The storm has passed. There are shingles in your yard, a wet spot spreading on the ceiling, and a dozen decisions in front of you. What you do in the next 48 hours will shape how your insurance claim goes for the next several months.
Here is the order of operations we give Ohio homeowners.
Hour One: Safety, Then Nothing Else
Stay off the roof. Wet shingles, hidden structural damage, and downed lines injure people every storm season, and no photo is worth it. If there is standing water near electrical outlets, or the structure looks compromised, get your family out and call the professionals first.
Document Before You Touch Anything
Your phone camera is now the most valuable tool you own. Before any cleanup, before any tarping:
- Wide shots of every affected side of the house, from the ground
- Close-ups of visible damage: missing shingles, dented gutters, broken windows, torn siding
- Interior damage: ceiling stains, wet drywall, damaged belongings, standing water
- The yard: shingles, branches, hail on the ground next to something for scale
- Date evidence: your phone timestamps everything, so shoot generously. Hundreds of photos is normal. You cannot re-create the scene later.
Stop the Bleeding (You Are Required To)
Nearly every policy requires you to take reasonable steps to prevent further damage. That means tarping the hole, boarding the window, shutting off water to a burst line. Keep it reasonable and safe, hire it out if it is beyond you, and save every receipt. Emergency mitigation costs are typically part of your claim.
One important line: mitigation means protecting the property, not repairing it. Do not start permanent repairs before the damage has been inspected and documented. Repair first, and you may erase the evidence your claim depends on.
Be Careful on Your Own Doorstep
After every major Ohio storm, crews go door to door offering fast roof deals. Some are legitimate local contractors. Some are out-of-state operations that follow storms for a living. Before you sign anything:
- Read what the paper actually is. Some door-to-door agreements assign away your claim rights or lock you in before you know what the insurance company will pay.
- Check that the contractor is local and verifiable. You want someone who will still be in Ohio when the warranty matters.
- Slow down. A real contractor does not need you to sign in the driveway today.
Notify Your Carrier, Carefully
Report the claim promptly; your policy requires timely notice. When you do, stick to facts: the date of the storm, what you can see, what you did to prevent further damage. You do not have to guess at causes, estimate costs on the phone, or accept the first inspection date offered if it does not work for you.
Consider Getting Your Own Expert Before the Carrier's Inspection
The insurance company will send its adjuster to assess the damage. That person works for the carrier. You are allowed to have your own representative there, and claims tend to go better when the documentation, the scope, and the policy arguments are handled by someone on your side from the first inspection rather than brought in after a bad offer.
That is what we do. If your home just took a hit, our free claim review is the fastest way to find out what your claim is really worth, and our storm damage page covers what Ohio policies typically owe for wind and hail.