CLAIMS
Claims

# Why Adjusters Reject 40% of Roof Claims (And How to Fix It)

LynkedUp Pro Team Jun 16, 2026 5 min read

"Lack of maintenance" shows up on more denial letters than any other reason in the industry. It's frustrating for homeowners and worse for the contractor who now has to either re-fight the claim or eat the cost of a job that was never in question.

Here's the part that should change how you run every job going forward: it's almost never actually about maintenance. It's about proof.

## The #1 Denial Reason: "Lack of Maintenance"

When an insurer can't find a record of regular inspection, "lack of maintenance" becomes the default explanation for wear they'd otherwise attribute to a storm. It's not that the roof wasn't maintained — it's that nobody can show that it was.

40%

### Insurance denials

Of claims are denied for "lack of maintenance" when proof of regular inspection is missing from the file.

✕ HIGH RISK
5 yrs

### Life reduced

A minor leak left undocumented for six months can shorten a roof's serviceable life by up to five years.

⚠ CAUTION
15 min

### To build the record

The time it actually takes to capture a dated, facet-mapped inspection that removes the ambiguity entirely.

✓ VERIFIED

## What a Denial Actually Costs You

A denied claim rarely just disappears. It turns into a second inspection, an appeal letter, weeks of delay while the homeowner grows frustrated with everyone involved, and in some cases a job that gets pulled entirely once trust in the process erodes. None of that shows up on the original bid, but all of it hits your calendar and your reputation.

> Insurers don't deny roofs. They deny files that can't prove what happened to them.

## The Fix: Photograph Everything, Timestamp Everything

The single biggest lever here isn't a better argument with the adjuster after the fact — it's a better file before the claim is even filed. A dated, geo-tagged, facet-by-facet inspection record does more to prevent a denial than any appeal letter written after one.

- Capture a full inspection at first contact, not just at claim time.
- Store records in a format that survives a change of ownership or a change of contractor.
- Make the record easy to hand over — carriers move faster through formats they already recognize.

## A Quick Pre-Claim Checklist

1. Full-roof scan with facet-level measurements, not just a visual walkthrough.
2. Photos of every existing wear pattern, dated before the storm event if possible.
3. Shingle class, install date, and any prior repair history on file.
4. One clean export, ready to attach to the claim on day one.

✓ CLAIM-READY BY DEFAULT

## Stop building the file after the denial.

See how a phone-based scan builds a claim-ready record on day one, before there's ever a dispute to fight.

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