Hail damage

Hail damage is physical harm from falling ice: bruised or cracked shingles, dented gutters and vents, pitted siding, broken windows, bent air-conditioner fins. Hail is covered under the "windstorm or hail" peril, and on an HO-3 the dwelling is covered unless an exclusion applies. Cars fall under auto insurance, not the homeowners policy.

Claims usually turn on the roof. An adjuster typically inspects each slope, marks off test squares and counts hail hits to decide between repair and replacement. In hail-prone states, a separate wind/hail deductible is common, often a percentage of the dwelling limit, and some policies pay roofs on an ACV roof endorsement basis, on a payment schedule, or with a cosmetic damage exclusion.

Say a storm leaves visible hits on every slope of a 12-year-old shingle roof (hypothetical). Depending on the policy, that could mean a full replacement at replacement cost, a depreciated payment, or a scheduled percentage of the cost, less a deductible that may be 1% or 2% of the dwelling limit.

Report the loss promptly, since policies and state laws set time limits. Photograph the damage before any temporary repair, and get an independent roofer's inspection before you accept a repair offer on a roof that looks worse than the estimate. The guide hail damage claims: roofs, siding and windows covers the process.