ACV vs RCV Roof Insurance: How Depreciation Decides Your Payout

When a roof claim is approved, the dollar amount hinges on a single line in your policy: whether the roof is covered at Replacement Cost Value (RCV) or Actual Cash Value (ACV). The repair is identical either way. The check can differ by thousands.

Two ways a roof is valued

RCV pays what it costs to replace the roof with new materials of like kind and quality, with no deduction for age. ACV pays the depreciated value — replacement cost minus wear already used up. A $14,000 RCV roof might be valued at only $7,000 ACV once depreciation is subtracted.

How roof-age depreciation works

Insurers depreciate a roof on a straight-line schedule against its expected life. An asphalt roof rated for 25 years loses roughly 4% of its value per year. At 10 years old it has lost about 40% of its value; at 20 years, about 80%.

Recoverable depreciation

On an RCV policy the insurer typically pays in two stages. First it sends the ACV portion (replacement cost minus depreciation minus deductible). Then, once you actually complete the work and submit the final invoice, it releases the withheld recoverable depreciation — the rest of the RCV amount. Skip the repair, and you forfeit that second check. On a pure ACV policy the depreciation is non-recoverable: the first payment is all you get.

Why an old roof gets paid ACV

Many insurers automatically convert older roofs (often 15–20+ years) to ACV-only coverage by endorsement, even if the rest of the home is RCV. The logic is that an aging roof has little remaining value to "replace like new." That is why two neighbors hit by the same storm can receive wildly different checks — newer roof, RCV, full payout; older roof, ACV, a fraction of it.

To see how your roof's age, value, and deductible combine, run the numbers in the roof insurance claim calculator. If you are still unsure whether your damage is even covered, start with the coverage checker.