural damage, and ceiling bulges inside
If you smell gas, leave and call from outside. Sagging ceilings, cracked walls, or a visibly shifted roofline mean the structure needs a professional look before you move back into those rooms. A bulging ceiling holds trapped water — relieve it with a small drain hole into a bucket rather than letting the drywall come down at once.
3. Run generators outside only
After Hurricane Laura (2020), carbon monoxide from generators killed more people in Louisiana than the storm's wind and water did. Generators run outdoors, far from windows, doors, and vents — never in a garage, even with the door open.
4. Stay off the roof
A storm-loaded roof can be structurally compromised, slick, and hiding soft decking. Assess from the ground and the attic only — and walking the roof can also disturb the damage evidence your adjuster needs to see intact. Our crews walk it for free ((850) 220-3965).
First 24 Hours — Document, Then Stop the Water
Everything you photograph now is money later. Then mitigate.
5. Photograph everything before you touch anything
Every side of the exterior, every room with water, every dented vent and displaced shingle, standing water, debris where it fell. Wide shots plus close-ups, with your phone's timestamps. If you took our prep checklist's 'before' photos, you now have the before/after pair that carries a claim.
6. Check the attic with a flashlight
Daylight through the decking, damp insulation, and water streaks on rafters show damage the ceiling won't reveal for weeks. Wind damage is often invisible from the ground — the attic is where it shows first.
7. Tarp active leaks — don't wait for the adjuster
Your policy expects you to prevent further damage after a loss, and reasonable emergency mitigation is usually reimbursable — keep every receipt. We do same-day emergency tarping, photographed before and after so the record is clean. Water coming in right now? Start with the first-hour steps.
8. Dry out fast — mold doesn't wait
Move soaked belongings out, pull wet insulation from living spaces where you safely can, and get air moving. Mold growth can start within 24–48 hours of water intrusion, and mold remediation is frequently excluded or capped on Florida policies. The 48-hour dry-out is the cheapest insurance decision you'll make all storm.
9. Open your insurance claim
Report the loss, get the claim number in writing, and ask for the adjuster's direct contact. Florida bars claims reported more than 1 year after the date of loss (Fla. Stat. § 627.70132) — and for hurricanes the clock runs from landfall. Coverage basics, RCV vs. ACV, and the process are in our Florida roof insurance guide.
The First Week — Work the Claim
The order matters: inspection → adjuster → scope. And keep the scammers off your porch.
10. Get a licensed local inspection — even if the roof 'looks fine'
Broken seal bonds, creased tabs, and lifted flashing don't leak until months later, when the claim window is burning down. We inspect free across the Panhandle — walk, drone, written photo report within 24 hours. Then if it's storm damage, our storm damage repair team carries the documentation into the claim.
11. Have your contractor at the adjuster meeting
You're allowed to have your roofer present when the insurance adjuster inspects — and you should. A licensed contractor pointing out documented damage on the spot is the difference between a complete scope and a lowball one. We meet adjusters on-site every storm season.
12. Don't sign anything from a door-knocker
The wave that follows every storm: out-of-town crews, deductible "deals" (that's insurance fraud), AOBs (void on policies issued on or after Jan 1, 2023), and big cash deposits. The full playbook and the 30-second license check are in roofing scams after a hurricane. Verify any roofer — including us — at myfloridalicense.com.
13. If a federal disaster is declared, check Operation Blue Roof
The free USACE tarp program activates county-by-county after a federal declaration (blueroof.gov / 1-888-ROOF-BLU). It's real and free, with eligibility fine print and a days-to-weeks wait — here's how it works and when same-day professional tarping is the better call.
14. Let your contractor handle permits
Emergency tarping doesn't need a permit (Escambia County, for example, lists temporary emergency tarping as permit-exempt), and area counties open expedited storm-recovery permitting after declarations. Whatever the repair ends up requiring, a licensed local contractor pulls the permits — you never should have to. Anyone proposing to skip permitting on a real repair is a red flag.
Weeks 2–4 — The Permanent Fix
Turn the claim into a roof, and come out stronger than before the storm.
15. Compare the carrier's scope to your contractor's
Line by line. Missing line items — underlayment, flashing, code-required upgrades — are where claims get underpaid. Dispute gaps with documentation before you sign off; a supplemental claim is possible but must be reported within 18 months of the loss.
16. Contract with a verifiable local roofer — on a regular contract
Florida license (CCC prefix), local address, itemized quote, real workmanship warranty, no AOB, and your deductible stated plainly — the vetting list is in questions to ask a roofer. We price storm work the same as any other job — no emergency markups.
17. If it's a replacement, capture the wind-mitigation upside
A re-roof is your one cheap chance at the insurance credits on Florida's wind-mitigation form — sealed deck, 8d ring-shank deck nailing, and documentation of the roof-to-wall connections while everything is open. Done right, the new roof lowers your premium for years. Income-qualified homeowners should also check the My Safe Florida Home grant.
18. Keep the file
Photos, receipts, the claim number, adjuster correspondence, the signed scope, permit records, and the final invoice — one folder, kept for the life of the policy. It protects the claim, feeds any supplemental, and documents the roof's condition for the next storm (or the next insurer).
Start with the free post-storm inspection.
Walk-through, drone photos of the high spots, and a straight, photo-documented answer — damage or no damage. Pensacola, Gulf Breeze, Navarre, Milton, Pace, and everywhere in between.
Complete Roofing LLC · FL Lic. CCC1337480 · (850) 220-3965 · roofing-it.com · General information, not legal or insurance advice — current as of July 2026.