Roofing Insurance Laws in Indiana

Informational only — not legal advice. Laws and case precedent change, and outcomes depend on your specific policy language. Verify current law with your state Department of Insurance or a qualified attorney before relying on it.

Can insurers depreciate labor when calculating ACV?

Unsettled

Indiana has no statute, regulation, or court decision addressing whether labor may be depreciated in calculating actual cash value. Indiana defines ACV by the broad evidence rule, which lets a factfinder consider any evidence bearing on value but says nothing about labor as a separate component. Your policy's ACV language and the adjuster's depreciation schedule control the outcome until an Indiana court rules on labor.

Authority

Travelers Indem. Co. v. Armstrong, 442 N.E.2d 349 (Ind. 1982), adopts the broad evidence rule for actual cash value at 352-58 and treats depreciation as the structure's age-based physical deterioration. The opinion does not mention labor and contains no across-the-board labor-depreciation holding; its disposition affirms the judgment except as to punitive damages. Thorne v. Member Select Ins. Co., 882 F.3d 642 (7th Cir. 2018), applies the same broad-evidence framework to residence, the meaning of ACV, and sufficiency of damages evidence. It does not reach labor depreciation either. Indiana's unfair-claim-settlement-practices statute and the Title 760 IAC regulations contain no ACV or depreciation provision, so there is no administrative rule filling the gap.

Travelers Indem. Co. v. Armstrong, 442 N.E.2d 349 (Ind. 1982) - full opinion text (Caselaw Access Project) · Travelers Indem. Co. v. Armstrong, 442 N.E.2d 349 (Ind. 1982) - Justia case listing · Thorne v. Member Select Ins. Co., No. 17-1377 (7th Cir. Feb. 12, 2018) - official slip opinion (does not address labor depreciation)

Must insurers replace undamaged materials so the repair matches?

Required

Indiana has no matching statute or line-of-sight regulation, but Indiana case law effectively requires matching on first-party replacement-cost roof claims. Where a home had a uniform appearance before the loss, restoring that uniform appearance supports replacing the entire roof and all exterior siding, not only the damaged slopes. On an ACV policy or narrower facts, expect a carrier to resist, because the holding is fact-specific.

Authority

Erie Ins. Exch. v. Sams, 20 N.E.3d 182 (Ind. Ct. App. 2014), transfer denied, 29 N.E.3d 124 (Ind. 2015), affirmed a replacement-cost judgment covering the entire roof and all exterior siding. The home had a uniform appearance before the loss and expert testimony established that mismatched roof slopes and siding devalue a home. The court read standard dwelling language insuring that part of the dwelling damaged to support full replacement. Two limits. The trial court had found the whole roof physically damaged, and the Court of Appeals declined to broadly construe the phrase part damaged. Ind. Code 27-4-1-4.5 enumerates Indiana's unfair claim settlement practices; none addresses matching or uniform appearance, and Title 760 IAC has no matching regulation.

Erie Ins. Exch. v. Sams, 20 N.E.3d 182 (Ind. Ct. App. 2014) — full opinion (Justia) · Erie Ins. Exch. v. Sams (2014) — official court opinion PDF (Justia) · Ind. Code 27-4-1-4.5 — Enumeration of Unfair Claim Settlement Practices (no matching provision)

Can a contractor pay or waive the homeowner's deductible?

Prohibited

Indiana bans deductible rebating by name. A real property improvement supplier, which includes a roofing or exterior contractor, may not pay, rebate, or absorb any part of an insurance deductible, and may not advertise, offer, or promise to do so in order to induce a contract or a sale. The advertising is a violation on its own, whether or not you ever perform the work or actually absorb a dollar.

You may

Bill the carrier the price you actually charge
Collect the full deductible from the homeowner
Offer a payment plan so the homeowner pays the deductible over time
Arrange third-party financing for the homeowner's out-of-pocket share
Explain in writing that the deductible is the homeowner's responsibility
Price the job the same whether or not insurance is involved

You may not

Pay, rebate, or absorb any part of the deductible
Advertise or promise to cover the deductible or deliver no out-of-pocket cost
Give an allowance or discount against the contract price as a deductible substitute
Give a gift, prize, bonus, coupon, or credit in place of the deductible
Pay a referral fee that functions as a deductible offset
Inflate the estimate to the carrier to recover the deductible you waived

Penalty: A violation is a deceptive act actionable by the Attorney General or the homeowner under the Deceptive Consumer Sales Act, exposing you to civil penalties, actual damages, and attorney fees; it is not a stand-alone criminal offense.

