On a carrier’s Xactimate roof estimate, the lines worth checking first are waste, which can quietly carry starter and ridge cap, and any line priced below what the work costs you, such as new sheathing. Before either, open the Parameters tab, because labor efficiency changes what each line costs and overhead and profit goes on as a percentage of the whole estimate. Owning Xactimate costs $2,390 a year for one platform as of October 2026, and it is worth that when your insurance roofs leave more supplement money behind than the license costs.
Match two settings on the Parameters tab before any single line
The first is labor efficiency. Xactimate’s default, Restoration/Remodel/Service, prices work on finished and possibly occupied buildings, with drive time, mobilization and material delivery built into each line item. “Total Rebuild or Similar” (formerly “New Construction”) uses the most efficient labor rates. Price lists from January 2026 added a “Large Restoration/Remodel” option priced between the two, which needs Xactimate version 2026.2.1000.1 or later.
The second is overhead and profit. Xactimate unit prices leave out general contractor O&P, which goes on as a percentage in Estimate Parameters. A subcontractor’s own O&P already sits inside the labor in each unit price, and job overhead such as a project manager or a portable toilet goes in as its own line item.
Open the Parameters tab on the carrier’s estimate and on yours, and get labor efficiency and O&P to match before you question any price.
Waste can swallow starter and ridge cap
Verisk’s Level 2 training shows shingle waste entered by hand as SQ*1.15, which is 15%. That is a teaching example, and I found no Verisk rule that sets the waste a carrier must allow or says whether starter and ridge belong inside it.
An estimator on r/Contractor wrote in August 2026 that carriers increasingly fold starter and hip and ridge into a set waste percentage. He added that this happens even when measurement reports show the field shingles alone run past the material allowance.
When the waste line looks like it is carrying starter and ridge, send your measurement report’s field-shingle quantity with the supplement and list starter and ridge cap as lines of their own. Roof Insurance Supplements: How Roofers Get Carriers to Pay the Full Scope covers how a supplement gets paid.
Compare the carrier’s roof measurements with your report
Xactimate builds a roof from a sketch drawn with its roof tool, and roofing line items can be added straight from that sketch. Verisk’s training calls the sketch’s measurements roof variables, from squares (SQ) to the valley, hip, eave and rake lengths (VAL, HIP, EAVE and RAKE).
When a carrier’s estimate comes in short, check those lengths against your measurement report before you look at individual prices. Roof Measurement Reports Compared: EagleView, Hover, RoofSnap and Roofr covers which report to order.
Send a price below your cost to Verisk with the city and line item
Verisk publishes price lists for more than 460 ZIP-code-based markets every month, and as often as every two weeks when demand surges. It sets each price by cluster analysis, looking for “the most common price recently submitted,” and says no published price can be certain to fit a specific contractor or structure.
A Houston-area contractor on r/Roofing wrote, “We charge about 200 a square to install new osb.” He asked whether the Xactimate price ran higher, so the sheathing line would get approved faster.
Verisk’s April 2026 paper on labor efficiencies says the prices and items in an estimate are “completely up to the estimator,” though a carrier can still dispute a price you change by hand. When the list price itself sits below your real cost, email an Independent Verification Request to [email protected] naming the city and the line item. If the price falls outside the cluster, Verisk surveys local contractors, updates the list and reports back.
On a small repair, look for the labor minimum. Xactimate adds labor to each trade until it reaches a minimum charge, because drive time, setup and material pickup can outweigh a small task.
The supplement money you let go decides whether you need the license
A sales rep on r/RoofingSales asked, “Is Xactimate mostly used on the back end for supplementing,” and whether anyone uses it for cash bids and invoicing.
On the insurance side, one owner on r/Roofing said his company lets $100 to $200 or more of supplementable items go on about 50 roofs a year so funding isn’t held up.
Hiring the writing out is the other route. One owner on r/Roofing asked other roofers about freelancers writing his Xactimate estimates, and another posted for an Xactimate expert to revise several completed and active claims.
If you buy it, Verisk sells one platform (desktop, mobile or online) at $1,575 for six months, and the yearly subscription includes over 100 hours of self-paced online training. Instructor-led classes run online or in person across North America, with evening virtual sessions for anyone on roofs during the day.
Live chat support is free around the clock except on Christmas and New Year’s Day, and phone support costs $20 a call on weekdays.
Verisk certifies users at three levels, each one required before the next, and a certification lasts two years. Level 2 covers roofing line items and shingle waste, so it is the level to aim for if you or an estimator will write supplements.
Add up the supplementable money you let go last year. If it runs past the license plus the office hours to write estimates, bring the writing in-house; if it doesn’t, price a freelancer or supplement company first. Roofing Supplement Companies: What They Charge and When to Outsource covers what that costs.
Texas lets a roofer discuss his estimate and bars him from adjusting
This section applies only in Texas. TDI’s FAQ says a roofer may discuss the damage, the replacement and its reasonable cost with the insurer, along with the scope in his own estimate, and “may discuss supplements and clarifications concerning the revised estimate.” He may not advocate for the homeowner or discuss policy coverages and exclusions. TDI Bulletin B-0006-26, dated July 20, 2026, repeats that contractors may provide estimates and discuss them with an insurer or its adjuster.
Texas Insurance Code 4102.163 bars a contractor from acting as a public adjuster on any property he is or may be working on, even with a public adjuster license. TDI’s list of banned roofer language includes offering to negotiate the settlement and promising to recover “every dime,” and TDI counts a website as an advertisement.
Keep each supplement to scope and price, and keep “negotiate” off your website.
Check these on every carrier estimate before you send a supplement
- Labor efficiency on the Parameters tab matches the job.
- Overhead and profit shows up as a percentage in Estimate Parameters, or you know why it doesn’t.
- Valley, hip, eave and rake lengths match your measurement report.
- Waste is not carrying starter and ridge cap, which go on lines of their own.
- A small repair shows the labor minimum.
- Any price below your real cost goes to [email protected] with the city and line item.
A supplement only matters on a claim you were hired for, and that starts with a homeowner finding you. The free Google Maps heatmap shows where the map ends for you: pick your Google profile and a search, and in a few minutes you’ll see your rank at 49 points around your office.