When it comes to choosing a roofing contractor, here are five quick tips:

1. Check out their Google reviews. Keep in mind that Google reviews are people's opinions, and there are some people who are simply not going to leave a positive review for any company. You have probably dealt with these people in your own workplace. Make sure that when you read a positive or negative review, you can see that it's coming from a genuine person who has left both positive and negative reviews in the past and for several places.
2. Check with the product manufacturer to see if the contractor you are looking at is actually a certified installer. This can be done with an internet search or a quick phone call.
3. Call the local roofing supply house. You can ask for their honest opinion of the contractor and the materials they recommended.
4. If you can find one, pick a contractor that specializes in working with insurance carriers who has detailed knowledge regarding the insurance claims process. This will make everything much smoother and will allow you to rest easy knowing it's not all on your shoulders.
5. Find a contractor who is HAAG-certified. You could also look for a certified installer of the brand of shingles you would like.

In short, you may be working too hard to fix your roof problems. If you follow these five steps, pay your deductible, and allow the insurance company and the certified contractor to work together to get the job done quickly and correctly, you'll have your roofing problems fixed with care and thoroughness. You'll have nothing to worry about.

Definition: A deductible is the amount of money a policyholder must pay out-of-pocket toward damages or a loss before their insurance company will pay the remainder for a claim.

You do not actually pay your deductible to your insurance company, as you would a premium or bill. If you file a claim and it is covered, the deductible is subtracted from the amount of the claim.

For example, say you have a $500 deductible and you file a claim for $10,000. Your insurance company would pay you $9,500 for that claim. This keeps money from getting sent back and forth over and over, simplifying the entire process.

There are generally two types of deductibles: a dollar amount and a percentage-based amount. The difference between these is how your deductible is calculated, and there are a couple of nuances depending on what your home is valued at. Once it has been calculated, the deductible amount that a homeowner pays to file a claim is fixed for the length of that policy.

I've had clients with both a fixed-amount deductible and a percentage-based deductible because of an endorsement they added onto their policy.

One particular client had a $1,000 deductible set overall for any home claims. She also added an endorsement onto her roof that made it a percentage-based deductible. This saved her about $30 per year on her premium but ultimately  cost her an additional $1,500 above the $1,000 deductible in the event of a roofing claim.

Confusing? This was also very confusing for her. Let's talk about insurance policies and how they affect claims.

There's a myriad of options when you're choosing home insurance. You may have a policy that is actual cash value (ACV). In short, this means the insurance company is only going to pay you the depreciated value of your property in the event of a claim.

Here's an example of how ACV works: A storm damages your roof, it might cost you $15,000 to replace your roof because it's currently 30 years old. Your insurance carrier is only obligated to give you the $5,000, in total, that the depreciated roof is worth at the time of the accident leading to the claim.

Disclaimer: this is only an example of how ACV works. I don't know you or the depreciated value or the replacement cost value of your current roof.

If you have an ACV policy, be prepared to pay your deductible plus a large portion of your claim out-of-pocket.

On the other hand, there are replacement cost value (RCV) policies. Replacement cost value, as I stated earlier, provides enough money to rebuild your home back to the condition it was in when it was built. It does not factor in depreciation and is completely covered by your insurance provider, so you pay nothing out-of-pocket except your set deductible.

An RCV policy is obviously better than an ACV policy. Providing that your city hasn't passed any ordinances since your home was built, you should only have to pay your deductible. On that note, you should call your insurance agent to make sure you have a replacement cost coverage (RCV) policy on your home, and also that you have an endorsement called "Ordinance or Law" coverage.

If you do have a replacement cost coverage policy and an ordinance or law coverage endorsement, it's likely that your only out-of-pocket expense will be the set deductible for your policy. Once again, remember that the insurance adjuster has estimated the claim amount so that the contractor can install "like, kind and quality" materials on your home.