Wish I'd known this before my fence got flattened by a tree branch last summer. Thought insurance would cover the whole thing, but nope—turns out I had an ACV policy. After depreciation, the payout barely covered half the cost of a new fence. Lesson learned the hard way... definitely upgrading to RCV next renewal. Live and learn, right?
RCV policies definitely have their perks, but keep in mind the higher premiums can add up over time. Had a client last year who switched to RCV after a similar fence fiasco... ended up paying way more overall than she ever recouped. Just something to consider.
Good point about the premiums adding up, but honestly, I've seen plenty of cases where ACV policies left homeowners seriously shortchanged after major storm damage. Had a homeowner last spring whose roof was totaled by hail—ACV barely covered half the replacement cost because depreciation hit hard. RCV would've saved him thousands in that scenario. Curious though, has anyone crunched numbers on how long you'd typically need to hold an RCV policy before it actually pays off? Seems like that'd be useful info to have handy...
"Curious though, has anyone crunched numbers on how long you'd typically need to hold an RCV policy before it actually pays off?"
Interesting thought... but honestly, I'm not sure it's always about the math. Had a tenant last year whose townhouse flooded badly after a pipe burst. They had ACV coverage and ended up paying a hefty chunk out-of-pocket because of depreciation. Sometimes peace of mind and avoiding that financial stress is worth paying a bit extra each month, even if the numbers don't perfectly line up. Just my two cents though.
"Sometimes peace of mind and avoiding that financial stress is worth paying a bit extra each month, even if the numbers don't perfectly line up."
Yeah, I get what you're saying here. But honestly, from what I've seen on roofing jobs, it really does depend on your situation. If your roof is fairly new and in good shape, ACV might not sting as much because depreciation won't hit you as hard. But if you've got an older roof (like 15+ years), RCV can save your bacon big time.
Think of it like this: say a storm rolls through and you've got shingles flying off everywhere (seen it happen plenty). With ACV, the insurance company calculates depreciation based on the age of your roof—meaning you'll probably end up covering a decent chunk yourself. With RCV, though, they pay the full replacement cost minus your deductible once repairs are done. So yeah, math matters...but knowing you're covered when things go sideways can make sleeping at night a whole lot easier. Just something to chew on.
