Slow down. Don't sign anything on your doorstep, and don't hand a big deposit to a company you haven't checked. Walk away from anyone who offers to cover your deductible or take over your insurance claim. Look up the license at MyFloridaLicense.com, get a written itemized estimate, and call your own insurer before you sign.
After a hurricane, the knocks on the door start fast. Some are local roofers you can check out. Some are crews that will be long gone before your first leak. Florida has written specific rules about what roofers can and can't do after a storm, and knowing a few of them makes the bad actors easy to spot.
Most follow a few scripts. Knocking on doors isn't illegal in Florida, and honest roofers do it too. The warning signs are in what you're asked to sign, pay or hand over.
A rep checks your roof for free and comes down with bad news and a clipboard. Free inspections are normal. Signing something on the spot to get one is not.
Insurance pays for everything, they say, and they'll "take care of" your deductible. That deductible is yours to pay (here's how your roof deductible works), and a roofer can't offer to waive it.
They need a large check today to "lock in materials." Then the calls stop. The size of the check and the rush are the tell.
The license number, if you get one, may belong to another company. During a declared emergency, unlicensed contracting is a felony in Florida.
The paper just lets them "document the damage," you're told. If it has a price, a scope of work, or sends the claim money to them, it's a contract.
They'll "handle the insurance" and tell you what your policy covers. Unless they also hold a public adjuster license, Florida law bars a contractor from doing that.
Florida Statutes section 489.147 bars contractors from trading gifts or deductible deals for an inspection or claim, advising on your policy or handling your claim without a public adjuster license, and writing a repair agreement without an itemized estimate.
| The move | What the law says | Section |
|---|---|---|
| A flyer, door hanger, card or email urging you to call a roofer or public adjuster to file a roof claim | Banned without the required deductible and fraud warnings (see the FAQ) | 489.147(1)(a), (2)(a) |
| Cash, a gift card, a rebate or a deductible waiver for an inspection or a claim | Not allowed | 489.147(2)(b) |
| Referral fees for work insurance will pay for | Not allowed | 489.147(2)(c) |
| Explaining your policy, advising on coverage, or adjusting your claim | Not allowed unless licensed as a public adjuster | 489.147(2)(d); 626.854(16) |
| A repair agreement with no itemized estimate | Needs "a good faith estimate of the itemized and detailed cost of services and materials" | 489.147(2)(e) |
| Paying, waiving or rebating your deductible with intent to defraud | A third-degree felony | 817.234(7)(d) |
The fine is up to $10,000 for each violation of section 489.147 (subsection 3).
Not on a home or commercial property policy issued on or after January 1, 2023. Florida law makes any attempt to assign post-loss insurance benefits under those policies void.
An AOB signs your claim rights and payments over to someone else, usually the contractor. Florida Statutes section 627.7152(13) says a policyholder "may not assign, in whole or in part, any post-loss insurance benefit" under those policies, and any attempt "is void, invalid, and unenforceable." That language was added by Senate Bill 2-A (chapter 2022-271), signed December 16, 2022. Earlier rules for these agreements came from House Bill 7065 (chapter 2019-57).
The practical rule: don't sign anything that hands your claim, or its checks, to a contractor, and read the fine print on any "authorization."
We don't use them. The claim stays yours. We document the damage with photos and work alongside your adjuster.
Any one of these is enough to end the conversation. For more warning signs, see how to tell if a roofer is being honest.
Under section 489.126(2)(a), a contractor who takes more than 10 percent of the price up front on a home job must apply for permits within 30 days of the payment and start work within 90 days after permits are issued, unless there's just cause or you agreed in writing to a longer time. Ask how they'll meet that clock.
Possibly, if you move fast. If you signed within 180 days of a storm the Governor declared an emergency for, you can cancel a roof contract without penalty within 10 days of signing, or by the official start date if that comes first.
| Rule | When it applies | Your window |
|---|---|---|
| Emergency roof contracts, section 489.147(6) | Signed within 180 days of events under a Governor's emergency declaration, for a home in the declared area | 10 days after signing or the official start date, whichever comes first |
| Missing notice, section 489.147(5) | The contract lacks the required notice that the contractor can't offer gifts or deductible waivers | You may void it within 10 days after signing |
| Home solicitation sales, section 501.025 | May apply to some door-to-door sales, but not to a sale that results from your own request for specific services (section 501.021(1)) | Until midnight of the third business day after you sign |
The official start date is when installation of materials for the final roof begins, a permit is issued, or a temporary repair is made to code, so a permit alone can end your 10 days. Cancel in writing and keep a copy. For the emergency rule, use certified mail, return receipt requested, or another mailing with proof, sent to the address in the contract (section 489.147(6)(c)).
