Key numbers
IBHS said in 2019 that hail losses have grown to over $10 billion annually (Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS), 2019).
| 5,432 | NOAA's Storm Prediction Center reported 5,432 hail events in the U.S. in 2025, up from 5,373 in 2024. Source: Insurance Information Institute (Triple-I), 2025 |
|---|---|
| 1.00 | The National Weather Service raised its severe hail threshold from 0.75 inch to 1.00 inch in 2010. Source: NOAA/NWS Storm Prediction Center, 2010 |
Hail damage and normal wear look different once you know the pattern. Hail leaves random, round bruises or breaks scattered across a slope, usually with fresh dark asphalt showing, and it almost always dents nearby metal such as vents, gutters and flashing. Normal wear is even and gradual: granules thin out across the whole slope, the sunniest sides age first, and the edges curl or crack with time. If you see the random pattern plus dented metal after a storm, it is likely hail. If the damage is uniform and the metal is clean, it is likely age.
The quick comparison
| What you see | Hail damage | Normal wear |
|---|---|---|
| Pattern | Random, scattered hits on one or more slopes | Even across a slope, worst on south and west faces |
| Spot shape | Round or oval bruise, crack or punch-through | Irregular thinning, curling edges, cracks along the tabs |
| Color | Fresh black asphalt where granules were knocked off | Gray, weathered asphalt |
| Feel | Soft spot when pressed, like a bruised apple | Firm, often brittle |
| Metal nearby | Dents in vents, ridge caps, gutters and drip edge | Rust or paint loss, but no dents |
| Timing | Appears after a specific storm | Builds up over years |
Look-alikes that fool people
- Blistering. Bubbles form in the asphalt as shingles age in heat. When they pop, they leave small pits that look like hail hits, but they show up on sun-facing slopes across the roof and have raised edges.
- Granule loss from age. Every shingle sheds granules slowly. Some granules in the gutter of an older roof are normal; a sudden heavy pile after a storm is not.
- Foot traffic and tools. Scuffs from satellite installers or chimney sweeps are linear and clustered near access points.
- Manufacturing defects. Cracking in a regular pattern across many shingles of the same age can be a product problem rather than weather.
- Mechanical damage from tree limbs. Scrapes along a line under an overhanging branch are wind and tree damage, not hail; see weather-related roof repairs.
Leaks that show up weeks later
Hail damage does not always leak right away. A bruise cracks the mat under the surface or strips the granules that protect the asphalt from the sun, and the shingle may hold through a few storms before water gets through. That is why we tell Colorado Springs homeowners to keep watching for:
- New ceiling stains, especially under valleys, around chimneys and below skylights.
- Damp insulation or dark spots on the attic decking after a rain.
- Drips from light fixtures or bathroom fans, which often sit right below a leak.
When a stain appears but the source is not obvious, a thermal camera can show where moisture is spreading in the ceiling before it shows on the surface, as in the photo below. A leak that starts weeks after a storm can still be storm damage, so it belongs in the same claim; see how long you have to file a hail damage claim.
Why an expert eye still matters
A homeowner’s walk-around is a good first screen, and our after-the-storm checklist for Colorado Springs shows you what to look for from the ground. Telling a soft hail bruise from a popped blister, though, takes someone on the roof who checks every slope and the soft metals the same way each time. Our page on how a roofer inspects a roof for hail damage explains that method. The same signs apply in Pueblo, Denver and Austin; see hail damage in Pueblo, our Denver hail repair timeline, or 5 steps after a storm damages your Austin roof.
Related reading: our storm damage guides for what to do next, our homeowner how-tos for checking a roof safely, our weather guides on past hailstorms, and our insurance claim guides if you decide to file.
Get a second opinion on your roof
Integrity Roofing and Painting is veteran-owned, family-run since 1990, and an Owens Corning Platinum Preferred contractor with 650+ Google reviews. We photograph what we find and tell you plainly whether it is hail or age. In Colorado Springs, call (719) 488-2800 or book a free roof inspection; for repairs, see our hail damage roof repair page.
To keep track of photos, the claim and the contract after a storm, print our after-hail storm damage checklist.
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