# Does homeowners insurance cover roof damage in Texas? Mammoth Roofing & Exteriors · https://mammothroofs.com/blog/roofing-insurance/ · (210) 934-9074 Usually when a storm caused it, and not when age did. Between those answers sit seven decisions that are yours to make, from what caused the damage to who signs the check. First published October 2025. _10 min read · Updated November 3, 2026_ **Key points** - A Texas home policy pays for sudden damage from a covered event, such as hail, wind, fire or lightning, and not for wear, neglect or a slow leak. - The roof sits under the dwelling coverage; things inside the house damaged by the same storm can be covered too. - Make temporary repairs and keep the receipts, but leave permanent repairs until the insurer has seen the damage. - Code upgrades on a new roof are paid only if the policy carries building code coverage, an optional endorsement. - If you disagree on the amount, the appraisal clause and the Texas Department of Insurance come before any lawyer. ## The short answer. Usually yes, when a storm caused the damage, and no, when age did. A homeowners policy pays for sudden, accidental damage from a covered event such as hail, wind, fire or lightning. It does not pay for a roof that wore out, a leak that ran for months, or damage from neglect. Between those two answers sit a handful of decisions that are yours to make, and they shape what a claim pays: what caused the damage, which part of the policy it falls under, what to fix now, when to report it, what to do about code upgrades, who signs the check, and what to do if you disagree. This guide takes them in order. How much a covered claim pays depends on whether the policy pays replacement cost or actual cash value, which our guide to [actual cash value vs replacement cost](https://mammothroofs.com/guides/actual-cash-value-vs-replacement-cost/) works through with the Texas Department of Insurance's own example. ## Where the roof sits in your policy. The Texas Department of Insurance describes a home policy as several coverages in one: the dwelling, other structures, personal property, additional living expenses, personal liability and medical payments. A roof claim can touch four of them. - **The dwelling** covers the house itself, the roof, the decking and the ceilings included. - **Other structures** covers a detached garage, a shed or a fence on the lot. - **Personal property** covers what is inside: the rug under the leak, the furniture, the clothes in the closet. - **Additional living expenses** pays for somewhere to stay if the damage leaves the house unfit to live in. The declarations page, the first page or two of the policy, lists each limit and each deductible. Most Texas policies carry a separate wind and hail deductible written as a percentage of the dwelling limit, and our [deductible guide](https://mammothroofs.com/guides/roof-insurance-deductibles/) shows how to work out what yours is in dollars. ## Decision one: what caused the damage? Every claim starts with the cause, because the cause decides whether there is coverage at all. In the department's table of what most policies do not cover are wear and tear, a continuous leak, termites, insects and rodents, flood, earth movement, and losses while a house sits empty longer than the policy allows. Mold is covered only as part of repairing damage from a covered event. Windstorm and hail are on the department's list of what most policies cover, with one exception: on the Texas coast and the Harris County shore of Galveston Bay, a home policy might not cover wind and hail, and that cover may have to come from the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association. A covered event has a date. The adjuster will want to know which storm did the damage, so note the date, photograph what you can see from the ground, and keep the photos. The National Weather Service logs hail and wind reports by date and place, and our town pages count them for each town; the [Fort Worth page](https://mammothroofs.com/locations/fort-worth/) is a good example of what a storm record looks like. ## Decision two: is it only the roof? When a storm opens the roof and rain gets in, report the damage inside with the damage on top. The stained ceiling and the wet insulation are part of the house, which the dwelling coverage covers; the soaked rug is personal property. How the policy treats water that came through a storm opening is set by its own wording, so read that clause or ask your agent. Photograph everything at once, and dry the house out quickly: water left to sit invites the mold the policy will not cover. A leak that ran slowly for months is a different story. The department lists a continuous leak among the things most policies leave out, so a ceiling stain under a pipe boot that has been cracking for years is a repair, not a claim. An inspection that starts in the attic tells the two