Your Name on the Deed May Not Be on the Policy

A roof claim starts with a policy, and a policy starts with a name. The declarations page lists the people the insurer agreed to cover, and the deed lists the people who own the house. In most homes those two sets of names match closely enough that nobody looks twice. When they do not match, a claim can stall for reasons that have nothing to do with the storm, the shingles, or the size of the damage. This page covers the places where the names drift apart in St. Louis area homes and what to check before you send anything to the insurer.

Why the names matter

An insurer pays on a policy, and the policy is a contract between the insurer and the people named in it. If the person filing the claim is not named on the policy, or is named in a way the insurer cannot connect to the property, the insurer will want to confirm that connection before it moves any money. That is a documents question, not a judgment about the roof. The exact paperwork comes from your policy wording and from the insurer's own claim procedure, so the only reliable way to know what is needed is to ask for the list in writing.

Read the declarations page first

The declarations page is the front sheet of the policy. It shows the named insured, the property address, the policy period, and the coverage limits. Pull it up and read the name line word for word. Note whether it lists one person, two people, a spouse, a trust, or a business. Then check the street address against the county record. A missing apartment or suite number, or a transposed house number, can send the file to the wrong desk or make the insurer question whether the policy covers the building that was damaged.

Also look at the mailing address. Some policies are issued to a post office box or to an address where the owner no longer lives, and that address may differ from the insured location. The insurer needs both to match the property that has the roof damage. If they do not, the claim may need a correction endorsement before it can be paid on the right building.

When the deed and the policy disagree

Several common situations produce a mismatch in this area. A policy written before a refinance may name one spouse while the deed was re-recorded under both names or under a family trust. A house that passed to an heir after the policy began may still carry the original owner's name on the policy. A divorce decree may have moved the house to one spouse while the policy still lists both. A name change after marriage or a remarriage can leave the policy name different from the name on the title. A house bought by a company for a rental, which the owner lives in part of the time, can sit under a policy written for a person. None of these situations is unusual, and each one can require a different document before the insurer treats the claim as belonging to the person who filed it.

If the owner has died, the person who can act for the estate may be a personal representative appointed by the probate court. The letters of administration are the document that shows that appointment. Until the estate's authority is clear, the insurer may not accept a claim signed by a family member, even one who lives in the house. Ask the insurer which document it will accept for an estate before you gather anything.

The fix is usually paperwork, and the owner or the estate is the one who gathers it. The insurer may ask for a copy of the recorded deed, a trust certificate, a death certificate, a divorce decree, or a letter from the lender. Ask the insurer to list every document it wants in one written message, so you can send them together rather than one at a time. A single list also gives you a fixed set of things to check off, which helps when the file has been open for weeks.

Insurance claim

Missouri law bars a roofing contractor from representing or negotiating a homeowner's insurance claim, and RSMo 407.725 also forbids a roofer from saying anything about paying, waiving or covering a deductible. That rule is the reason a contractor cannot sort out a name mismatch for you. Keys Roofing can document the roof, write a scope with photos and measurements, and place that package in your hands. Your insurer deals with you on the name question. Any answer given to the insurer comes from you, from the estate's representative, or from a public adjuster you choose and hire yourself.

Keys attends the inspection as the contractor while you deal with your own insurer. If the adjuster asks who owns the house or who is entitled to sign, that answer belongs to the homeowner or the estate. The contractor should not answer for them, and a written scope should describe the damage without making any statement about title.

What it costs

The name check costs little on its face. A copy of a recorded deed comes from the recorder of deeds office in the county where the house sits, and that office charges a copying fee for each page. A trust certificate is often a document you already keep in a file. A divorce decree or a death certificate comes from a court or a vital records office, and each of those offices charges its own fee. Ask each office what it charges before you order, and ask for a certified copy only if the insurer says it requires one. A certified copy costs more and is not always needed.

The larger cost is delay. A roof left open while the file waits on the right name costs more than the paper does, because every week of exposure adds to the risk of more water in the attic or in the ceilings below. Ask the contractor for a dated scope and photo set in your hands now, so the roof record is complete while the title question is being settled. Any temporary protection for an open roof is a separate decision with its own price, and it should be quoted separately from the claim paperwork.

What to ask

Before you send anything, ask the insurer these questions in writing:

• Which names appear on the policy, and does the claim need to be filed under a different name?
• Which documents prove ownership of the property at this exact address?
• Does the policy cover a trust, a spouse who is not named, or a company that holds title?
• Will the insurer accept a copy of the recorded deed, or does it need a certified copy?
• What document does the insurer accept when the owner has died and an estate is involved?
• What is the deadline to supply the documents, and is it written into the claim letter?

Ask the roofer these questions before work is scheduled:

• Will the written scope show the property owner's name exactly as it appears on the signed work order?
• Will the photos and measurements carry the property address as the deed and the policy show it?
• Can you give me a copy of the scope, the photo log, and the measurements on the day the inspection ends?
• Who should the adjuster contact about the name on the policy, and does that person need to be present at the inspection?