Hail Damage Metal Roof Repair in San Antonio, TX

What Hail Does to a Metal Roof

Two different things, and the difference is the whole claim. It dents panels: round dimples on the flats of a standing seam panel or the ribs of an R-panel, more of them on 26- and 29-gauge steel and aluminium, fewer on 24-gauge. A dent does not leak. And it does functional damage: it punctures thin panels, splits seams that were already stressed, crushes plumbing vent boots and skylight flashings, cracks the sealant at laps, and shreds ridge closures so wind-driven rain has a path in. Functional damage leaks, or will. On the April 12, 2016 storm that crossed the north side from Helotes to Stone Oak, most metal roofs took the first kind and kept the water out; the shingle roofs next to them were stripped to the mat.

Why Texas Policies Treat Them Differently

Most Texas homeowner policies now carry a cosmetic damage endorsement for metal roofs. It says the insurer will pay for hail damage that affects the roof's function, and not for damage that only affects how it looks. That was written after 2016, when carriers were replacing metal roofs that still worked. It means the inspection after a storm cannot be a general roofer's "it's totalled, here's a shingle quote." It has to list every hit, label each one cosmetic or functional, photograph it, and put it in a report an adjuster can act on. That is what we do, on every slope, before anyone decides for you.

The First Forty-Eight Hours

Call us the day of the storm if anything is open. We tarp the same day, and we photograph before we cover, because the adjuster will want to see the roof as the storm left it. Then the inspection: a walk of every slope with chalk and a camera, a count of dents per square on the flats, and a separate list of the punctures, crushed flashings and split seams that a claim is really about. You get the report. So does your agent. If your policy has the endorsement, the report is written so the claim asks for exactly what the policy owes, no more, and nothing that gives the carrier a reason to deny the whole thing.

Meeting the Adjuster

We are on the roof when the adjuster comes. Most adjusters see shingle roofs all day and under-scope metal: they miss a crushed vent boot under a dent, or call a split seam cosmetic because there is no stain on the ceiling yet. Someone who reads a seam and knows a Class 4 standing seam panel from a 29-gauge barn panel should be standing next to them. Then the repair: panel swaps, seam re-seals, flashing rebuilt in metal, ridge and trim. Or, if the roof really is done, a written quote for one that isn't next time.

Before the Next Storm

If you have a metal roof already, an inspection before hail season tells you what the roof looked like before the storm, which is worth more in a claim than people expect. If you are replacing shingles, a UL 2218 Class 4 panel is the rating to ask for and many Texas carriers discount for it. We work the whole corridor: San Antonio, Schertz and Cibolo on the northeast side, New Braunfels up I-35, Bulverde on 281, and Boerne and Fair Oaks Ranch out I-10.

How long does it take? Tarping is same-day. The inspection and photo report take a few hours on the roof. Repairs are scheduled once the scope is agreed with your insurer, usually within a week or two of the adjuster meeting.

Frequently asked questions