Roofers provide a valuable service by taking the risk of climbing onto a rooftop, which is often weak or damaged, and repairing leaks and holes to keep the homeowner’s family safe and dry. It’s an honest job by nature, but scammers have made it difficult for even the most skilled roofers to gain the trust of their community. Even HB 1183, which was passed into law in 2013, seems to single out roofers as it forbids them from acting as insurance adjusters under certain circumstances where a conflict of interest could arise.
Why Roofers?
It isn’t the spirit of the law that troubles roofing contractors, but the letter of the law. Why are roofing contractors the only group specifically called out in the bill? Aren’t other types of contractors just as likely to have a conflict of interest if they were providing their services to the property they were adjusting?
Judge for yourself. The pertinent text of the bill reads:
- An insurance adjuster licensed under this chapter may not adjust a loss related to roofing damage on behalf of an insurer if the adjuster is a roofing contractor or otherwise provides roofing services or roofing products for compensation, or is a controlling person in a roofing-related business.
- A roofing contractor may not act as a public adjuster or advertise to adjust claims for any property for which the contractor is providing or may provide roofing services, regardless of whether the contractor holds a license under this chapter.
You may read the entire bill here.
It seems likely that this wording was an unfortunate oversight. There is no reason why roofers should be regulated more than other service professionals. However, the law, as worded, is vague regarding other types of contractors who might try to act as insurance adjusters for properties they had an interest in.
In 2019, Texas sought set the record straight:
The HB 2103 Revision
HB 2103 is a bill that proposes a revision to HB 1183: remove all instances of the words “roofer” and “roofing” so that the law could be easily seen to apply to all contractors equally. It was passed through the Texas House and Senate, and is currently waiting for Gov. Greg Abbott’s approval.
The full text of HB 2103 is available here.
The Spirit of the Law
HB 1183 is a flawed, but still very important law. Even if a roofing professional is a licensed insurance adjuster, they should not evaluate damage and recommend compensation for a roof that they are contracted to fix. It looks bad and opens the door to insurance fraud. The law was right to prohibit these actions.
Dissatisfaction comes not so much from the law’s inclusion of roofers as from its exclusion of all other contractors. The original wording seems to leave a big loophole that contractors could jump through, and that is never a good thing when it comes to laws that protect consumers and homeowners. Hopefully that ambiguous wording will become a thing of the past, and all contractors will he held equally accountable under the revised law.
Springtree Restoration: Quality You Can Trust
If your roof has been damaged by wind, hail or water, give our experienced professionals a call. We know how to navigate the insurance process, and we always operate with the highest integrity and honesty. You can be sure that we know the law as it applies to our trade, and we will never steer you wrong.
Need a free evaluation? Call Springtree today!
