After the Storm: Photograph Everything Before You Touch Anything
The single most important thing a property owner can do after a hurricane is also the simplest: photograph and video everything before cleanup begins. Before the chainsaws start. Before the tarps go up. Before a single branch moves.
Florida law itself says so. The Homeowner Claims Bill of Rights (Florida Statute 627.7142) advises policyholders to take photos and video before and after any repairs. FEMA tells disaster survivors to photograph inside and outside before beginning cleanup, and to label shots by room before removing anything. This is not folk wisdom. It is the documented record your claim stands on.
Once debris is hauled away, the evidence is gone. The carrier cannot deny what is documented.
The Tree on Your Roof: Access Is Not Debris Removal
Here is where carriers quietly shortchange thousands of Florida owners every storm. A tree falls on your roof. The roofer cannot repair the roof until the tree is gone. The carrier calls the tree removal “debris removal” and caps it at the policy’s debris sublimit, often $1,000 per loss or $500 per tree.
That is wrong in most cases. Standard HO-3 policy language treats debris removal of covered property as part of the damaged property’s limit. The separate tree-debris sublimit ($1,000 per loss, $500 per tree) applies once the tree is on the ground and being hauled away. Lifting a tree off a damaged roof so repairs can proceed is part of the cost to repair the dwelling. It falls under Coverage A dwelling limits, not the debris sublimit.
The industry’s own experts agree. In the Big “I” Virtual University’s published Q&A on this exact question, two of three responding faculty said tree-off-roof removal is part of the Coverage A repair cost. The Property Loss Research Bureau, an insurer legal service, advised that the tree-debris limit should not apply to removing trees from the damaged property. One claims consultant breaks it down plainly: $3,500 to remove the tree from the roof is building repair; the $500 sublimit covers hauling it away afterward.
One note of honesty: no Florida court has squarely decided this, and one expert reads the clause strictly the other way. This is the prevailing professional interpretation, not settled law. That is exactly why documentation and professional representation matter.
How Carriers Misapply It
The misapplication is a documented pattern. A 2024 industry Q&A was prompted by a carrier capping tree-off-roof removal at $1,000 while other carriers on the same policy form paid it under Coverage A. Adjusters have applied the $500-per-tree sublimit to lifting trees off dwellings. When a lump-sum “tree removal” invoice hits the adjuster’s desk, the sublimit is the easy answer.
What to Do: The Itemized Invoice Rule
Demand the tree service itemize the invoice: one line for removing the tree from the structure, a separate line for hauling it away. A lump-sum “tree removal: $4,000” invites the adjuster to cap the whole thing at the sublimit. An itemized invoice forces the correct classification.
Photo Checklist Before Cleanup
- Wide shots of every room and every roof slope before anything moves.
- Close-ups of the tree where it contacts the roof, showing penetration points.
- The tree’s position relative to the structure, proving it blocks access for repairs.
- Interior damage with the tree still in place, linking cause to effect.
- Label every photo and video by room and date. FEMA recommends this explicitly.
- Photograph serial numbers and model plates on damaged equipment.
- Save receipts for every emergency expense: tarps, chainsaws, hotel, meals.
- Keep a written log of every call with the insurance company.
Do not sign releases or accept a first check until the full scope, including proper tree-removal classification, is documented. Call 800.511.2240 for a free claim review.