Hail and storm damage inspection in Colorado Springs, CO

After the storm

What happens during a hail and storm damage inspection?

Hail bruises the mat underneath a shingle's granules, and high wind works loose the edges of shingles and the flashing around anything that pokes through the roof, from a vent pipe to a chimney. Both kinds of damage are easy to miss from the ground, especially on a slope that faces away from the street.

A hail and storm damage inspection puts someone on the roof itself instead of guessing from a ladder or a photo taken from the yard. Each slope gets checked in turn, along with the flashing, vents, and any valleys where water collects, and anything found gets photographed so there is a record of it.

Most homeowners request an inspection within days of a hailstorm or a high-wind event, while the damage is still easy to see and before granule loss or cracked seals turn into a slow leak.

Hail versus wind damage

Hail damage tends to show up as small, round bruises across a slope, sometimes with granules knocked loose around the impact point, and it can be present even when nothing looks obviously broken from a distance. Wind damage shows up differently, usually along the edges and ridge of the roof, where shingles can be lifted, creased, or torn loose enough to let water underneath during the next rain.

Why the timing matters

Insurance policies that cover storm damage typically call for documentation tied to a specific date, and granule loss or bruising can fade or wash away well before a roof starts to leak. An inspection soon after a storm creates a photographed record of the roof's condition while the evidence is still fresh.