Can a roofer waive my deductible in Texas?
No. It's illegal in Texas for a roofing contractor to waive, absorb, or rebate a homeowner's insurance deductible — and any contractor offering to do so is a serious red flag, not a good deal.
Texas House Bill 2102, effective September 1, 2019, made it a criminal offense — a Class B misdemeanor on first offense — for a roofing contractor to pay, waive, absorb, or rebate a customer's property insurance deductible. Homeowners are legally responsible for paying their own deductible. A contractor offering to cover it is either planning to inflate the insurance estimate to hide the difference, or use lower-quality materials to make up the cost — both of which put the homeowner at legal and financial risk.
The local reality in the Texas Panhandle, South Plains, and DFW
This law exists specifically because of the pattern seen after major Panhandle and North Texas hailstorms: out-of-town contractors offering to "eat the deductible" as a way to win business fast, then cutting corners to cover the gap. The Texas Department of Insurance created a dedicated fraud unit partly in response to this exact tactic.
Sal's experience
Sal Morales Roofing does not waive, absorb, or offer any form of rebate on a customer's deductible, on any job. Every estimate reflects the actual cost of the work — nothing inflated to quietly cover a discount that isn't legally allowed in the first place.
Real evidence, not a sales pitch
A completed installation with a straightforward, itemized scope of work — no inflated numbers to hide a waived deductible.
A legitimate estimate should look like a real invoice — materials, labor, and scope of work that match what your insurance company approved, with your deductible paid by you as your policy requires. If a written estimate you're given doesn't look like that, that's worth a second opinion.
Get a transparent estimate
See insurance claim assistance for a straightforward look at what your policy covers and what you're responsible for.
Common questions
What happens if I accept a deductible waiver offer?
Both the homeowner and the contractor can be held legally responsible — this is treated as insurance fraud under Texas law, not a harmless discount.
What should I do if a contractor offers to waive my deductible?
Decline the offer and consider reporting it to the Texas Department of Insurance or the Texas Attorney General's Consumer Protection Hotline.
Is there any legal way to reduce what I pay out of pocket?
Your deductible amount is set by your own insurance policy — the way to manage it is choosing your policy's deductible level when you buy or renew coverage, not through a contractor discount.