The verdicts, one table
| Material | Fire view | What underwriters flag |
|---|---|---|
| Composition shingle | Class A as an assembly — the market's default yes | Age, curling, granule loss; ACV schedules on older installs |
| Concrete / clay tile | Excellent surface fire rating | The underlayment beneath ages even when tile doesn't; open ends need birdstops |
| Metal (standing seam) | Excellent | Few — occasionally hail/denting questions inland |
| Wood shake | The problem child, especially in brush zones | Many carriers decline or surcharge; treated/rated shakes only partly help |
| Flat / low-slope | Fine when membrane is rated | Ponding, drainage, membrane age — water more than fire |
Two themes run through every row: fire rating (a Class A assembly is the anchor of any hardening story) and water reliability (most roof claims are leaks and storm damage, not flames). A roof that scores well on both is the single friendliest fact a California application can contain.
The shake problem, stated fairly
Untreated wood shake is combustible roofing in a state that burns — in brush-mapped areas many carriers simply won't write it, and others price it like the exposure it is. Fire-retardant-treated and Class-rated shake products exist and help at the margin, but the market's direction is unambiguous. If you own a shake roof in a WUI area, the honest options are: a specialty/E&S placement while it lasts, or a re-roof that transforms both your risk and your market access in one project. We'll price both paths so the decision is a comparison, not a guess.
Tile's quiet secret: the underlayment
Tile itself outlives mortgages, which lulls owners into thinking the roof is eternal. Underneath, the waterproof underlayment has a working life measured in decades, not centuries — and when it fails, water finds the living room while the tile still looks perfect. Underwriters know this, which is why a fifty-year-old tile roof gets age questions the owner finds insulting. A lift-and-relay (same tile, new underlayment) resets the clock and reads as a re-roof on applications. How roof age is scored →
The re-roof payoff
A documented re-roof — permits, contractor invoice, completion date — improves fire scoring, resets ACV-schedule exposure back to replacement-cost treatment with many carriers, and reopens markets that decline old roofs. On older homes it's routinely the highest-leverage single project at quote time. Tell the wizard your roof's real year; tell your broker the day the new one is done.
Your roof, priced
The wizard asks roof type, year, and condition — because every carrier will.
Four minutes to a live indication across the markets that fit your roof as it actually is. No fee, no obligation.
Get a pricing indication →Choosing a replacement with insurance in mind
If a re-roof is coming anyway, let underwriting cast a vote: a Class A assembly (comp, tile, or metal), ember-conscious details while the crew is up there — vents, edges, gutter protection — and permits pulled so the project exists on paper. In brush areas, pairing the new roof with Zone 0 cleanup is the combination that moves market tiers. Keep every document; the roof section of the application stops being a liability and becomes the lead exhibit.
Frequently asked
Does roof material change my premium much?
Material, age, and condition together are one of the heavier-weighted property factors — and in brush zones, material can decide eligibility outright. The spread shows up when we quote the same house across carriers. The eight levers →
My tile roof was flagged but the tiles are perfect. Why?
Almost certainly the underlayment's age, or slipped/cracked tiles and open birdstop gaps visible from the street. A roofer's written assessment (with photos) often resolves it. Handling inspection flags →
Do solar panels cause problems?
Panels are insurable and common; carriers mostly care that the mounting was permitted and the roof beneath has life left. Re-roof first, then panels — the other order gets expensive.