Storm Damage
Hail damage is the most misjudged loss in residential property insurance — in both directions. Homeowners dismiss real damage because the roof “looks fine,” and door-knockers invent damage that isn’t there. Here’s how to tell the difference.
Why you can't see it from the driveway
On asphalt shingles, hail rarely punches visible holes. It bruises — a soft spot where the impact fractured the fiberglass mat and knocked granules loose. The bruise may look like nothing more than a slightly dark smudge, but the mat underneath is broken, and that shingle will fail years early: cracking, letting water past, and shedding granules from the wound every rain. Bruising is a fingertip diagnosis made on the roof, not a driveway observation.
Start with the soft metals
Before anyone climbs anything, walk the ground level. Hail that damaged the roof almost always left witnesses at eye height: dents in gutters and downspouts, dings in AC condenser fins, pockmarked mailboxes, splatter marks on electric meters, and damaged window screens or wraps. Insurance adjusters check these “collateral indicators” first for exactly this reason — soft metal doesn’t lie about hail size or direction.
What it looks like by roof type
Asphalt shingles: circular bruises with granule loss, exposed black mat, and a soft feel under thumb pressure. Distinguish from blistering (raised, popped bubbles from heat) and ordinary aging (granule loss concentrated in gutters and at edges rather than in random impact patterns).
Concrete and clay tile: cracked corners, star fractures, and shattered field tiles — often more visible than shingle damage, but frequently on slopes you can’t see from the street. Broken tile pieces in the gutter or on the ground are a tell.
Metal roofing: dents that are cosmetic on thick panels can compromise coatings and seams on thinner ones. Panel type matters, and so does your policy’s cosmetic-damage language — some policies exclude dents that don’t cause leaks.
Vents, flashing, and skylights: plastic vent caps crack, turtle vents dent, and skylight seals fracture. These cheap components cause expensive leaks, and they’re part of a proper scope.
The time pressure is real
Two clocks run after a hail storm. First, policies require prompt reporting, and many effectively limit how long after a storm you can file. Second, evidence decays: the next storm, another season of sun, and normal aging blur the line between hail damage and wear — which is exactly the argument a carrier makes against a stale claim. Document close to the storm date and attribution stays clean.
Document like it matters
Photograph the collateral indicators with something for scale, note the storm date, and get a professional on the roof for slope-by-slope photos. A documented storm inspection is free, and the photo set is yours whether or not you ever file. If the finding is “no damage,” that’s worth having in writing too — it protects you the next time a stranger with a ladder says otherwise.
The bottom line
Check the soft metals, respect the clock, and get real documentation instead of a doorstep opinion. Then read the Post-Storm Checklist for the claim sequence, and How to Spot a Storm-Chasing Scam before signing anything.
Hail Came Through? Find Out for Sure.
Free photographed inspections with straight answers — including “you’re fine.”