Document before you tidy
Photograph everything before you move or cover anything, including the parts that look minor. An adjuster cannot assess what someone already cleaned up. A homeowner who tarps a roof and throws out the debris usually destroys their own evidence. So keep receipts for emergency work too.
The damage you cannot see
Wind damage often sits above the ceiling rather than in the room. Lifted shingles let water into the attic. So do a displaced ridge vent, or a torn soffit panel. The first visible sign arrives weeks later, as a ceiling stain. So inspect the attic and the roof edge after any serious storm, even when nothing inside looks wrong.
What hurricane damage repair finds later
Water that got in through the roof edge, rather than through anything visible. Rain enters the attic through a lifted shingle, a displaced ridge vent or a torn soffit panel. Inside, the first sign is a ceiling stain, weeks after the storm has gone. The Florida Division of Emergency Management advises inspecting after any serious event. Start at the attic and the roof edge.
Repair, not patch
We replace wet insulation rather than drying it in place. We also cut wet drywall back to sound material. See water damage repair and insurance claim restoration.