One plain note: we're a roofing contractor, not a lawyer, public adjuster or insurance agent. Read your own contract and policy, and ask an attorney about your situation.
Gives you a license number you can check, a written itemized estimate, and time to think. Tells you to call your insurer. Leaves the claim between you and your adjuster.
Florida requires every home roof contract to say, in bold type of at least 14 points, that if the work relates to an insurance claim "you, the residential property owner, should contact your insurance company to verify coverage" before signing (section 489.147(7)). A roofer who tells you that before the paperwork comes out is on your side.
Bring our list of questions for any roofer you're considering. Before the adjuster visits, read what to avoid saying to your insurance adjuster, and our step-by-step on Florida roof claims shows where a roofer fits.
Our free roof inspection is drone-assisted and comes with a written photo report you keep. Every estimate is written line by line, and there's no deposit on repairs. We don't use AOBs, and we aren't public adjusters. Check our license, CCC1331076, any time.
Unlicensed work and contractor complaints go to the Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR). Suspected insurance fraud goes to the Chief Financial Officer's investigators. Price gouging during an emergency goes to the Attorney General.
| What happened | Who handles it | How to reach them |
|---|---|---|
| Unlicensed roofer, or a complaint about a licensed one | DBPR | DBPR's online complaint page, or the unlicensed activity hotline, 1-866-532-1440 |
| A deductible waiver or a claim you think is fraudulent | Department of Financial Services, Criminal Investigations Division | 1-800-378-0445, or report insurance fraud online |
| Unconscionable prices during a declared emergency | Florida Attorney General | Price gouging hotline, 1-866-9NO-SCAM |
| Questions about your own claim or insurer | Chief Financial Officer, Consumer Services | 1-877-693-5236, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Eastern, Monday through Friday |
A first offense of unlicensed contracting is normally a first-degree misdemeanor, but during a Governor-declared emergency it's a third-degree felony (section 489.127(2)(c)). And for up to 60 days after a declaration, unless extended, selling essential goods or services, lumber included, at an unconscionable price in the declared area is unlawful (section 501.160).
"They came out and repaired the leaky patio roof that another company installed. The other company sent out an inept person trying to say it was the solar company's fault. The roofer said it was poor installation of the patio roof by the Aluminum company and showed me pictures."Anne P.Patio roof leak repair, Florida Gulf Coast
"Had another company put on a new roof and after inspection several issues with the work were obvious. Called in Coastline and within a week they had a crew of guys come make needed repairs."Dan H.Repairs after another company's install, Florida Gulf Coast
"Coastline did a great job. Very prompt and professional. Thanks."Philip J.Roofing customer, Florida Gulf Coast
No. Door-to-door selling isn't banned. Section 489.147 bans soliciting you with a "prohibited advertisement" and bans gifts or deductible waivers for an inspection or a claim. The knock is legal. A gift card for letting them inspect your roof is not.
If it urges you to call a roofer or public adjuster to file a roof damage claim, it must say that you pay your deductible, that a contractor who knowingly pays, waives or rebates it with intent to defraud commits a third-degree felony, and that intentionally filing a claim with false, incomplete or misleading information is a third-degree felony. The type must be at least 12 points and at least half the size of the largest type on it (section 489.147(1)(a)).
Public adjusters may solicit only Monday through Saturday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. (section 626.854(5)). For claims from a Governor-declared emergency made in the year after the declaration, their fee is capped at 10 percent of the claim payments (626.854(11)(b)1). You can cancel their contract within 10 days, or for an emergency loss, within 30 days after the loss or 10 days after signing, whichever is longer (626.854(7)).
Send a written demand to apply for permits, start the work, or refund your money, by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the address in the contract (section 489.126(2)(b)). If they don't refund within 30 days of a written demand, the law allows an inference that they meant to keep it (section 489.126(4)(b)). DBPR takes complaints but says it "cannot represent you in civil matters to recover fees paid," so ask an attorney about getting the money back.
Book a free, drone-assisted roof inspection with a written photo report you keep. No trip fee, no diagnostic fee, and replacement quotes are good for 30 days, so you have time to check us out.
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