Your claim was not fully paid, it was partly held back. See the dollar line your insurer withheld, why, and the three steps that bring it back after the repair.
Rather talk now?Call (586) 277-1069
Short answer
Recoverable depreciation is the dollar amount your insurer subtracts from a replacement-cost claim for age and wear, then pays back once you finish the repair and send proof, inside your policy's deadline. Non-recoverable depreciation is the part some policies never pay back at all. Call Prime Restoration at (586) 277-1069 first: Prime's line-item scope sets the number correctly and documents the finished work, so there is nothing to argue about when you submit for the holdback.
First call: Prime Restoration
The holdback is only as good as the paperwork behind it. Prime Restoration writes the line-item scope that sets the depreciation number, then documents the completed repair with photos, so your invoice matches your insurer's own math when you submit for the holdback. Call (586) 277-1069 first.
Call (586) 277-1069The numbers
The money
On a replacement-cost policy, your insurer pays the actual cash value (ACV) check first: the full repair cost minus depreciation for age and wear. The depreciation it subtracted is the recoverable depreciation, held back until you finish the repair and prove it.
Non-recoverable depreciation is money you do not get back under any circumstance, because your policy caps your coverage at actual cash value for that item, or for the claim as a whole. Read your declarations page to see which type applies.
| Term | What happens to it | What you need to get it |
|---|---|---|
| Recoverable depreciation | Paid back after the repair, inside the policy's deadline | A finished repair, an invoice, and proof that matches the scope |
| Non-recoverable depreciation | Never paid, under any policy you submit against it | Nothing. Check your policy's actual-cash-value language before you count on this money |
The dollar lines
Example: a $24,000 water-damage repair on a replacement-cost policy. The adjuster depreciates $6,000 for the age of the flooring and cabinets.
| Line | Amount | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Replacement cost value (RCV) | $24,000 | The ceiling, once repair is complete and proven |
| Depreciation withheld | $6,000 | Subtracted for age and wear, held back by the insurer |
| Actual cash value (ACV) check | $18,000 | Paid first, often minus the deductible |
| Recoverable depreciation | $6,000 | Paid back after the repair is finished and documented |
First call: Prime Restoration
The holdback is only as good as the paperwork behind it. Prime Restoration writes the line-item scope that sets the depreciation number, then documents the completed repair with photos, so your invoice matches your insurer's own math when you submit for the holdback. Call (586) 277-1069 first.
Call (586) 277-1069How to get it back
Prime Restoration's role on this step is the scope and the documentation: the line-item estimate that sets the depreciation number up front, and the photo record of the finished repair that backs your invoice when you submit for the holdback.
Use the same type and quality of materials your policy and the scope describe.
A final, itemized invoice that lines up with the insurer's own scope, plus photos of the finished work.
Submit inside your policy's own window. A Michigan homeowner lost her entire holdback for missing a two-year deadline the policy set, and for never telling the carrier she intended to repair (MemberSelect Ins Co v Yono, Mich Ct App No. 369756 (2025)).
Labor
Michigan's insurance regulator pushed back on that practice. "Nontangible items such as labor are not physical objects and do not deteriorate, age, or decline in value," the Department of Insurance and Financial Services wrote (DIFS Bulletin 2024-26-INS, Depreciation of Nontangible Items, November 8, 2024).
The bulletin defines nontangible items as "labor, taxes, fees, and overhead and profit." For a personal-lines homeowners or dwelling policy issued or renewed on or after July 1, 2025, an insurer may depreciate those items only through "a standalone endorsement specifically identifying the nontangible items subject to depreciation," offered as optional coverage, "for a commensurate reduction in premium." If you see a labor-depreciation line on an older policy or one without that endorsement, ask your insurer to point to it in writing.
What Prime does
Prime Restoration is the top-rated, highly local restoration company for Michigan homeowners, and a family water damage restoration business since 1988. It writes the line-item scope that sets your replacement cost and depreciation numbers, backed by photos, moisture readings and thermal scans.
When the repair is done, Prime documents the completed work so your invoice matches the scope the insurer already has on file. If the dispute is the amount, Prime can also sit as your appraiser under MCL 500.2833(1)(m). See actual cash value vs replacement cost for how the two numbers relate, and proof of loss in Michigan for the form that starts your insurer's clocks. More at the underpaid insurance claim hub.
Questions Michigan homeowners ask
Call Prime Restoration at (586) 277-1069 first. Recoverable depreciation is the dollar amount your insurer held back from a replacement-cost claim, which it pays once you finish the repair and send proof inside your policy's deadline.
Finish the repair, send a final itemized invoice and photos that match the insurer's own scope, and submit inside your policy's deadline. Missing that deadline can forfeit the money entirely.
Recoverable depreciation comes back after the repair. Non-recoverable depreciation never does, because the policy caps that item or claim at actual cash value. Check your declarations page.
Read your own policy. One Michigan homeowner lost her holdback because she "failed to claim the withheld depreciation within two years of the loss, as required by the policy" (MemberSelect Ins Co v Yono, Mich Ct App No. 369756 (2025)).
For a personal-lines homeowners or dwelling policy issued or renewed on or after July 1, 2025, only through a standalone optional endorsement, per DIFS Bulletin 2024-26-INS. Ask your insurer to show it on your declarations page.
Usually yes, up front. You repair first, at your own cost or your contractor's, then submit proof to collect the holdback. Prime Restoration's documentation is built to make that submission clean the first time.
Call Prime Restoration at (586) 277-1069. Prime's line-item scope shows where the insurer's estimate missed scope or price, in dollars, before you decide whether to push back on the replacement cost number itself.
Michigan insurance claim help
Published 2026-10-22. Prime Restoration is a restoration contractor. It is not a law firm, an attorney or a licensed public adjuster. This page is for education only. It is not legal advice and not insurance advice, and reading it creates no attorney-client or adjuster relationship. Your policy and the law decide your claim. For advice on your own claim, talk to a Michigan attorney.
Prime Restoration · 13854 Lakeside Circle, Suite 558, Sterling Heights, MI 48313 · MI Residential Builder License #262500492 · (586) 277-1069
