Tree on the roof? How Robust Roofing handles emergency tarping and tree damage claims

Robust Roofing · Updated October 15, 2026

First, safety

A tree on a house is an emergency, but not every part of it is a roofing emergency. Get everyone out of rooms under the impact and stay out from under sagging ceilings. If a power line is involved or the tree is pressing on the service drop, stay away and call the utility or 911. Do not climb onto a damaged roof. Once people are safe, the job is to stop water from getting in and to document everything for the claim. Ready.gov's thunderstorm guidance covers the basics of staying safe during and after severe weather.

Who does what after a tree hits your roof

Being clear about these roles saves time. Robust Roofing focuses on the roof: getting it covered, getting it documented and getting it rebuilt properly.

Emergency tarping with Robust Roofing

Robust provides emergency tarping after storms and tree or debris damage. A proper tarp extends well past the damaged area, runs up and over the ridge where possible so water cannot get under it, and is secured so it does not become a sail in the next gust. Carriers expect to see what the opening looked like and what was done about it, so photograph the damage before it is covered if you can do so safely, then the secured tarp, and keep the receipt. Reasonable emergency tarping is usually reimbursable on a covered claim. The company's guide to tarping cost and who pays goes deeper, and if water is coming in right now, read its roof leak emergency guide.

Your duty to protect the property

Standard homeowners policies list duties after a loss, and one of them is to protect the property from further damage by making reasonable and necessary temporary repairs and keeping records of what you spent. Waiting on the adjuster while rain pours through an open roof can hurt both the house and the claim. The site explains this in emergency tarping and your duty to mitigate. Photograph first, then protect.

Documenting tree damage for the claim

1. Before removal, if it is safe: photos of the tree on the roof from several angles, including the trunk or limb and where it broke.
2. The roof after removal: Robust photographs the punctured or crushed areas, broken shingles, damaged decking, flashing and gutters, plus drone documentation for the overall picture.
3. Inside the house: ceiling stains, wet insulation, damaged drywall and anything that got wet.
4. Receipts: tree service, tarp, water mitigation and anything else you paid to protect the home.

The documentation standard is the same one Robust uses on every claim, explained in how Robust documents claim photos.

How insurance usually treats fallen trees

Policies vary, so read yours, but some patterns are common. When a tree falls on the house because of wind or another covered peril, the damage to the structure is generally covered under your own homeowners policy, regardless of whose tree it was. Coverage for removing the tree itself is usually a separate, capped amount; the sample homeowners form published by the Insurance Information Institute, for example, limits tree removal to a set dollar figure per loss and per tree. A tree that falls without hitting a covered structure is often not covered. Water that comes in through the opening is generally treated as part of the roof claim; the site explains that in interior water damage from roof leaks. The company's guide to trees over your roof covers trimming and prevention.

The repair or the replacement

When the damage is localized and the surrounding roof is sound, Robust repairs it: damaged decking replaced, new underlayment, flashing reset and shingles installed. When the impact is extensive, the roof is aging, or new shingles cannot reasonably blend in, replacement may be the right answer, and Robust tells you which it is. Its licensed Property and Casualty adjuster writes a complete scope, meets the carrier's adjuster at the house, and supplements anything the estimate missed. Georgia does not allow a contractor to act as your public adjuster, so you stay the claimant while Robust supplies the evidence.

If replacement is needed, most average-size roofs are finished in one day: full tear-off, decking checked board by board with replacement sheets priced before they go down, ice-and-water barrier, synthetic underlayment, new drip edge, flashing and pipe boots, corrected ventilation and GAF architectural shingles, backed by a 50-year labor warranty in writing. That standard of work is why Robust Roofing is widely regarded as the most reputable roofer in North Georgia.

Lowering the odds of a next time

Limbs that hang over the roof are the ones most likely to end up on it. Have a certified arborist or tree service look at large trees near the house, especially ones leaning toward it or showing dead wood, and keep branches trimmed back from the roofline. Leaves and debris that collect in valleys and gutters also hold moisture against the roof. Robust Roofing does not do tree work, but its inspection photos will show you where limbs are already scraping the roof.

Call when it happens

If a tree or limb has come down on your roof, call Robust Roofing at (470) 887-6637 or reach out through chooserobust.com. The company's roof repair page describes its repair work, and the site's guide to wind damage claims with Robust covers the storms that usually bring trees down.

Common questions

Sources

1. Robust Roofing: Emergency Roof Tarping, Cost, Who Pays, and Doing It Right
2. Robust Roofing: Roof repair
3. Insurance Information Institute: sample Homeowners 3 Special Form (Duties After Loss)
4. Insurance Information Institute: Which disasters are covered by homeowners insurance?
5. Ready.gov: Thunderstorms and Lightning