Contractors
Win at insurance: the skill that pays for itself
Written by Andy Kruger
BuildSOS CEO
Homeowners are navigating the claims process blind. You speak the language. That gap is a business opportunity in a roughly $7 billion-a-year U.S. damage restoration industry (IBISWorld, 2026), and the contractors who close it become indispensable, not just hired. This guide covers insurance fundamentals, documentation that gets claims paid, client advocacy, locking in pre-storm agreements, and staying on the right side of the ethics line.
Why this pillar exists as its own skill set
Construction skill gets you hired once. Insurance fluency is what gets you hired for the next ten jobs, because it’s the part of the process that actually determines whether a homeowner’s claim gets paid fairly and fast, and most contractors never build it deliberately. The five guides here aren’t abstract insurance theory. They’re the specific glossary, checklists, and habits that turn “the guy who does good work” into “the contractor who actually got me paid what I was owed.”
Sources
- IBISWorld — Damage Restoration Services in the US (2026) · ibisworld.com
What's in this guide
Insurance fundamentals for contractors
The plain-English glossary and policy red flags every advocate-minded contractor needs to know.
Claims documentation systems
The hour-by-hour protocol and the exact package that gets claims approved fast.
Advocating for clients
Being the bridge between the homeowner and the insurance company, and knowing when to bring in a public adjuster.
Pre-storm agreements & client education
Lock in the work before the storm hits, not after everyone else is calling too.
Contractor ethics & fraud prevention
Storm chasers ruin it for everyone. Here’s how to stay clearly on the right side of the line.
$1.99 · iOS & Android
Getting the runaround from your insurance company?
Claims AIDvisor reads your policy, your settlement offer and your repair estimate together, then tells you exactly where you stand. It doesn’t fight your insurer. It helps you understand what you’re actually owed.
About the author
Andy Kruger
Andy Kruger is CEO of BuildSOS, author of When the Storm Comes, and sits on multiple boards and advisory groups shaping disaster resilience policy and research.
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