"Had a buddy whose insurer claimed his pics weren't 'clear enough,' whatever that means."
Yeah, ran into something similar last year. Took a bunch of DIY roof photos after a hailstorm, thinking I was covered. Insurer said pics lacked "sufficient detail," and I ended up needing a pro inspection anyway. Lesson learned—now I snap close-ups of damage areas, include something for scale (like a coin), and jot down brief weather details (date, hail size). Seems to help avoid hassle later...mostly.
Took a bunch of DIY roof photos after a hailstorm, thinking I was covered.
Yeah, insurers can be picky about photo quality. Your tip about using a coin for scale is great—I usually toss in a tape measure myself. Definitely helps cut down on the back-and-forth with claims...mostly.
Those DIY photos can be tricky—I've seen homeowners put in a ton of effort only to have insurers nitpick over lighting, angles, or scale. The coin trick is clever, but yeah, a tape measure or ruler usually clears things up faster. Still, don't feel discouraged; documenting damage yourself is always better than nothing. I've had clients whose initial DIY shots saved them headaches later, even if the insurer initially pushed back a bit. You're on the right track.
Yeah, insurers can be super picky about those DIY photos. I've had tenants send me pics of water leaks or wall damage that looked totally clear to me, but the insurance folks still found something to fuss over—usually lighting or shadows, like you mentioned. The coin trick is neat, but honestly, a simple measuring tape in the shot tends to shut down most arguments pretty fast. Still, I agree it's always worth taking your own pics right away. One tenant's quick phone snaps saved us big-time when the insurer tried claiming the damage was older than it really was. So keep snapping away...you never know when those photos might come in handy later.
Yeah, measuring tape is definitely the way to go. I learned that lesson the hard way when a storm knocked down part of my fence. Thought I'd be clever and just snapped a few quick pics with my phone—no measurements, nothing. Big mistake. The insurer kept pushing back, saying they couldn't tell how extensive the damage was from my "artistic" angles (their words, not mine...). Ended up having to retake everything with a tape measure clearly visible, and suddenly all their objections disappeared. Funny how that works.
Now I keep a cheap tape measure in the kitchen drawer just for insurance photos. It's saved me headaches more than once already.
