Does my roof have hail damage if I cannot see it from the ground?
Often, yes. Hail damage on asphalt shingles is genuinely hard to see from the driveway. A roof can be badly hit and still look completely fine from where you are standing.
This is the question we get most often after an Omaha hail storm, and the honest answer frustrates people. You cannot rule out damage by looking up at it. That is not a sales line. It is a property of how asphalt shingles fail.
What an inspection is actually looking for
Bruising. This is the one that matters and the one you cannot see. A hail strike knocks the granules loose and fractures the mat underneath. The result is a soft spot that feels like a bruise on a piece of fruit when you press it. From twenty feet below, that shingle looks like every other shingle on the roof.
Dents in soft metal. Metal shows hail far more honestly than shingles do. Vents, flashing, gutters and downspouts record the storm in a way asphalt does not.
Granule loss. The sand like coating washing off the shingle and collecting where water drains.
- Look in your gutters and the splash blocks under the downspouts for a pile of granules.
- Check your air conditioner fins for dents. They are thin aluminum and they bruise easily.
- Look at your mailbox, garage door, and window screens.
- Check the grill cover, patio furniture, and fence caps.
Here is the rule that makes it simple: if the soft metal around your house got hit, your roof got hit too. Hail does not fall on your mailbox and politely skip your roof. That is also the evidence an adjuster uses to confirm the storm actually reached your address, which is why it is worth photographing before you clean anything up.
The Nebraska Department of Insurance notes that hail generally needs to be around one and a quarter inches in diameter, roughly half dollar sized, before it causes roof damage. Smaller hail can still strip granules and dent soft metal without meaning your roof needs replacing.
Do not get on the roof yourself
We would rather lose the inspection than have you fall off your house. The damage you can see from the ground is rarely the worst of it, and walking an asphalt roof after a storm can create damage that was not there before. Let somebody who does it every day go up.
A contractor who tells you your roof is totaled without going up on it is guessing, or worse. A real inspection happens on the roof, slope by slope, and you should be given photos of what was found.
What happens if there is damage
Not every hit roof is a claim, and not every claim is a replacement. If the damage is cosmetic and small, filing may cost you more than it returns once you account for your deductible. If it is real, the important thing is that every slope gets documented, because damage on the back of the house counts just as much as damage on the street side.
Either way, you should get an honest answer before anyone asks you to sign anything.
Want somebody to actually look at your roof?
Free in person inspection. If there is nothing there, we will tell you, and that answer is free too. We will reach out within one business day to set up your free in-person inspection.
Prefer to talk? We will pick up in person, or ring you right back.
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We will reach out within one business day. If it is urgent, call us at (402) 874-4339 and we will pick up.