Hail came through last night: how to tell if your roof is damaged and how the claim works

The morning after the storm

The hail hit hard enough that you heard it on the windows. By mid-morning there are three roofing trucks on your street and a flyer in your mailbox. Your roof looks fine from the driveway. You do not want to file a claim you do not need, and you do not want to find out two years from now that you missed one. That uncertainty is the most common call we get at Verde Roofing after a North Texas storm.

Hail damage is frustrating because it is usually invisible from the ground and does not leak right away. A shingle that took a hard hit may look intact while the granules that protect it have been knocked loose and the mat underneath has been bruised. The leak shows up a year or two later, after sun and rain have finished what the hail started, and by then the window to file a claim may have closed.

We are a locally owned residential and commercial roofing contractor based in Plano, and storm restoration is the center of what we do. Because of that, we have worked through the insurance claim process with property owners across Dallas–Fort Worth, from a single home to a warehouse or an apartment complex. This guide walks through what we tell them.

What hail actually does to a roof

An asphalt shingle is a fiberglass mat coated in asphalt and topped with mineral granules. The granules are the sunscreen; they protect the asphalt from ultraviolet light. When a hailstone strikes, it displaces granules and can fracture the mat beneath. The spot may look like a small dark bruise, often soft to the touch, sometimes with a circular pattern. Over time that exposed asphalt dries, cracks and lets water through.

Hail does not only hit shingles. It dents soft metals such as gutters, downspouts, roof vents, flashing and window wraps, and those dents are often the easiest evidence to see from the ground. On a commercial flat roof, hail can puncture or crack a membrane or crush insulation beneath it. And wind that comes with the storm can lift shingles and break the seal that holds them down, which is a separate kind of damage with the same consequence. Where your property sits in the storm's path, the size of the hail and the age and type of your roof all affect how much harm was done.

What to look at from the ground, and what not to do

You do not need to climb on the roof, and we would rather you did not. Walk the property with your phone and look for the evidence that hail leaves at eye level. Take photos of everything with the date visible, because documentation is the foundation of a claim. Check the condition of the whole exterior while you are at it, since gutters, windows, fences, patios and paint are often damaged in the same storm.

If you have a safe view from a second-story window or a ladder set up on level ground, you may be able to see the roof surface. Even then, a trained eye finds damage that a homeowner misses, which is why a free inspection from a reputable roofer is the sensible next step rather than a last resort.

• Dents in gutters, downspouts, and the metal caps on vents and the chimney.
• Granules collecting at the bottom of downspouts or in splash blocks, which means shingles are shedding.
• Damaged window screens, dented window wraps, chipped paint or marks on a wood fence or deck.
• Shingle pieces, torn flashing or debris in the yard.
• Dents or cracks on air-conditioning units, patio furniture or the mailbox, which show the hail's size and direction.
• Any sign of water inside: stains on ceilings, damp spots in the attic, or a musty smell.

When it is fine to wait, and when the clock is running

If the storm was minor, your roof is newer, and a walk around the property shows no dents or granules, you can reasonably wait and watch. Set a reminder to check the attic after the next heavy rain. There is no benefit to filing a claim for damage that is not there, and your insurer tracks every claim you file.

Waiting stops being wise when you see any of the signs above, when neighbors with similar roofs are getting approved for replacement, or when your roof is older and had already lost granules before the storm. Insurance policies have time limits for reporting storm damage, and those limits vary by policy, so read yours or ask your agent. The longer the gap between the storm and the claim, the easier it is for the insurer to argue the damage came from wear rather than weather. And if water is coming in now, do not wait at all: put down a container, photograph the leak, call your insurer and get a roofer out to tarp it.

This is the point at which an inspection from someone who works with claims every week earns its place. We will tell you plainly if we see no claimable damage; we have no interest in a claim that gets denied.

How we take a storm-damaged roof from inspection to a finished replacement

Our process is built around the claim because that is how most storm work is paid for. It starts with a free inspection. I or one of our team walks the roof and the exterior, photographs the damage, and sits down with you to explain what we found, what we believe is storm damage versus age, and whether repair or replacement makes sense. If a claim is warranted, we explain the process and the forms, and you contact your insurer to open it.

