What storm damage roof repairs involve
Storm damage roof repairs put back what wind, flying debris and falling limbs took off a roof, and stop rain from getting through the opening before it ruins the deck, the insulation and the ceilings underneath.
In greater Houston that usually means one of four jobs: replacing shingles and ridge caps that tore away or lost their seal, rebuilding a section of deck where a limb punched through, refastening or replacing bent flashing and vents, and drying out and replacing the wet underlayment beneath all of it. Most start with a temporary cover, because a permanent repair is hard to do properly on a soaked roof in more rain.
Houston Expert Roofers does no roofing. Think of it as a switchboard: day or night, a recorded assistant asks what the storm did and which part of the region you are in, then hands you over to an independent, locally owned roofing company that inspects, writes the estimate and makes the repair.
Storms that have hit Houston roofs
The Atlantic hurricane season officially runs from June 1 through November 30, according to NOAA's Climate Prediction Center, but Houston roofs take damage in every month. Spring squall lines, summer downbursts and winter fronts all bring wind strong enough to break shingle seals. The storms below show the range of what a roofer is called out to fix.
| Storm | What happened | What it meant for roofs |
|---|---|---|
| Hurricane Harvey, August 2017 | The National Hurricane Center's final report recorded 51.88 inches of rain at Cedar Bayou, a record for a single storm in the continental United States, and the Houston weather office called it the worst flood in the city's history. | Mostly a flood disaster. Many roofs held while homes flooded from below, a reminder that a roof claim and a flood claim are separate things. |
| The derecho, May 16, 2024 | The Houston/Galveston weather service office reported a swath of winds over 100 mph through the metro. The weather service estimated winds of 90 to 100 mph at times in Baytown and confirmed an EF-1 tornado near Cypress, and a federal major disaster was declared. | Shingles and ridge caps stripped, trees and limbs on houses, and broken seals across neighborhoods well away from the worst damage. |
| Hurricane Beryl, July 8, 2024 | The National Hurricane Center reported landfall southwest of Houston as a Category 1 hurricane with 80 mph sustained winds, and Community Impact reported more than 2.2 million customers without power. | Hours of strong wind, then rain. Lifted tabs, torn shingles and fallen trees across the metro. |
The pattern most worth knowing is the second one. A thunderstorm with no name can do as much to a roof as a hurricane, and because it is over in minutes, many owners never get the roof looked at. A seal that broke in a squall can let water in for months before a stain appears.
Wind damage and flood damage are separate claims
This is the coverage question that catches Houston homeowners most often, and it decides who you call first.
Water from above
Wind tears off shingles or a tree opens the roof, and rain comes in through the gap. Inland, the Texas Department of Insurance says a homeowners policy probably covers wind damage. Ask your insurer how it treats rain that entered through storm damage, and what your wind and hail deductible is.
Water from below
Rising water from a bayou, street flooding or storm surge is flood. A home policy excludes it, TDI says, so it takes a separate flood policy, and most flood policies have a 30-day waiting period. FEMA's FloodSmart site lists the same 30 days for a new National Flood Insurance Program policy, with a few exceptions such as a policy bought at a loan closing.
Homes near the coast
In the 14 coastal counties and certain parts of Harris County, TDI says a home policy will likely exclude windstorm, and wind and hail coverage is bought from the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association. TWIA wind and hail claims must be filed within one year of the storm, and repairs there must pass a windstorm inspection.
Coastal windstorm rules. In the Texas Department of Insurance's designated catastrophe area (Brazoria, Chambers, Galveston and the other first-tier coastal counties, plus, in Harris County, Morgan's Point and the parts of La Porte, Pasadena, Seabrook and Shoreacres inside city limits and east of State Highway 146), most roof work must meet the windstorm building code and be inspected while it is under way (TDI exempts repairs to less than 100 square feet of roof covering that do not touch the decking). When it passes, TDI issues a certificate of compliance (form WPI-8), which the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association uses to decide whether it can insure the home. Ask the roofer, in writing, who schedules the inspection and when you will get the WPI-8.
The roofer documents the roof; you file the claim. The roof insurance claims guide explains deductibles, actual cash value and replacement cost, and our storm claim checklist is a printable list to keep with your policy.
How a careful roofer handles a storm repair
- Make the house dry first. If the roof is open, the first visit is usually a temporary cover over the opening, fastened so the next gust cannot lift it. Ask for the cost of that visit in writing, and keep the receipt for your insurer.
- Remove what does not belong. A limb on the roof is a job for a tree crew or a roofer equipped for it, and a limb touching a wire is a job for CenterPoint Energy. Nobody should cut a limb near a line.
- Look at every slope, and the attic. Storm wind breaks seals on the sides that faced it. A careful roofer checks each slope, hand-lifts suspect tabs, looks at the ridge and hips, and looks at the deck from the attic for wet or broken wood.
