Can you spot repair aluminum siding?
You own a house with aluminum siding. You paid for a full, replacement cost insurance policy for your home. A portion of your siding is damaged by a loss that’s covered by your insurance policy. Your insurance adjuster swears to you that you can do a spot repair – just replace a couple panels. Should you accept this?
First, let’s make a distinction between aluminum and vinyl siding. Vinyl siding can be easier to repair. Vinyl is more common nowadays than aluminum. And individual panels of vinyl siding can be replaced in many cases (but make sure they are the exact same profile and watch out for those corner posts!)
As seen in the accompanying graphic, which is an excerpt from a manufacturer installation manual, aluminum siding cannot be repaired in a traditional manner. If you’re thinking that the contractor will remove the old, damaged piece of siding and re-install the new piece of siding, you’d be mistaken. The most common repair method is to remove the old piece(s) of aluminum siding. The nailing hem – the piece where the siding is usually nailed to the house – is cut off. The new piece is then connected to the nailing hem of the bottom piece remaining on the house and glued on. No nails are used whatsoever. Another option is to face-nail the new piece to the house, which leaves an aesthetic issue as siding should not be face-nailed.
The last option is to remove all of the siding on the house and re-install all of it while inserting the new piece into the location of the damaged siding panel. The problem with this repair method is that no contractors are willing to accept the liability to replace all of the siding if they accidentally damage one of the existing panels . It’s not typically a question of if a panel will be damaged, but when or where it will be damaged.
Regardless of whether you glue or face-nail the new, altered piece of aluminum siding, it won’t regain its original wind-resistance and will probably not look as good, even with a top-notch tradesman performing the repair.
Remember: the purpose of an insurance policy is to indemnify you. If you have a loss, you are supposed to be put back to a pre-loss condition without windfall or penalty. If your siding is functionally and aesthetically inferior, you were not indemnified.
Unfortunately, insurers keep their adjusters in the dark about the realities of siding repair. You may run into an adjuster who has no technical knowledge of the installation and/or repair process of aluminum siding. We recently ran into an appraiser who was hired by the insurer on a claim with aluminum siding damage. We provided documentation from the manufacturers as well as excerpts from published home repair manuals to support the reality that aluminum siding cannot be spot repaired in a manner that brings it back to a pre-loss condition. He did not possess prior knowledge of the necessary repair methods and assumed aluminum siding was no different than vinyl. Even with our extensive documentation, he just couldn’t accept the truth. We challenged him that if he could provide a contractor who could repair aluminum siding without further damage, we would agree to whatever amount he thought was appropriate for the repairs. As sure as the laws of physics cannot be violated, the contractor he brought to the job-site admitted that spot-repairs were not possible without damaging the siding. It was a wasted day for several people and an unnecessary delay for a homeowner to get back to normal after their house sustained storm damage.
If you’re having problems with an insurance claim regarding your aluminum siding, shoot us an email or give us a call. We’re happy to forward any supporting documentation that can help your case. If that doesn’t work, we’re even happier for you to hire us to obtain a fair settlement.
info@fair.claims
571-989-FAIR