The insurer sends an adjuster. We meet that adjuster at your property so that the damage we documented is seen and discussed on the roof, not argued about later. After the insurer issues its estimate, we review it line by line against what the roof needs; items get missed, and supplements are a normal part of the process. Then we schedule the work. Many residential replacements are finished in a single day, and we leave the yard as we found it. Along the way we can restore the rest of what the storm hit: gutters and downspouts, windows, fencing, staining and exterior paint, so one contractor finishes the job.

• Free inspection of the roof and exterior, with photos and a clear explanation of what we found.
• A repair-or-replace recommendation and help understanding the claim paperwork.
• Meeting the adjuster on site to walk the damage together.
• Line-by-line review of the insurer's estimate and supplements for missed items.
• Material selection: asphalt or laminated shingles, stone, tile, slate or metal, within what the claim allows and your budget.
• Installation, cleanup and a final walkthrough, with gutters, windows, fence and paint restored if damaged.
• Follow-up with the insurer when paperwork or payment stalls.

What decides the cost, and who pays which part

On an approved claim, the insurer pays for the covered damage less your deductible. Your deductible is the part that is yours, and in Texas it is a percentage of the dwelling coverage on many policies, so check the declarations page rather than guessing. Your policy also determines whether you are paid replacement cost or actual cash value, which depreciates the roof for age; that one line in the policy changes the check by a large amount.

Beyond the claim, the price of a roof is driven by the size and pitch of the roof, the number of layers to tear off, the material you choose, the complexity of the roof with its valleys, dormers and penetrations, the condition of the decking underneath, and code items such as ice-and-water shield or ventilation that may need to be added. A steep, cut-up roof in slate costs more than a simple gable in laminated shingle for obvious reasons. We quote all of this in writing before any work starts, and if you are paying out of pocket with no claim, we will tell you where the money matters and where it does not.

How to choose a roofer after a storm, when everyone is knocking

Storms bring out-of-town crews who follow the weather, collect deposits and are gone before the first leak. Choosing well is mostly a matter of slowing down. Ask where the company's office is and how long it has been there; ours is on West Park Boulevard in Plano. Ask for proof of insurance and for local references from the last year, not a brochure. Ask whether the person who inspects your roof will be the one who meets the adjuster and who you will call during the job.

Be careful with anyone who offers to "cover your deductible," which is a red flag and not something a reputable contractor does. Be careful with high-pressure signing on the day of the inspection, and with a contractor who wants you to assign the claim to them. Look for membership in a trade association such as the North Texas Roofing Contractors Association, which signals a company that intends to still be here. Most of all, choose someone who explains things, because you will have questions for weeks.

• A physical local office and a history in the Dallas–Fort Worth area.
• Current general liability insurance, shown to you, not described.
• Recent local references and reviews that mention the claim process, not just the finished roof.
• A written inspection report with photos before any discussion of a contract.
• Willingness to meet the adjuster and to review the insurer's estimate with you.
• No deductible games, no pressure, no assignment of your claim.
• Membership in a recognized roofing association.

The mistakes that cost homeowners the most

The first is filing before an inspection. If you call the insurer first and the adjuster finds nothing, you have a claim on your record and no roof. Have a professional look and document before you file. The second is accepting the first estimate from the insurer as final. Adjusters work fast and miss things; a line-by-line review by your contractor routinely finds items the estimate left out.

The third is waiting too long. Policies have reporting windows, and damage left alone becomes harder to attribute to the storm. The fourth is signing with the first truck in the driveway. A good roof and a smooth claim depend on who is standing between you and the insurer, and that decision deserves an afternoon of checking. The last is forgetting the rest of the property. Gutters, windows, screens, fences and paint are often damaged and often covered, and a contractor who only looks at shingles leaves that money on the table.

From your call to a finished roof

You will talk to a person, and we will schedule a free inspection at a time you can be there. We walk the roof and the exterior, photograph what we find, and then sit down with you and show you. If there is no storm damage, we say so and you have lost nothing but an hour. If there is, we explain what a claim involves, what your policy language means for the payout, and what we recommend, repair or replacement, and why.

From there you open the claim and we handle the rest alongside you: the adjuster meeting, the estimate review, the scheduling and the installation, and the follow-up when the insurer goes quiet. We work across Dallas, Collin, Denton, Tarrant, Rockwall and the surrounding counties, on homes as well as offices, stores, warehouses and multi-family buildings. The goal at the end is simple: a roof that will hold up to the next storm, a claim that paid what it should, and a yard that looks the way it did before our crew arrived.

Questions people ask me