How do I tell if my Texas homeowners policy is ACV or RCV on the roof?

Read your declarations page and look at Coverage A - Dwelling plus any endorsement labeled 'Roof Surfacing Payment Schedule' or 'ACV Schedule.' If you see RCV or Replacement Cost language with no roof-specific exception, you are on RCV. If an endorsement applies, that endorsement controls the roof payout.

Why did my insurer pay so much less than my contractor's estimate?

Almost always depreciation. On an ACV policy, the carrier subtracts age-based depreciation from the replacement cost before cutting the check. On an RCV policy, the carrier still pays ACV first, then releases recoverable depreciation only after you prove the work was completed.

How long do I have to claim recoverable depreciation in Texas?

Most Texas policies give you 180 days from the date of loss, though a few carriers allow 365 days. Miss the window and the depreciation amount becomes non-recoverable. Texas Department of Insurance data shows roughly 18% of recoverable depreciation goes uncollected statewide each year.

Is upgrading from ACV to RCV worth the extra premium?

For most Texas homeowners with a roof under 15 years old, yes. The upgrade typically costs $180-$420 per year and can recover $5,000-$15,000 on a single hail claim. Roofs older than 15 years often cannot get RCV coverage without a fresh inspection and code-compliance check.

Does the contractor's measurement affect my depreciation payout?

Yes. The carrier compares the final invoice's squares, pitch, and facets to the original approved scope. Mismatches stall the depreciation release. An independent satellite measurement attached at claim intake gives both sides a defensible baseline and shortens the second-payment timeline.

Blog Post | Aroof Measurement Platform

On a 12-year-old asphalt roof with a $16,000 replacement cost, an Actual Cash Value (ACV) policy might pay you $5,500. A Replacement Cost Value (RCV) policy pays the full $16,000 minus your deductible. The difference is depreciation, and most Texas homeowners do not know which one they have until the check arrives.

What is ACV and what is RCV, in plain dollars?

ACV pays you what your roof was worth the day the hail hit, not what a new roof costs. RCV pays the full price of a new roof, just in two installments. According to the Texas Department of Insurance, more than 60% of post-2017 HO-3 policies in hail-prone counties now carry some flavor of ACV roof endorsement, even when the rest of the dwelling is insured at RCV.

The depreciation math an adjuster actually uses

An adjuster ages every component on your roof using a schedule. Asphalt shingles depreciate roughly 4% per year on a 25-year product. Decking depreciates around 2% per year. Underlayment, flashing, and pipe boots each have their own curve. The Insurance Information Institute estimates depreciation can cut a claim payout by 40-90% on roofs older than 10 years.

Why the second installment matters

On a true RCV policy, the carrier issues the ACV check first, then releases the recoverable depreciation once you prove the work was completed at the contracted price. You do not get the full $16,000 upfront. You get roughly $11,000 now, then $5,000 after the contractor finishes and you submit a final invoice.

How much does the ACV vs RCV gap cost in real Texas claims?

The gap scales with roof age. On a 5-year-old roof the difference is small, often under $3,000. On an 18-year-old roof the gap can wipe out more than 80% of the payout. The National Roofing Contractors Association reported in 2024 that the median Texas residential roof claim now runs $14,800, which makes the ACV penalty material at every age band.

Three example claims, run end to end

5-year-old asphalt roof, $14,000 RCV. ACV after 5 years of depreciation lands near $11,200. The RCV policyholder collects the full $14,000. Gap: $2,800.
12-year-old asphalt roof, $16,000 RCV. ACV runs around $5,500 once the adjuster applies the full depreciation schedule. The RCV policyholder still collects $16,000. Gap: $10,500.
18-year-old asphalt roof, $18,000 RCV. ACV drops to roughly $2,700. RCV pays the full $18,000, although getting RCV coverage at this age is increasingly rare in Texas. Gap: $15,300.

