How to use the calculator
Add one row for each damaged item or building component: a roof, siding, flooring, a water heater. For each row enter the replacement cost, its age in years and its expected useful life. Set a depreciation cap if you want to limit how far any single item can be depreciated, enter your deductible, and choose whether your policy pays replacement cost or ACV only. The “repairs completed” toggle shows what changes once the work is done and documented.
The math in plain words
The tool uses straight-line depreciation: age divided by expected life, multiplied by the replacement cost, and capped at the limit you set. A 10-year-old roof with a 25-year life is depreciated 40%. Actual cash value (ACV) is replacement cost minus depreciation.
- First ACV check: total ACV minus the deductible.
- Depreciation held back: total depreciation the insurer withholds until repairs are done.
- Released after repairs: the holdback paid once you show the work is complete, if your policy pays replacement cost.
- Total if fully recovered: replacement cost minus the deductible.
On an ACV-only policy the holdback is never released, so the first check is the whole payment.
An illustrative example
Illustrative figures only: a $20,000 roof that is 10 years into a 25-year life carries $8,000 of depreciation. With a $1,000 deductible, the first check is $11,000, $8,000 is held back, and the total after repairs is $19,000.
What the result does and doesn’t mean
Insurers don’t all depreciate the same way. Some depreciate labor, some only materials; some use condition rather than age; some items are not depreciated at all. Your estimate may also include overhead and profit or code upgrades that this simple model leaves out. Treat the output as a way to understand the structure of your payments, not as the number your carrier must pay.
Kentucky context
Most replacement cost policies set a window to complete repairs or notify the insurer that you intend to claim the holdback, and that window varies by form. After a big Kentucky hail or wind event, contractor backlogs can push repairs past it, so read your policy and put the date on your calendar with the claim timeline builder. When depreciation itself is the disagreement, for example an unreasonable age or condition on a roof, that pricing question can be part of a homeowners insurance appraisal.
Questions about the rcv & acv holdback calculator
What is recoverable depreciation?
It is the part of a replacement cost claim the insurer holds back until repairs or replacement are completed. Once you document the work within the policy’s window, the holdback is typically released.
Why does my insurer depreciate differently than this calculator?
Carriers use different methods, such as condition-based depreciation or depreciating materials but not labor. This tool uses simple straight-line depreciation with a cap so you can see the structure.
Does the calculator store my figures?
No. All math runs in your browser and nothing is saved or sent anywhere.