After the Storm Comes the Second Storm: 

When a tornado, hailstorm, or straight-line wind event tears through a Missouri neighborhood, the damage to your property is only the first hit. The second wave arrives a day or two later, and it doesn’t come from the sky. It comes up your driveway.

They are called “storm chasers,” and they follow catastrophe weather across the country the way vultures follow a wounded animal. Some drive pickup trucks with out-of-state plates and magnetic signs. Some knock on your door in a branded polo with a clipboard and a drone. Some call themselves contractors. Some call themselves public adjusters. What they share is a business model built on speed, pressure, and the hope that you are too shaken to ask hard questions.

I have spent my career representing Missouri policyholders whose carriers underpaid or denied legitimate claims. I take those cases because the insured was wronged. But I turn away plenty of callers too, and I tell them honestly how to handle it themselves. In that same spirit, here is the honest version of what to watch for after a storm — and how to protect yourself before you sign anything.

Two Kinds of Knock

The people who show up uninvited after a disaster generally fall into two camps. Both can cost you.

The out-of-state solicitor “public adjuster.” A public adjuster works for you, the policyholder, not the insurance company, and negotiates your claim in exchange for a fee. That is legitimate and valuable work when it’s done by the right person. The problem is the traveling operator who parachutes into Missouri after a headline event, signs up as many contracts as possible in a week, and is three states away by the time your claim actually needs attention. Don’t be reassured just because they hold a Missouri license — many of these firms are licensed in a dozen states precisely so they can chase storms wherever they land, sign clients, and move on. A license is a starting point, not proof of accountability. What matters is whether someone is physically here, and answerable to you, through the entire life of the claim — the inspection, the estimate, the supplement fights, and the months of back-and-forth that follow. You cannot sit across a conference table from someone who lives 800 miles away. You cannot easily hold accountable a firm with no Missouri office, no local reputation, and no intention of being here next spring.

The door-knocking exterior contractor “offering to help.” This is the roofer or restoration crew that appears in the wake of the hail, tells you they “noticed damage” from the street, and offers to “handle everything with your insurance.” The pitch usually includes some version of “we’ll take care of your deductible” and “just sign here so we can get started.” Both of those phrases should stop you cold, and I’ll explain below exactly why under Missouri law.

The common thread is urgency. Storm chasers manufacture a sense that you must act right now, today, before the offer disappears. Real damage does not evaporate overnight. A reputable local professional will still be reputable next week. Urgency is a sales tactic, not a roofing condition.

What Missouri Law Actually Says (and Why It Protects You)

Missouri has written specific consumer protections into its statutes precisely because these abuses are so common. You don’t need to be a lawyer to use them — you just need to know they exist.

Public adjusters must be licensed here — but that’s the floor, not the finish line. Under Missouri Revised Statutes Chapter 325, anyone acting as a public adjuster — or even soliciting you to sign a public-adjuster contract — must hold a Missouri public adjuster license issued by the Missouri Department of Commerce & Insurance (MDCI), and must carry a surety bond. A person licensed only in Texas or Florida is not authorized to adjust your Missouri claim, so if the person knocking cannot give you a Missouri license number, that is the end of the conversation. But understand what the license does and doesn’t tell you. It confirms they cleared a bare minimum. It does not tell you they’ll be here in month four when your carrier lowballs the roof, or that you’ll ever reach the same person twice. The traveling operators know this, which is why so many of them carry licenses in state after state — the license is their travel permit, not a commitment to you. Verify the license, then keep asking the harder question: will this person be physically present and accountable from the first inspection through final payment?

Contractors cannot pay or rebate your deductible. Under Missouri Revised Statutes § 407.725, it is illegal for a residential contractor to advertise or promise to pay, waive, or rebate any part of your insurance deductible as an inducement to hire them. “We’ll eat your deductible” is not a generous offer — it is a violation of Missouri’s Merchandising Practices Act, and a contractor willing to break that law to get your signature is telling you exactly how they’ll treat you later. Worse, going along with it can expose you to insurance-fraud liability, because your deductible is part of the loss your carrier priced the claim around.

Contractors cannot negotiate your claim for you. That same statute, § 407.725, also bars a residential contractor from representing or negotiating with your insurance company on your behalf for roof or other exterior repair work. Adjusting an insurance claim and building a roof are two different jobs, held to two different licensing standards, for good reason. When a contractor offers to “handle your insurance,” they are offering to do something the law does not permit them to do — and steering your claim toward the scope that maximizes their job, not your recovery.