apart, and writes down which is which. ## Decision three: what to fix now, and what to leave. The department's advice runs two ways. Do what you need to keep the damage from getting worse, such as covering an opening with a tarp, and keep the receipts. But make only temporary repairs until the insurer has seen the damage, because permanent repairs made first can lead to a denied claim. A tarp is the textbook temporary repair; our [emergency roof repair](https://mammothroofs.com/services/emergency-roof-repair/) crews put them on the same day. ## Decision four: when to report it. The department says to tell your company as soon as possible, and notes that some policies set a one-year deadline for filing unless you can show good cause for the delay. Read your policy's conditions now, before you need them. As soon as possible does not mean before you know what you have. Have the roof inspected first, so you know whether the damage is storm damage and whether it is worth more than your deductible. If it is, report it promptly and attach the report. ## Decision five: what about code upgrades? A new roof is built to today's code, and the code may ask for things your old roof never had. The residential code Texas cities adopt requires a drip edge along every eave and rake of a shingle roof, for example, and an older roof may have been built without one. Whether the policy pays for that upgrade is a policy question. The department's guide lists coverage for the extra cost of meeting local building codes among the optional endorsements, which tells you a basic policy may not include it. Look for it on your declarations page, and ask your agent before the storm rather than after. ## Decision six: who signs the check? If you have a mortgage, the department says the insurer will usually send the payment to your mortgage company, and the mortgage company must get in touch with you within ten days of receiving it. Know who services your loan and how it handles insurance checks before you need the money for a roof. On a replacement cost policy the money often comes in two payments, the second released once the work is done and invoiced. The [actual cash value guide](https://mammothroofs.com/guides/actual-cash-value-vs-replacement-cost/) explains how the held-back amount works. ## Decision seven: what if you disagree? If you think a claim was underpaid or wrongly denied, Texas gives you ways to push back that do not start with a lawyer. - **Be at the inspection.** The department suggests being there when the adjuster looks, ideally with your contractor, so the damage can be pointed out on the roof. - **Ask for the reasons in writing.** If the company rejects a claim, Texas law requires it to say why, in writing. - **Send your evidence.** The department's advice is to call your company or agent and provide documentation that backs up your position: the inspection report, the photographs, the storm date. - **Use the appraisal clause** if the dispute is about the amount rather than whether the damage is covered. You and the company each hire an appraiser, the two choose an umpire, and the umpire's decision is binding. You pay your own appraiser and half the umpire. - **Complain to the department.** Its consumer help line is 800-252-3439, and complaints go in writing through its online portal. - **Know the notice rule.** Before suing over storm damage, Texas law requires written notice to the insurer at least 61 days before the suit is filed. We are roofers, not public adjusters or lawyers, and Texas law keeps it that way: a contractor may not adjust a claim on a property it is working on. What we can do is document the roof thoroughly and meet the adjuster on it. The claim steps and the deadlines your insurer has to meet are in our guide to [what to do after a storm](https://mammothroofs.com/guides/what-to-do-after-a-storm/). ## A worked example: one storm, three findings. A May hailstorm passes over a twenty-year-old shingle roof. The inspection afterward finds three things, and each one lands differently. - **Hail bruises across the south and west slopes.** Sudden damage with a date: covered, subject to the wind and hail deductible, and paid on whatever settlement terms the policy has for an older roof. - **A ceiling stain under a pipe boot.** The rubber cracked in the sun years ago and the leak has been slow and steady: wear and a continuous leak, so not covered. It is a repair, and our [roof repair page](https://mammothroofs.com/services/roof-repair/) puts a pipe boot at typically $500 or less. - **No drip edge on the old roof.