Hail Just Hit: How to Tell If Your Roof Was Damaged — a 48-Hour Checklist

Charlotte sits in the middle of hail country. Most hail damage doesn't leak the next day — it bruises the shingle mat, knocks off protective granules, and quietly shortens your roof's life until a leak shows up months later, sometimes after the insurance filing window has become complicated. Here's what to do in the first 48 hours after a storm.

From the ground — do this yourself (safely)

• Note the date and time of the storm and take a screenshot of a local news report or weather alert — this anchors your claim.
• Walk the property: photograph dented gutters, downspouts, window screens, AC fins, mailboxes, and grill lids. If soft metal took hits, your shingles likely did too.
• Check the ground for shingle granules — piles at downspout exits after a storm are a classic sign.
• Look up (from the ground): missing shingles, exposed black patches, lifted edges.
• Do NOT climb the roof. Fresh storm damage plus a wet roof is how homeowners get hurt — and walking it can worsen the damage.

What hail damage looks like up close

On the roof, inspectors look for “bruises” — soft dark spots where granules were knocked away and the mat beneath was fractured — plus dented ridge caps, cracked fiberglass mats, and impact marks in a random (not patterned) spread. Random spread matters: it separates real hail damage from blistering or foot traffic, and it's exactly what your insurance adjuster is trained to check.

Why 48 hours

• Documentation is freshest — dents and granule piles are still obviously storm-related.
• Contractors' schedules fill fast after a hail event; early inspections get early spots.
• If there IS an active leak, a professional tarp within days prevents interior damage your policy may treat differently.

The free inspection step

Before you call your insurance company, get a professional inspection with photos. If the damage isn't claim-worthy, we'll tell you — filing weak claims helps no one. If it is, we document every impact, meet your adjuster on site, and you typically come home to a new roof for around your deductible. That's exactly the storm restoration process we run every hail season in Charlotte: (800) 698-3888.