Roofing Insurance Laws in Utah

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

Utah has no statute, regulation, or binding appellate decision on whether labor may be depreciated in an actual cash value calculation. The state regulation defines ACV as replacement cost less depreciation without saying whether labor is included. Your policy's definition of actual cash value controls the outcome.

Authority

Utah Admin. Code R590-190-13(2)(a)(i) defines ACV for residential fire and extended coverage policies as the replacement cost of the property at the time of loss less depreciation, if any. The provision does not address labor. No Utah appellate decision resolves the question.

Utah Admin. Code R590-190-13 (Fire/Extended Coverage Replacement Cost Settlement Standards) - Cornell LII (defines ACV as replacement cost less depreciation; silent on labor)

Must insurers replace undamaged materials so the repair matches?

Required

Utah requires matching on replacement-cost property policies. If repaired or replaced items do not match in color, texture, or size, the insurer must repair or replace to a reasonably uniform appearance, and the insured owes only the deductible. On a roof, that can obligate the carrier to replace undamaged shingles on additional slopes, or the whole roof, rather than patch a mismatch.

Authority

Utah Admin. Code R590-190-13, Standards for Prompt, Fair and Equitable Settlements Applicable to Fire and Extended Coverage Type Policies with Replacement Cost Coverage (amended effective 1/24/2024), states that if a loss requires repair or replacement of items and the repaired or replaced items do not match in color, texture, or size, the insurer shall repair or replace items to conform to a reasonably uniform appearance, with the insured responsible only for the applicable deductible. Two qualifications. The standard is "reasonably uniform," which carriers contest. And R590-190 is an administrative claims-handling rule enforced by the Utah Insurance Department under Utah Code Ann. Sec. 31A-26-303, which creates no private cause of action, so a violation supports a bad-faith theory rather than a stand-alone claim.

Utah Administrative Code R590-190 — official state RTF text · Utah Code Ann. Section 31A-26-303 — Unfair claim settlement practices (official legislature PDF; no private cause of action)

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

Prohibited

Utah bans deductible rebating outright. A residential contractor may not rebate or offer to rebate any portion of an insurance deductible as an inducement to a sale, and the statute defines rebating to include any allowance or discount against the fees charged, or paying the policyholder the deductible amount. Every contract, repair estimate, and work order paid from insurance proceeds must carry a statutory warning notice.

You may

Bill the carrier the price you actually charge
Offer a payment plan or financing so the homeowner can pay the deductible over time
Give a genuine, disclosed discount, understanding the carrier then pays proportionally less
Include the statutory notice in capitalized 14-point type on every contract, estimate, and work order paid from insurance proceeds
Obtain the insured's signature on the notice and deliver it to the insurer before accepting payment

You may not

Waive, discount, credit, or absorb the homeowner's deductible
Pay the homeowner the deductible amount
Grant an allowance against your fees to offset the deductible
Advertise or pitch "we cover your deductible," "no out-of-pocket," or "free roof"
Accept any payment before the signed notice is delivered to the insurer
Rely on a post-loss assignment taken while violating the part

Penalty: A post-loss assignment made while violating the part is void; the statute imposes no criminal penalty.

Authority

Utah Code Sec. 13-50-302 provides that a residential contractor may not rebate or offer to rebate any portion of an insurance deductible as an inducement to the sale of a good or service. Sec. 13-50-303 sets the mandated warning notice, which states that rebating a deductible includes granting any allowance or offering any discount against the fees to be charged for work to be performed or paying the insured policyholder the deductible amount, and that the insured policyholder is personally responsible for payment of the deductible. The notice must appear in capitalized 14-point type on any contract, repair estimate, or work order paid from insurance proceeds, and no payment may reach the contractor until the insured signs it and it is delivered to the insurer. Sec. 13-50-304 voids a post-loss assignment made while violating the part. All three sections sit in Title 13, Chapter 50, Part 3 (Insured Homeowners Protection Act), enacted by Ch. 88, 2020 General Session, effective 5/12/2020. There is no separate advertising clause, but the "offer to rebate" language reaches the pitch itself.

