Metro Atlanta roofer loses $12K after State Farm approves replacement, doesn’t pay

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) - A Cumming, Georgia, homeowner and his roofer spent three years going back and forth with State Farm Insurance company to get a full roof replacement approved, only to find they didn’t payout after the job was complete.

The situation is something metro Atlanta roofer David Garner said he has never seen in the near decade he’s been working with insurance companies on roof repairs.

At the end of the day, when a roofer isn’t paid for his or her work, the homeowner is on the hook. If they don’t pay, the contractor can place a lien on their home to recoup the funds.

“But it’s not the homeowner’s fault this is taking place,” Garner said. “It shouldn’t be his responsibility, because the paperwork at the insurance company provided said that there was recoverable depreciation, and they would pay.”

Garner owns SSR Roofing based in Alpharetta and had met Venkat Garikapati a few months after State Farm closed a claim he’d filed for wind damage in March 2021.

Garikapati had received a letter from his homeowner’s association that his shingles were damaged. But when he filed the claim with State Farm, his homeowner’s insurance company, it only approved the replacement of 38 shingles, which it estimated would cost less than his $2,500 deductible. Therefore, it closed the claim without payment.

“They are never shy on collecting the monthly premium at all, but to get this approved took quite a long time,” Garikapati said, three years to be exact.

“There was wind damage to the roof, so it was torn all to pieces,” Garner said. “More than 70 shingles were creased or missing from the roof.”

Garner began submitting proof to State Farm to show the repairs required a full roof replacement in order to avoid further damage and leaking. Garner estimated the cost close to $30,000.

“State Farm was delaying and delaying,” he said.

After Garner brought in a public adjuster to negotiate with the insurance company, State Farm approved a full roof replacement on April 25, 2024, more than three years after the original incident date recorded in Garikapati’s very first claim filing.

With a typical roof replacement claim, an insurance company first looks to approve an initial “actual cash value” amount.

Additional replacement costs are considered “recoverable depreciation,” which isn’t always included in a homeowner’s coverage.

Garner made sure it was in Garikapati’s coverage when signing the contract, because he said he always wants the homeowner to know if they will be on the hook for any additional costs.

The first check for actual cash value upwards of $7,000 cleared Garikapati’s mortgage lender within a few months and Garner installed the new roof in August.

When Garner submitted the proof for the extra supply costs, considered “recoverable depreciation” near $12,000, State Farm said it wasn’t “able to issue any benefits cost due to the contracts statute of limitations which is 2 years of filing.”

In fine print, Garikapati’s policy did state, “to receive any additional payments on a replacement cost basis, you must complete the actual repair or replacement... within two years after the date of loss.”

However, Atlanta News First Investigates found a State Farm employee attached an email with the April 25, 2024 approval estimate clearly stating: “Replacement cost benefits will be issued contingent completed of roof replacement and submission of photos, submission of photos, certificate of completion and or signed contract agreement with service provider.”

“We supplied the paperwork the next week and then State Farm says, ‘We’re not going to pay,’” Garner said. “I’ve got thousands of dollars sitting on this roof. I got a small amount of money up front. I’ve already paid the material bill. I paid all labor. Everything on this roof is paid, and I’m out of pocket big time on this.”

Looking for help, Garikapati filed a complaint with the Georgia Office of Insurance and Fire Safety Commissioner in January 2025.

Within a month, the office closed the complaint, citing State Farm’s response that the roof replacement was outside of the two-year window.

“The whole reason this claim took a long time to get approved is because deny and delay, deny and delay on the insurance part,” Garner said.

A spokesperson for State Farm told Atlanta News First Investigates it provided every benefit available to the homeowner within his policy.

The company doubled down on that statement to the insurance commissioner when Garikapti filed a second complaint.

Garner said it’s not good enough. “It seems like they’re just giving a blanket statement,” he said.

The commissioner’s office told Atlanta News First Investigates that State Farm is sticking to its decision, so the office is closing the second complaint as well.

“You would think the insurance commission would take them to task on that, but apparently they’re not,” Garner said.

Atlanta News First Investigates looked at the last few years of homeowners’ insurance complaints filed with the commissioner’s office and found:

• State Farm, the biggest insurer in the state, had almost 900 complaints last year, up 126% from 2022.
• Allstate, the second biggest insurer in Georgia, had 770 complaints, up 77% from 2022.
• Progressive, the third largest, had 557, up 49% from 2022.

The commissioner’s office did not provide information on the outcomes of the complaints.

Garner feels like he’s out of options for getting any further funding from State Farm.

“It wouldn’t be viable financially to sue them,” Garner said. “They’re too big of an entity. The other option would be I could go after the homeowner for the money, but it’s not his fault. ”He was operating in good faith, just like I was, and it appears if the insurance company is the only one that’s not operating in good faith here.”

Atlanta News First Investigates followed up with State Farm after the state closed both complaints to ask why they approved the claim after three years if they had a two-year limit.

A spokesperson with State Farm corporate communications said in an email: “After many attempts, we have made contact with this customer’s public adjustor, and we believe we have provided every benefit available to the customer within their policy. With any claim, State Farm seeks to provide our customers all benefits to which they are entitled within the terms of the insurance policy. As part of our commitment to our customers, we welcome additional information that may help us identify any additional applicable benefits under the policy.”

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