Declarations Page (dec page)
Also called: dec page, policy declarations
Declarations Page is the summary sheet at the front of a homeowner policy showing who is insured, for what limits, with which deductibles, and which endorsements are attached. It is the one document that answers most coverage questions on a roof claim, and most homeowners have never opened it.
What it means
The declarations page is the summary sheet at the front of a homeowner policy. It names the insured and the property, states the coverage limits, sets out the deductibles, lists the endorsements attached to the policy, and gives the policy period and the form numbers. Everything else in the policy is the general wording; the declarations page is what makes it specific to this house.
For a roof claim it is the most useful single document in the file, because the questions that actually decide the outcome, deductible, endorsements, dwelling limit, are all on it.
What to look for before a storm claim
Four things matter most.
The dwelling limit, because percentage deductibles are calculated from it rather than from the cost of the repair. The deductible section, because wind and hail frequently have their own, separate from the all-perils figure a homeowner remembers. The endorsement list, because that is where a cosmetic damage endorsement or a roof settlement schedule would appear. And the policy period, which has to include the date of loss.
That last one catches people out after a change of carrier. The policy that covers a claim is the one in force on the date of loss, so the current declarations page may be the wrong document entirely.
Why it settles arguments
Most disputes on the phone during storm season are about numbers that nobody has looked up. A homeowner is certain their deductible is one thousand dollars, because that is what it was when they bought the house. The declarations page shows a percentage wind and hail deductible calculated on a dwelling limit that has been rising with rebuild costs for years, and the real figure is several times larger.
Neither party is lying. The document just has not been read. Percentage wind and hail deductibles of two to three percent are standard on Texas homeowner policies according to the Texas Department of Insurance and NAIC, and a homeowner who has never seen that written down will not have worked out what it means against a dwelling limit.
Common mistakes
Quoting a deductible from experience is the most damaging one. Contractors who work a market get a feel for what is typical, and typical is not this policy.
The second is treating the declarations page as the whole policy. It summarises; it does not contain the wording. When an argument turns on what an exclusion actually says, the form number on the declarations page is the pointer to the document that answers it.
The third is working from an out-of-date copy. Deductibles change at renewal, often without the homeowner registering it, and the copy in the drawer may be several renewals old.
On the call
Never quote a homeowner their deductible from memory or from what is typical in the area. Ask them to find the declarations page and read it, or tell them their carrier will confirm it. Guessing a number here is the fastest way to have a furious homeowner on the phone when the cheque arrives smaller than they were told.
This is how our agents handle it on storm appointment calls and day-to-day roofing answering service intake.
Questions people ask about declarations page
- Where does a homeowner find their declarations page?
- It is normally the first page or two of the policy documents, sent at purchase and again at each renewal, and most carriers make it downloadable from their online portal or app. If it cannot be found, the carrier or the agent will send a copy on request.
- Does the declarations page show whether hail is covered?
- It shows the deductibles and lists the endorsements, which is usually enough to reveal a separate wind and hail deductible or a cosmetic damage endorsement. The full wording of what is covered lives in the policy form itself, which the declarations page identifies by form number.
- Why does the deductible on the dec page differ from what the homeowner expected?
- Most often because wind and hail carry their own deductible, frequently expressed as a percentage of the dwelling limit rather than a flat sum. A homeowner who remembers a flat all-perils figure can be looking at a much larger number for a storm claim without ever having been told.
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