Apply your deductible to either number. A 2% deductible on a $300,000 dwelling is $6,000. On the 18-year-old ACV example, you would actually owe the contractor money to start the job.

How do you find out which one you have?

Pull your declarations page, called the Dec page, and read the Coverage A - Dwelling line plus any roof-specific endorsement. About 70% of homeowners in a 2023 J.D. Power survey could not correctly identify their roof coverage type before filing a claim. The language you want to see is Replacement Cost or RCV. The phrase you do not want is ACV Schedule or Roof Surfacing Payment Schedule.

Where the trap is hidden

Most Texas HO-3 policies default to RCV for the dwelling. After the 2016 and 2017 hail seasons, carriers added roof ACV schedule endorsements that silently swap roof claims to ACV once shingles pass 10-15 years. The dwelling line still says RCV. The endorsement, often two or three pages deep, is what governs your roof payout. If your Dec page lists an endorsement number you do not recognize, call your agent and ask one question: does my roof pay at ACV or RCV?

How do you actually collect the recoverable depreciation?

You collect it by proving the work was done at the price the carrier already approved. The deadline in most Texas policies is 180 days from the date of loss, though some carriers stretch it to 365. According to the Texas Department of Insurance, roughly 18% of recoverable depreciation in Texas goes uncollected each year, almost always because the homeowner missed the documentation step.

The paper trail the carrier needs

Signed contract with your roofer showing the total contracted price.
Final invoice marked paid or balance due upon depreciation release.
Photos of the completed roof, ideally with date stamps.
A signed certificate of completion from the contractor.
Permit close-out from your city, if your municipality required one.

Submit the packet to your claims adjuster, not the 800 number. The 800 number routes paperwork into a queue that can sit for 30-45 days. Your assigned adjuster can release the second check in a week.

Why does an accurate measurement matter for the second check?

The carrier compares the contractor's final invoice to the original scope. If the squares, pitch, or facet count do not match, the depreciation release stalls. An IBHS study found that roof measurement errors of more than 5% trigger supplement disputes on roughly 1 in 4 Texas claims. A measurement done from satellite imagery, like the ones Aroof produces, gives both you and your contractor a defensible baseline before the work starts.

Where measurements quietly break claims

Two common failures. First, the adjuster's sketch missed a dormer or a porch, so the contractor builds a full scope and the carrier balks at the extra squares. Second, the contractor measured high to pad the bid, the work came in lower, and the carrier refuses to release depreciation on squares that were never installed. An independent measurement, attached to the claim at intake, prevents both. For a deeper walkthrough, see our other articles on roof measurement and claim documentation.

What should you do before the next hailstorm?

Audit your policy now, while the sky is clear. A 2025 Insurance Research Council report found that 41% of Texas homeowners who switched from ACV to RCV roof coverage did so after a denied or underpaid claim, when the upgrade cost them an additional $180-$420 per year and a fresh inspection. Doing it before a storm is cheaper and faster.

A 20-minute pre-storm checklist

Read your Dec page. Confirm the roof coverage type in writing.
If you find an ACV endorsement and your roof is under 15 years old, ask your agent what RCV would cost as a rider.
Pull a current satellite measurement so you have a pre-loss baseline of squares, pitch, and facets.
Photograph each roof slope from the ground every spring.
Save the measurement, photos, and Dec page in one folder, cloud-backed.

If a storm hits and you already have the measurement and the policy language in hand, you skip the first two weeks of back-and-forth that most claims burn through.

Next step

Before you file or fight a claim, know two numbers: your roof's square footage and your policy's coverage type. The first you can get in about 60 seconds from a satellite measurement at aroof.build, free. The second is on page 1 or 2 of your Dec page. Together they tell you, in dollars, whether you are looking at a $5,500 check or a $16,000 one. Pull both today, save them, and you will not be guessing when the hail comes.

ACV vs RCV: The $8,000 Difference on Your Texas Roof Claim