Hail damage car insurance claim

What do peas, nickels, tea cups and grapefruits have in common? They are all types of objects used to describe hail size, according to The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Severe Storms Laboratory.

And while most hailstorms are a mix of different sizes, a severe thunderstorm can typically deliver hail between 1 to 1.75 inches in diameter (a quarter to a golf ball) with fall speeds between 25 to 40 miles per hour. Imagine the damage that can do to your car. It’s possible to file a claim for hail damage if you have the right coverage as part of your car insurance policy.

Does Car Insurance Cover Hail Damage?

While quarter-sized hail will cause mostly cosmetic damage, like dings, dents and broken windows, bigger hailstones fall at faster speeds and can make bigger problems. Fortunately, there’s a common type of coverage you can buy to protect your car from hail damage.

If you want your car insurance to cover hail damage, you’ll need to buy comprehensive insurance. Comprehensive insurance pays to repair your car if it’s damaged by severe weather, including hail. It also covers a host of other problems such as fire, floods, vandalism, theft, crashing into animals, and falling objects (like tree branches).

Comprehensive insurance is an optional coverage, meaning you have to pay extra for it. If you don’t have comprehensive insurance and your car gets dinged up by a hailstorm, you’ll have to pay to fix the damage yourself or live with it.

Is it Worth Making an Insurance Claim for Hail Damage?

Comprehensive insurance comes with a deductible, an amount subtracted from your claim check. Depending on the cost of repairs and your car insurance deductible amount, it may not be worth claiming your car’s hail damage.

Say you have minor hail damage which will cost $600 to repair. If your deductible is $1,000, your car insurance company will pay $0 toward your damages, so there is no reason to make a claim. If your deductible is $500, you’ll receive a $100 insurance check, so it’s a judgment call if you want a claim on your record for a payout of only $100.

However, if your car is severely damaged by hail and will cost $5,000 to fix, with a $500 deductible, you’d receive $4,500 toward repairs. That claim is worth making because of the large amount you’d otherwise have to pay out of pocket for repairs.

One comprehensive claim rarely increases your auto insurance rates. However, if you need to make more claims in the next couple of years, the number of claims on your record could cause your car insurance rates to rise.

How Do I File an Insurance Claim for Hail Damage?

If your car is damaged by hail and you have comprehensive insurance, contact your insurance company to file a claim. If your car has a shattered windshield or broken windows, it may not be safe to drive. You can arrange for a tow through your roadside assistance insurance if you have it.

Your insurance company will have an adjuster look at the hail damage and estimate the repair cost. Your insurance company will send you a check for the repairs, minus your deductible. For example, if you have a $500 deductible and the repair bill is $1,500, you’ll get a $1,000 insurance check.

An auto body shop will generally repair hail damage in one of two ways:

• Conventional vehicle repair. Dents are pulled out and irregularities are filled with a body filler, then primed and repainted.
• Paintless dent removal. Special tools are used on the underside of the vehicle panels to push out the dents. This leaves the painted surface undisturbed, but this method may not be effective for large dents or extensive hail damage.

Will a Hail Damage Claim Cause My Car Insurance Rates to Go Up?

Filing a claim for hail damage generally won’t cause your insurance rates to go up. But car insurance companies do look at your claims history to determine rates. If you file a claim for hail damage, it will go into a database that stores previously filed insurance claims. If you have an extensive claims history, that could result in higher premiums.

Frequent hail can also affect the insurance rates for everyone in a particular area. If your area is prone to severe weather, insurance companies might set rates higher due to the likelihood of claims. So your location can affect your car insurance rates, whether you file a claim or not.

How Much Does it Cost to Repair Hail Damage to a Car?

The cost to repair hail damage to your car will depend on how severe the damage is. Minor damage may cost only a few hundred dollars to repair, while major hail damage can cost thousands.

State Farm’s report on 2021 hail claims found the average hail claim for vehicles was $5,000. That’s up 16% from the 2020 report that showed auto hail claims averaging around $4,300.

Hail damage repair costs will increase if the car paint is damaged and conventional dent repair is used. Conventional repair is more expensive than paintless dent repair because it’s more labor intensive.

Some other factors affecting the cost of repairs include:

• Number of dents to your car
• Size of the hail dents
• Location of the dents and how accessible they are to repair
• Material of the affected area—if the panel damaged is made of high-strength steel or aluminum, for example, there is an extra cost for repairs

How Much Does Comprehensive Insurance Cost?

The average cost of comprehensive insurance is about $170, according to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners’ most recent data. Here’s a look at the average cost of comprehensive insurance in your state.

Average cost of comprehensive insurance by state

How Can I Protect My Car From Hail Damage?

Here are some things you can do to help protect your vehicle from hail dents:

• Get covered parking. If possible, park your car in a garage or carport.
• Use a car cover. If you don’t have a garage or carport, you can buy car covers that are designed to protect a vehicle from hail damage. You can use blankets if you don’t have a hail car cover. You’ll need to find a way to secure the blanket from high winds.
• Find temporary shelter. If you don’t have a garage or hail car cover, consider paying to park in a local parking garage until the storm passes.

If you are caught driving in a hailstorm, find a safe place to pull over. If possible, seek shelter under a structure with a strong roof or an overpass. Cover your face with clothing to protect it from possible broken glass.

Top 10 States for Hail Insurance Claims

Texas is at the top of the leader boards for hail activity and claims. That’s not a win Texas drivers want.

Top 10 states for hail claims 2018-2020