Door-to-door roofers after a storm, and what Michigan says about signing papers

What we found, and what we did not

This page is for the homeowner who has a stranger at the door after a storm, offering to handle the roof and the insurer. We found no Michigan assignment of benefits statute and no DIFS guidance on roofing assignments, and neither DIFS nor the Attorney General pages we read use the term storm chaser, so we will not describe how an assignment works legally in Michigan. If a contractor hands you a form that signs over your claim or any part of your payment, read every line, ask your insurance company what it means for your policy, and ask an attorney before you sign.

The rest of this page is sourced to DIFS, the Attorney General and Michigan statutes, and it applies whether or not a form has a name.

DIFS warning signs

DIFS lists several warning signs of contractor trouble after a loss: contractors demanding full payment upfront, high-pressure sales tactics, unsolicited door-to-door offers, requests to sign insurance checks directly over to a contractor, and unlicensed people offering to increase a settlement for a fee. One of these alone does not make a roofing company dishonest, since a company that knocks on your door can also do honest work, but the list is a reason to slow down and check the rest of this page before you commit.

DIFS also says never to feel pressured into an immediate decision, to get written estimates and to read contracts. Your insurer may recommend contractors, but DIFS says you have the right to choose your own. Our guide to hail and wind claims explains what the insurer does at each stage and what the clocks are.

Covering the deductible

An offer to cover your deductible sounds like a favor, but DIFS lists, among typical homeowners insurance fraud, asking a repairman to “cover the deductible” by increasing the estimate or bill, along with fabricating repair bills, often in collusion with a crooked contractor. Under MCL 500.4503, knowingly presenting, or helping to prepare, a statement with false information material to a claim is a fraudulent insurance act, and “statement” includes an estimate of property damage and an invoice. MCL 500.4511 makes it a felony: up to four years, or a fine of up to $50,000, or both, plus restitution. DIFS’s wording is about inflating the estimate or bill, and if an estimate has been padded for you, it takes fraud reports, anonymously if you wish, at 877-999-6442.

The three business day right to cancel

Michigan’s Home Solicitation Sales Act lets a buyer cancel until midnight of the third business day after signing. It applies to a sale of more than $25 where the seller solicited you at your residence and the agreement was given there. It does not reach every roofing job: the statute leaves out sales made after prior negotiations at the seller’s fixed business location and sales made from a printed advertisement in a publication of general circulation. Our reading is that a roofer who knocks and signs you up at your kitchen table is the typical case, and that a homeowner who calls a company after seeing a general ad may fall outside it, so we would not tell any reader they always have three days.

When it does apply, the contract must carry, near the signature line, a statement of your right to cancel before midnight of the third business day, and a notice of cancellation form. The Attorney General says that if the notice is missing, you may have additional time. The seller may not send a courier to collect payment at your home before the three business days end. If the seller performed services before you cancelled, MCL 445.115 says the seller is not entitled to compensation.

The emergency waiver

The statute’s emergency exception is narrow. There is no right to cancel if you requested the work without delay because of an emergency, the seller has substantially begun performance, and you gave a separate, dated, signed, handwritten statement describing the emergency and waiving your right to cancel. All three conditions apply. The statute’s insurance exclusion covers sales by licensed insurance agents only, not roofing sold on an insurance claim. Write such a statement only if you actually have an emergency and want the work to start, not because a salesperson asks you to.

Financed work

If the contract is for home improvement and you agree to pay the contractor over time, the Attorney General says the Home Improvement Finance Act gives you one business day to cancel, until 5 p.m. the next business day, by certified mail. The Attorney General advises asking a private attorney, and we have not checked that against the Act’s text.

Licenses, contracts and liens

Roofing is a craft on Michigan’s residential maintenance and alteration license, and work of $600 or more generally needs one; an owner working on their own home and a single project under $600 are exempt. Our guide to checking a roofer’s license covers the lookup. An unlicensed person who violates the act can face a civil fine of $5,000 to $25,000, cannot sue for payment without proving a license, and cannot place a lien on your house.

On the paperwork side, a contractor has no construction lien on a residential structure unless the work is under a written contract, with any changes also in writing, that states the license requirement and the contractor’s license number (MCL 570.1114). Ask for that contract before work begins. Under MCL 570.1110, the contractor must give you a sworn statement listing subcontractors, suppliers and unpaid laborers when payment is due or when you ask; it warns you not to rely on the statement against people who have given a notice of furnishing. Advance lien waivers written into a contract are invalid, and when you have paid in full you are entitled to an unconditional waiver (MCL 570.1115).

The Homeowner Construction Lien Recovery Fund, which older consumer pages still mention as a remedy, was abolished in August 2010, according to LARA, so do not count on it.

Public adjusters

If a stranger offers to negotiate your claim, the license matters. MCL 500.1222 says a person shall not adjust loss or damage under an insurance policy, or hold out as an adjuster, without an adjuster license; the exemptions are for attorneys, insurer employees and licensed producers with claim authority, and roofing contractors are not on that list. Whether giving an estimate counts as adjusting is a legal question that we do not answer here.

DIFS says public adjusters, who represent the insured, must be licensed by DIFS, may not charge more than 10 percent of the settlement, and that you are not required to hire one. The contract must be on a DIFS-approved form, and one signed within 48 hours after the loss event is voidable at your option for 10 days after it is signed. An adjuster also may not collect a fee from a repair contractor for obtaining repair work.

A short list for the doorstep

• Ask for the license number and check it on LARA before you talk about money.
• Do not sign the same day because someone says the crew is only in town this week.
• Ask for a written contract that states the license number, and read it.
• Do not sign an insurance check over to anyone without talking to your insurer.
• Call your own insurer to confirm what it needs, and compare any estimate with what the adjuster writes.
• For price gouging, DIFS points to the Attorney General at 877-765-8388.

For the claim itself, see our storm damage page, and for coverage questions, does homeowners insurance cover a roof leak.