Utah Code Sec. 13-50-302 — Residential contractor, prohibited acts (le.utah.gov) · Utah Code Sec. 13-50-303 — Violation notice (le.utah.gov) · Utah Code Sec. 13-50-304 — Violation of part (le.utah.gov) · Utah Code Sec. 13-50-301 — Post-loss assignment / definitions (le.utah.gov)

Can a contractor negotiate the homeowner's claim?

Prohibited

Utah requires a public adjuster license to negotiate or settle a homeowner's insurance claim, and offering or soliciting that service is itself the violation. You may write your own scope and estimate, submit a supplement for your own repair work, and argue the price and scope of the work you will perform. You may not represent the homeowner's claim, and you cannot cure this by getting a public adjuster license.

You may

Write your own scope and estimate for the loss
Submit a supplement for your own repair work
Meet the adjuster on the roof
Argue the price and scope of the work you will perform
Explain your estimate and answer the adjuster's questions
Give uncompensated advice to the homeowner

You may not

Negotiate or settle the homeowner's claim with the carrier
Direct or conduct the investigation of the claim on the homeowner's behalf
Offer or solicit the opportunity to handle the insurance company for the homeowner
Advertise that you will deal with the carrier on the homeowner's behalf
Hold a public adjuster license on a property you are also repairing
Obtain an insured's signature on a public adjuster's contract

Penalty: An unlicensed person faces administrative forfeiture up to $5,000 per violation plus up to twice any profit gained, and an intentional violation is a class B misdemeanor carrying up to six months in jail and a $1,000 fine for an individual or $5,000 for a corporation.

Authority

Utah Code Sec. 31A-26-102(6) defines "insurance adjusting" as directing or conducting the investigation, negotiation, or settlement of a claim under an insurance policy on behalf of an insurer, policyholder, or claimant; Sec. 31A-26-102(9) defines "public adjuster" as a person required to be licensed under Sec. 31A-26-201 who engages in insurance adjusting as a representative of insureds and claimants. Sec. 31A-26-201(1)(a) bars any person from performing, offering to perform, or soliciting the opportunity to perform an act of insurance adjusting without a license, and (1)(b) bars using another's unlicensed adjusting services. No contractor exemption appears in the Sec. 31A-26-201(2)(a)-(j) list; (2)(g) reaches only an individual specially employed to furnish facts or technical assistance to a licensed or company adjuster, so it is not a safe harbor for a roofer engaged by the homeowner. The estimate-versus-negotiate line rests on the "on behalf of" language in Sec. 31A-26-102(6): pricing your own contract is not representing the insured's claim. Sec. 31A-26-201(2)(j) exempts uncompensated advice, and Sec. 31A-26-201(3) provides that a violation does not invalidate a claim settlement. Licensure is not a workaround. Sec. 31A-26-405(5) (effective 5/6/2026) bars a public adjuster from participating directly, indirectly, or through an affiliate in the reconstruction, repair, or restoration of property that is the subject of the public adjuster contract; Sec. 31A-26-405(16)(b) bars a public adjuster from allowing a roofing company to obtain the insured's signature on that contract; Sec. 31A-26-405(10) bars referrals to repair firms in which the adjuster has a financial interest; Sec. 31A-26-401(1)(a) requires a written, department-filed contract. Sec. 31A-26-403.1(1)-(2) permits a property policy to prohibit assignment of benefits to a property repair contractor or roofing company and bars circumventing that prohibition by power of attorney. Penalties come from Sec. 31A-2-308(1)(a) (forfeiture up to twice profit gained) and Sec. 31A-2-308(1)(b)(ii) (up to $5,000 per violation against a non-licensee; a licensed adjuster is capped at $2,500 under (1)(b)(i)). Sec. 31A-2-308(9)(a) makes an intentional violation a class B misdemeanor; the amounts come from Sec. 76-3-204(2) (term not exceeding six months), Sec. 76-3-301(1)(d) ($1,000 for an individual), and Sec. 76-3-302(3) ($5,000 for a corporation, association, or partnership). The roofing-side statute does not reach claim negotiation: Sec. 13-50-302 bars only deductible rebating, and Sec. 13-50-301(1)(c) requires a post-loss assignment to state that the contractor has made no assurances that an insurance contract will fully cover the claimed loss.

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