You have cancellation rights. Missouri law gives homeowners the right to cancel certain post-disaster roofing and exterior repair contracts, including situations where your insurer ends up denying the claim. If you feel pressured into signing on the spot, understand that a signature obtained under pressure is not necessarily a life sentence — but the far better course is never to sign under pressure in the first place.

I am a licensed public adjuster, not an attorney, and none of this is legal advice for your specific situation. But these are the plain consumer-protection rules any Missouri homeowner is entitled to know before making a decision.

Do Your Own Homework: A Vetting Checklist

The single best defense against a storm chaser is a slow, deliberate selection process. The professionals worth hiring will welcome the scrutiny. The ones you should avoid will resist it. Before you sign with any contractor or any public adjuster, work through this list.

Put local presence and accountability first. This is the single most important test, so lead with it. Where is this person actually based, and will they personally handle your claim from the first inspection through last payment — or are they signing you up today and handing you off to a call center tomorrow?  Ask how long they’ve worked claims in your county and how many they’re carrying right now. A claim is a months-long process of estimates, supplements, and pushback; the professional worth hiring is the one who will still be sitting across the table from you when it gets hard. The Missouri based public adjuster will have a ready list of Missouri policyholders he has assisted over the years that you can contact on your own to verify his presence and expertise.

Confirm the license — but treat it as the entry ticket, not a recommendation. For a public adjuster, verify the Missouri license and bond through MDCI’s public lookup. For a roofer, confirm any required local or municipal licensing and registration. Go to the source; don’t accept a laminated card or a screenshot. And don’t let a valid license end your inquiry. Storm chasers routinely hold licenses in many states for the express purpose of following catastrophe weather from one to the next. A license means they cleared a minimum. It says nothing about whether they’ll be here when your claim actually needs them.

Check the roots, not just the reviews. How long have they operated in your county? If they are they listed with the Better Business Bureau, what’s the complaint history? Do they carry Missouri general liability and workers’ compensation insurance — and will they show you the certificates? Search their business name alongside words like “complaint,” “lawsuit,” and “fraud.” Ask specifically whether the crew that shows up will be local employees or a subcontracted traveling team.

Get everything in writing, and read it before you sign. Any legitimate agreement — contractor or public adjuster — will be a written contract stating scope, price or fee, and terms in full. For a public adjuster, the fee is a percentage and it must be spelled out; Missouri regulates those fees, and during a governor-declared disaster they are capped, so know the number before you agree to it. Never sign a blank form, a document with dollar amounts missing, or anything that “assigns” your insurance benefits to the contractor.

Refuse the pressure close. Any professional who insists the offer is only good today, who won’t leave you the paperwork to review, or who wants you to sign before you’ve read your own policy is disqualifying themselves. Tell them you’ll be in touch after you’ve done your homework, and watch how they react. Their reaction tells you everything.

Talk to your carrier and your own network first. Report the loss to your insurer yourself. Ask neighbors, your local hardware store, or your city’s building department who they trust. The best local contractors and adjusters usually don’t have to knock on doors after a storm — they’re already booked by referral.

The Bottom Line

The people who chase storms are counting on your disorientation. They want the decision made fast, made emotionally, and made before you’ve checked a single fact. Your best protection costs nothing and takes a few phone calls: insist on a professional who is based here and personally accountable to you through the entire claim, verify their license with the State of Missouri as a baseline, get every term in writing, and never sign under pressure — no matter whose truck is in your driveway. A Missouri license gets someone in the door. Being here, and answerable, when the hard part of the claim arrives months later is what actually protects you.

If your claim has genuinely been underpaid or denied and you’d like to talk through your options, I’m always willing to give an honest read on whether you even need a public adjuster at all. But whether you hire me, hire someone local, or handle it yourself, do it deliberately. In the days after a storm, the slowest homeowner on the block is usually the one who ends up whole.

James H. Bushart is a Missouri licensed public adjuster and Senior Claims Law Associate (SCLA), owner of James H. Bushart, Public Adjuster LLC. This article is general consumer information for Missouri policyholders and is not legal advice. Mr. Bushart is a public adjuster, not an attorney.

Denied or underpaid property claim? Call James H. Bushart, Public Adjuster, at 314-803-2167 for a free claim review. Visit missouripublicadjuster.org.