** The residential code requires one on a new shingle roof: an upgrade the policy pays for only if it carries building code coverage. Same roof, same storm, three different answers. Separating them before the claim is filed is what keeps a valid claim clean and a weak one off your record. ## What to check before the next storm. - The dwelling limit and the wind and hail deductible on the declarations page. - Every endorsement that names the roof: actual cash value, a [roof payment schedule](https://mammothroofs.com/guides/roof-payment-schedule/) or a cosmetic damage exclusion. - Whether you have building code coverage, and its limit. - The policy's deadline for reporting a claim. - Who services your mortgage, and how it handles claim checks. - Dated photographs of the roof as it is today. ## Frequently asked Does homeowners insurance pay for a roof leak?It depends on what caused it. A sudden release of water, or damage from a covered storm, is the kind of loss policies cover. A continuous leak, or one from wear, is on the Texas Department of Insurance's list of what most policies do not. Is water damage inside the house covered along with the roof?It can be. Report it with the roof damage: the inside of the house falls under the dwelling coverage and your belongings under personal property, and the policy's wording decides how water from a storm opening is treated. Mold is covered only as part of repairing covered damage. Will my insurer pay to replace a roof that simply wore out?No. Wear and tear is on the list of what most Texas home policies do not cover. A roof that is old and then damaged by hail is a different case, though its age can lower what the policy pays. Who gets the insurance check if I have a mortgage?Usually your mortgage company, according to the Texas Department of Insurance, and the mortgage company must contact you within ten days of receiving the payment. What is the appraisal clause in a homeowners policy?A way to settle a dispute over the amount of a claim, not over coverage. Each side hires an appraiser, the appraisers pick an umpire, and the umpire's decision is binding. You pay your appraiser and half the umpire. Does insurance pay for code upgrades on a new roof?Only if your policy includes coverage for the extra cost of meeting building codes, which the Texas Department of Insurance lists as an optional endorsement. Check your declarations page. How long do I have to report roof damage in Texas?Report it as soon as possible. The Texas Department of Insurance notes that some policies require a claim within one year unless you can show good cause, so read your policy's conditions. #### Sources and notes - Texas Department of Insurance, "Home insurance guide" (the coverages in a home policy; what most policies cover, fire, lightning, windstorm and hail among them, and do not; the Gulf Coast exception; mold; TWIA; report as soon as possible and the one-year deadline in some policies; temporary repairs, receipts and photographs; being present at the inspection; the appraisal clause; complaints and 800-252-3439; 61 days' notice before suing over disaster damage; the building code endorsement): [tdi.texas.gov](https://www.tdi.texas.gov/pubs/consumer/cb025.html) - Texas Department of Insurance, "Steps to getting your home or car insurance claim paid", updated April 16, 2025 (tarps and temporary repairs; providing documentation; payment to the mortgage company and its ten-day contact rule; two payments on replacement cost): [tdi.texas.gov](https://www.tdi.texas.gov/tips/getting-your-insurance-claim-paid.html) - Texas Insurance Code §542.056(c) (a rejection must state its reasons) and §542A.003 (written notice no later than the 61st day before suit): [statutes.capitol.texas.gov](https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/IN/htm/IN.542.htm), [statutes.capitol.texas.gov](https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/IN/htm/IN.542A.htm) - Texas Insurance Code §4102.163 (a contractor may not act as a public adjuster on a property it is working on): [statutes.capitol.texas.gov](https://statutes.capitol.texas.gov/Docs/IN/htm/IN.4102.htm) - International Residential Code 2021, R905.2.8.5 (drip edge at the eaves and rakes of shingle roofs): [up.codes](https://up.codes/viewer/texas/irc-2021/chapter/9/roof-assemblies) - Mammoth Roofing & Exteriors: [actual cash value vs replacement cost](https://mammothroofs.com/guides/actual-cash-value-vs-replacement-cost/), [roof deductibles](https://mammothroofs.com/guides/roof-insurance-deductibles/), [the roof payment schedule](https://mammothroofs.com/guides/roof-payment-schedule/), [after a storm](https://mammothroofs.com/guides/what-to-do-after-a-storm/), [insurance claims](https://mammothroofs.com/services/insurance-claims/), and [roof repair](https://mammothroofs.com/services/roof-repair/) (pipe boots and the sun). First published in October 2025 as "RCV vs ACV Roofing Insurance in Texas" and rewritten in November 2026. ## Know what you have before you call your insurer. A free Roof Grade separates storm damage from wear, slope by slope, with dated photographs and a written price for any work. It is the report you attach if there is a claim to make, and the reason not to file if there is not.