Authority

Ind. Code 24-5-11-10.5, enacted by HB 1237 (2012), bars a real property improvement supplier from advertising, offering, or promising to pay or rebate all or part of an insurance deductible to induce the purchase of goods or services or the signing of a contract. The same section reaches the substitutes: allowances or discounts against the contract price, gifts, prizes, bonuses, coupons, credits, and referral fees. Ind. Code 24-5-11-14 makes a violation of the chapter a deceptive act actionable by the Attorney General or by a consumer under Ind. Code 24-5-0.5-4, with the remedies and penalties of Ind. Code 24-5-0.5. The Attorney General has issued a consumer alert warning Hoosiers that contractor offers to waive deductibles are illegal. The statute reaches paying or rebating the deductible, not lending against it. A payment plan or financing that the homeowner actually repays leaves the deductible intact and is not a rebate. A genuine, disclosed price reduction is a different matter in Indiana: the section expressly names allowances and discounts against the contract price, so a discount pitched as the homeowner's way around the deductible is prohibited.

Ind. Code § 24-5-11-10.5 (Justia — full statute text) · Ind. Code § 24-5-11-14 Violation; Penalties (Justia — deceptive-act enforcement) · Ind. Code § 24-5-11-10.5 (FindLaw) · Indiana AG Consumer Alert: contractors offering to waive deductibles (in.gov)

Can a contractor negotiate the homeowner's claim?

Prohibited

Indiana bans it by name: a real property improvement supplier may not act as a public adjuster, and there is no contractor or roofer exemption anywhere in the licensing statute. You may write and defend your own estimate; you may not work the homeowner's claim. Indiana also refuses to let the two roles sit in the same hands, barring a public adjuster from acting as the roofing contractor on the same claim.

You may

Prepare your own estimate, scope, photos, and measurements
Submit supplements for the work you will perform
Meet the adjuster at the roof and walk the damage
Argue line items, labor rates, and pricing for your own scope
Tell the homeowner the damage appears storm-related and recommend they file
Answer the adjuster's questions about your estimate

You may not

Negotiate or settle the claim on the homeowner's behalf
File or pursue the claim for the homeowner
Interpret the policy or advise on coverage rights
Take a percentage of the claim as compensation for claim assistance
Advertise that you handle the claim or deal with the adjuster for them
Act as both the roofing contractor and the adjuster on the same loss

Penalty: Unlicensed adjusting is a Class B infraction and any adjusting agreement with the insured is void; separately, the contractor-side violation is a deceptive act the Attorney General or the homeowner can sue over for damages and fees.

Authority

Ind. Code 24-5-11-10.5(d) states that a real property improvement supplier shall not act as a public adjuster as defined in Ind. Code 27-1-27-1. Chapter 24-5-11 governs residential home improvement contracts, so the bar reaches roofers doing homeowner work. Ind. Code 24-5-11-14 makes that violation a deceptive act actionable by the Attorney General or a consumer under Ind. Code 24-5-0.5-4. Ind. Code 27-1-27-1(g) defines a public adjuster as a person who, for compensation, renders advice or assistance to an insured in the adjustment of a property claim, or who advertises, solicits, or holds itself out as an adjuster of such claims. The exemptions run to attorneys, insurer officers and salaried employees, insurer-owned adjustment bureaus, licensed producers, authorized insurers, farm mutual producers, and independent adjusters representing insurers. The Department of Insurance exemption page lists the same short set. No contractor or roofer exemption exists. Ind. Code 27-1-27-2(a) requires a certificate of authority to act as a public adjuster or to receive compensation, directly or indirectly, for adjusting such claims. Ind. Code 27-1-27-11 makes adjusting a loss without a certificate a Class B infraction and voids any adjusting agreement executed without one. Ind. Code 27-1-27-1.5 runs the same line from the other direction: a public adjuster may not file a claim with an insurer for an insured, may not bind the insured in settlement, and may not simultaneously act as a roofing contractor or appraiser while assisting that insured on the same claim. One qualification. Indiana states no express carve-out for discussing your own bid. The permitted side follows from the definition itself, which reaches advice or assistance rendered to the insured in adjusting the claim, not a contractor pricing and defending the scope of its own work.

IC 24-5-11-10.5(d) — "A real property improvement supplier shall not act as a public adjuster (as defined in IC 27-1-27-1)" (statutory text, verified) · IC 27-1-27-1(g) — definition of "public adjuster" and the complete exemption list (no contractor exemption) (statutory text, verified) · IC 27-1-27-2 — certificate of authority required to act as a public adjuster or receive compensation for adjusting claims (statutory text, verified) · IC 27-1-27-11 — unlicensed adjusting is a Class B infraction; adjusting agreement with an insured is void without a certificate (statutory text, verified) · IC 27-1-27-1.5 — public adjuster may not file a claim for an insured, bind the insured in settlement, or simultaneously act as a roofing contractor on the same claim (statutory text, verified) · IC 24-5-11-14 — violation of the Home Improvement Contracts chapter is a deceptive act actionable by the AG or the consumer under IC 24-5-0.5-4 (statutory text, verified) · Indiana Department of Insurance (official .gov) — Persons Exempt From Holding an Independent or Public Adjuster License; confirms only five public-adjuster exemptions and none for contractors or roofers · Indiana General Assembly — official Indiana Code, Title 24 Article 5 Chapter 11 (Home Improvement Contracts) primary source portal

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