Hail Damage: What to Look For

Start with the gutters and the window screens, not the roof.

Last updated 2026-09-16

What hail damage on a shingle actually is

A bruise. The impact fractures the mat underneath and knocks granules loose, leaving a dark, roughly circular mark that feels soft if you press it, like a bruise on fruit.

That fracture is the whole point. It does not make a hole and the roof usually does not leak. What it does is remove the granules protecting the asphalt and weaken the mat, so the shingle fails several years earlier than it should have. By the time it shows, the claim window is long closed and you are buying the roof yourself.

What it is not

• General granule loss. Every ageing roof sheds granules. Hail damage is discrete circular impacts, not overall thinning.
• Blistering. Small raised bumps from manufacturing or heat, often with the granules still attached around them.
• Marks in a straight line. That is a person walking, or a tool. Hail does not fall in rows.
• Mechanical damage from a ladder, a tool or a previous trade.

The test square

Adjusters do not count every strike on a roof. They mark a ten foot by ten foot area, one square of roof, and count the bruises inside it. Most carriers work to a threshold number of strikes per square per slope before calling a slope damaged.

So a useful inspection does the same thing, marks it, photographs it and records the count per slope. That way your report speaks the adjuster's language instead of asking them to take somebody's word for it, and if the claim is underpaid, you have the numbers.

Direction matters

Hail falls with the wind, so damage concentrates on the slopes facing the direction the storm came from. Heavy bruising on the south and west with nothing on the north is a completely normal pattern. It is also the pattern a carrier may use to approve two slopes rather than the roof.

Whether a partial approval is reasonable often turns on whether your shingle is still made in a matching colour, which on an older roof frequently it is not. That is worth raising with your adjuster, with photographs in front of you.

What to do

1. Check the soft metals and photograph them with the date.
2. Photograph the interior if anything is showing inside.
3. Get an independent inspection with a marked test square per slope, before you talk to anyone who arrived with the storm.
4. Find your wind and hail deductible. On many Texas policies it is a percentage of the dwelling coverage rather than a flat amount. On a $400,000 dwelling limit, two percent is $8,000. That number decides whether filing is worth it.
5. Call your own carrier, not a contractor's claim line.
6. Be there for the adjuster, and have your roofer there too. That is allowed.

Document it even if you do not file

This is the part people skip. A dated, photographed record of hail damage protects you later, when the roof fails early and you need to show the damage predated it. It costs nothing to have done.

Common Questions

How big does hail need to be to damage a roof?

It depends on the age and brittleness of the shingle, the wind behind the stone and its density. An older roof can be damaged by stones a newer roof shrugs off. Check the soft metals rather than guessing from the size you remember.

My roof is not leaking. Can it still be damaged?

Yes, and this is the most important thing to understand about hail. Bruising fractures the mat without making a hole, so the roof does not leak, it just fails years early.

Should I file if the damage looks small?

Find your wind and hail deductible first. On many Texas policies it is a percentage of the dwelling limit, which can be several thousand dollars. If the repair is near that number, filing may gain you nothing and still put a claim on your record.

Read Next

• Hail Damage Repair
• Insurance Claim Help
• Impact-Resistant Shingles in Texas
• How to Spot a Storm Chaser