If you have ever experienced a hailstorm, you know the sickening feeling of walking outside to inspect your vehicle after the storm has passed. While you are helpless to prevent the damage already done to your vehicle, you can take some steps to assess the damage and report it to your insurance company. Heavy hail damage, when reported, can garner you much-needed funds to help you repair your vehicle as quickly as possible.
Using masking tape, create square-foot sections on your vehicle where you believe hailstones have caused damage.
Locate all of the hailstone dents in each square-foot section. The number of dents in each section is directly related to the degree of damage done to your vehicle.
Using a measuring tape, measure the diameter of the large dents in each square-foot section. Large dents are those dents equal to or greater than 1 inch. The diameter of dents caused by hailstones relates directly with the depth of the dent; the deeper the dent, the heavier the damage.
Inspect each dent and record any paint chipping or fractures.
Heavy damage is typically categorized by six to ten total dents per square foot with no fewer than two large dents. Paint chipping and fractures in or around dents are also good indicators of heavy hail damage.
