· by Michael Blair, Nashville's Siding
Hail rarely falls straight down. It arrives with wind, which drives it against one or two sides of a house while the others are barely touched. Roof damage is spread across the whole surface and easy to see; siding damage is concentrated on one elevation and often below eye level, and it is the part of a storm claim most likely to be missed, disputed or underpaid.
What hail does to each material
Vinyl is brittle in cold and softer in heat, and hail cracks it: short splits, half-moon fractures and holes, most visible in the lower panels and at the bottom edge of each course where the panel is unsupported. Aluminum dents rather than cracks and the dents are permanent. Fiber cement is hard enough that ordinary hail chips the paint and leaves small pits in the surface, which can be filled and painted, but a large stone can crack a plank through.
Engineered wood and hardboard bruise, and the damage may not show until the finish fails at that spot a year later. That delay is a problem for a claim, because most policies require damage to be reported within a set period after the storm.
Documenting it
Photograph every elevation the day after the storm, with wide shots that show which side of the house and close shots that show the marks with something for scale. Note the date and the direction the storm came from; the damaged side should match. Check gutters, downspouts, window screens, air conditioner fins and mailboxes on the same side, because dents on soft metal prove hail size and direction when siding damage is being argued about.
Look particularly at the bottom course of siding, at panels facing the storm below porch roofs and decks where they are sheltered from sun but not from wind-driven hail, and at any south or west wall where the vinyl was already aged and brittle.
- Wide and close photographs of each side, dated
- The direction the storm came from
- Collateral damage on soft metal on the same side
- A contractor inspection report before the adjuster visits
Where claims get complicated
Cosmetic damage exclusions are increasingly common on wind and hail coverage. They allow the insurer to decline dents in aluminum or pits in fiber cement that do not let water in, on the basis that the siding still functions. Whether cracked vinyl is cosmetic is a real argument, because a crack admits water even if it is small.
Matching is the other one. If a discontinued vinyl profile or color is damaged on one wall, the insurer may pay to replace that wall only, leaving a mismatch with the other three. Some states require reasonable matching; policies also address it directly, sometimes with a matching exclusion. Whether the whole house gets re-sided or one wall does comes down to that language.
Working with the adjuster
Have a siding contractor inspect before the adjuster does and put the findings in writing with photographs. Walk the adjuster around every elevation rather than letting the roof take all the time. If the estimate comes back for the roof alone, ask specifically about the siding and provide the documentation.
Be wary of anyone who knocks on the door after a storm offering to handle the claim. Tennessee regulates who can negotiate a claim on a homeowner’s behalf, and a contractor who waives the deductible or promises a free roof is describing insurance fraud. A reputable contractor documents the damage and lets the homeowner deal with the insurer.