Your Insurance Company Is Looking at Your Roof — Here's What They See

A homeowner in Los Osos called us last month after getting a letter from her insurance company. They weren’t renewing her policy. The reason was her roof. Nobody had knocked on her door. Nobody climbed a ladder or walked her property. The insurance company looked at her house from a satellite image and decided the moss on her roof was a problem.

She didn’t even know they could do that.

They’re Not Knocking on Your Door Anymore

Insurance companies used to send someone out. A person would drive by, maybe take a photo from the curb, write up a report. That still happens, but it’s not the main way they check on properties anymore.

Now they use satellite photos and AI. Insurers check satellite images of your roof for moss, broken shingles, and other signs of wear, and what they find can trigger a non-renewal notice. According to reporting by the Wall Street Journal, cited by California’s Department of Insurance, insurers are now photographing “nearly every building in the country” using AI-powered satellite imagery and predictive models. Most homeowners have no idea it’s happening.

What They’re Looking For

The things that get flagged are the same things we see on roofs across SLO County every spring: moss, algae, cracked shingles, and overhanging trees. An insurer’s underwriting guidelines treat any of these as reasons to drop your policy.

Here on the Central Coast, that’s a problem. Our winters are mild, but they’re wet. Months of coastal fog, light rain, and cool shade from the oaks create exactly the conditions moss and algae need to spread. If you’re in Morro Bay or Cayucos, the salt air adds another layer. Inland in Atascadero or Paso Robles, you get more sun but still enough moisture during the rainy months for biological growth to take hold.

A roof that was clean last September can look rough by March. That doesn’t mean the roof is failing. It means winter happened. But to an AI scanning a satellite photo, green streaks and dark patches look like risk.

What Happens When They Don’t Like What They See

You get one of three things: a non-renewal notice, a premium increase, or a letter telling you to fix the issue before your policy expires. None of them are fun.

The non-renewal is the worst outcome. Having a non-renewal in your insurance history makes it harder to find another policy. Other carriers see it and treat you as a higher risk, even if the original issue was cosmetic.

And the cost gap is widening. The premium difference between homes with newer or well-maintained roofs and those with older or neglected ones has tripled since 2022. Roof condition is one of the biggest pricing factors insurers use now.

The system isn’t always right, either. California’s Department of Insurance has investigated numerous complaints where flawed aerial imagery led to wrongful cancellations or non-renewals. Insurers have used imprecise photos to drop policies based on bad data. It happens.

California Is Pushing Back

There’s legislation in the works. Assembly Bill 75 would require insurance companies to give homeowners at least 30 days’ notice before taking aerial images and give you the right to see the photos they used. That’s a step in the right direction.

But waiting on legislation isn’t a plan. Your next policy renewal date is coming whether AB 75 passes or not. The practical move is to deal with what’s on your roof before anyone looks at it.

What You Can Actually Do About It

Get the roof cleaned. But how you clean it matters.

Pressure washing a roof is a bad idea. High-pressure water damages shingles, cracks tiles, and can void your roofing warranty. It also only blasts off what’s visible on the surface. The root system of the moss and algae stays behind, and the growth comes back within weeks.

Soft washing is the right approach. We apply an eco-friendly solution at low pressure that kills the biological growth at the root. The roof gets clean and stays clean. No surface damage, no warranty issues, and it looks like a different house when we’re done.

Spring is the time to do it. Winter growth is at its peak right now. Your insurer could be looking at your roof at any point before your renewal date. Getting ahead of that is the easiest way to protect your coverage and keep your premiums where they are.

If your roof has a winter’s worth of moss on it, give us a call at (805) 801-7800 or request a free estimate.