- Photograph and measure. Close photos of each damaged area, the storm date, and measurements by slope. That record is what you hand your adjuster, and you should get a copy whether or not you file.
- Write the scope. An itemized estimate: shingles by the square, decking per sheet, underlayment, ridge, flashing, vents, disposal and permit. It should say whether new shingles can match the old ones.
- Repair after the claim is settled, or when you decide. You choose whether to file and when work starts. A roofer that pushes you to sign before the adjuster has seen the roof is a reason to slow down.
Stay off the roof. Wet, storm-damaged roofs are slick and the decking may be weak, so leave the ladder in the garage. Keep well away from downed power lines and report them to CenterPoint Energy or 911. Indoors, move belongings away from the leak, put a bucket or towels under the drip and keep people out of any room where the ceiling sags. Photograph the damage from the ground and inside the house, then call your insurer and a roofer.
The guide to the first days after storm damage lays out the safe steps in order. If water is coming in now, go to emergency roof repair and tarping.
Storm chasers and the contract traps that follow Houston storms
After every large storm, crews arrive from elsewhere and work neighborhoods door to door. Some do honest work. The Texas Department of Insurance lists the warning signs it sees after disasters, and it is worth reading them before anyone is on your roof.
What TDI warns about
- A "contract" presented as an estimate or a release just to get on the roof.
- A contract with blank spaces, which can be filled in later with higher costs or different work.
- Pressure to pay in full up front. Do not make the final payment until the job is done.
- Only out-of-town references, or a sales pitch that starts at your front door.
- An offer to waive, rebate or absorb your deductible, which is illegal in Texas.
A Texas rule worth knowing
A Texas law, Business and Commerce Code Chapter 58, covers contracts to repair property damaged by a natural disaster. It says a disaster remediation contractor may not require full or partial payment before work begins, that any partial payment must be reasonably proportionate to the work done and materials delivered, and that the contract must be in writing with a boldfaced notice that it is subject to that chapter. Ask about that notice before you sign.
Pay by check or card rather than cash, so there is a record. Report a deductible offer to the Attorney General's consumer protection line, 800-621-0508.
The deductible is yours to pay. The Texas Department of Insurance says it is illegal for a contractor to offer to waive, rebate or absorb your deductible, and a contract of $1,000 or more paid with insurance money must include a notice saying so. A roofer also may not act as your public adjuster on a property it works on. Treat any offer to "cover the deductible" as a reason to call someone else.
Questions to ask about a storm repair
About the damage
- Which slopes are damaged, and can I see a photo of each one?
- Did you check the decking from the attic, and is any of it wet or broken?
- Is this a repair, or is the damage spread widely enough that a new roof should be priced?
- Can you match my shingles, and what happens if you cannot?
About the company and the paperwork
- What is your business address, and how long has it been in this county?
- Can you send your certificate of liability insurance before work starts?
- Does this repair need a city permit here, and will you pull it?
- If I am in the windstorm area, who books the TDI inspection and when do I get the WPI-8?
Inside the City of Houston, the Houston Permitting Center exempts roof covering work of up to 100 square feet in total from a permit, while a re-roof needs a residential roofing permit. Suburban cities differ; each town page covers its own rule.
Making the call after a storm
After a big storm the phones at every roofing company ring at once, and owners who call early tend to be seen sooner. You can ring the number while the rain is still falling and describe what is visible from the yard. When the roofer being connected misses the call, your name, phone, town and urgency are passed along for a call back.
- Call the numberAn automated assistant answers (832) 662-4107 at any hour and asks which service you need, since the line also takes heating, cooling, pressure washing and water damage calls.
- Describe the roofA leak, missing shingles, hail, a limb on the roof or an old roof you want looked at, plus your part of greater Houston and how urgent it is.
- Get put throughYour call is transferred to an independent, locally owned roofing company, which hears a short summary before it picks up.
- Deal with the roofer directlyIt inspects, quotes and does the work, and you pay it (or your insurer does, as you arrange). If it misses the call, it gets your name, number, city and need to call you back.
Texas has no state roofing license. No state agency licenses roofing contractors in Texas, and a 2025 bill to create one (HB 3344) did not reach a vote of the full House before the session ended. So check what you can: a certificate of liability insurance sent to you, a written contract with the full scope, a permit where your city requires one, local addresses you can drive past, and the shingle maker's warranty registration. Some cities also ask roofers to register. The line does not check any of this for you. How to check a roofer before you hire.
About this line: Houston Expert Roofers is a free phone line, not a roofing contractor. It answers your call and connects you with an independent local roofing company, which inspects, quotes and does the work, and which you pay directly. Companies may pay a referral fee. The line never charges you. Read how the line works.
Related services
- Wind Damage Roof Repair
- Hail Damage Roof Repair
- Emergency Roof Repair and Tarping
- Roof Leak Repair
- Roof Replacement in Houston
- What to Do After Storm Damage to Your Roof
- Roof Insurance Claims in Texas