Key numbers
77 verified hail storms with stones of 1.75 inches or larger reached Travis County, which includes Austin, from 1984 to 2025 in the storm records we keep; the largest measured 5 inches (softball size) on May 20, 2011 (NOAA NCEI).
| Hail storms by decade, 1984 to 2025 | 1980s: 8, 1990s: 16, 2000s: 24, 2010s: 13, 2020s: 16 Source: NOAA NCEI |
|---|---|
| Largest hail | 5 in. (softball), May 20, 2011 Source: NOAA NCEI |
| Costliest hail storm | $160 million insured losses (2006 dollars), April 20, 2006 Source: Insurance Journal |
| 4,932.98 | Hail caused 4,932.98 (million USD) in Texas homeowners paid losses in 2024, more than any other peril, per TDI. Source: Texas Department of Insurance, 2024 |
| 902 | Texas led the nation with 902 major hail events (1 inch or larger) in 2025. Source: Insurance Information Institute (Triple-I), 2025 |
| $4.6 billion | NOAA lists the April 10-12, 2016 North/Central Texas hailstorm as a $4.6 billion disaster (CPI-adjusted; $3.5 billion unadjusted). Source: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, 2016 |
A storm counts when NOAA lists a report in Travis County. Each hail size is the storm's largest report in the seven Austin-area counties, which may have fallen in a neighboring county, and insured losses cover every area the storm hit.
After a storm damages your Austin roof, do five things in this order: make sure everyone is safe, document the damage with photos and video, make temporary repairs to stop water and keep the receipts, choose a contractor carefully, and then report the damage to your insurer as soon as you can. Each step protects the next one. Photos taken before the tarp goes on support the claim, receipts can be reimbursed, and a careful contractor choice keeps a fast decision from becoming an expensive one.
Step 1: Make it safe
- Stay off the roof. Wet or broken shingles are slippery, and storm damage can weaken decking.
- Keep clear of downed power lines and do not use electrical devices where water has collected.
- Watch for glass from broken windows and skylights.
- Shut off power to any room where water is coming through a light fixture.
Step 2: Document everything
The Texas Department of Insurance tells storm victims to take pictures and video of the damage and to list damage inside and outside the home. Do it before anything is cleaned up.
- Photograph the roof from the yard, the gutters, downspouts and vents, and any shingles on the ground.
- Photograph every ceiling stain, wet wall and damaged belonging, with the date showing.
- Photograph hailstones next to a coin or ruler if you can.
- Note the time the storm hit. The National Weather Service Austin/San Antonio office keeps a list of past events, such as the September 24, 2023 Round Rock and north Austin hail storm and the May 9, 2024 very large hail and high wind event, which helps tie damage to a date.
Step 3: Make temporary repairs and keep receipts
TDI’s advice is to cover broken windows and holes to keep rain out and to save all receipts, because your policy may pay for temporary repairs. Inside, move belongings, put buckets under drips and soak up water so it does not spread. A professional tarp over the damaged area protects the decking until permanent repairs are made. Do not start permanent repairs before the insurer has had a chance to see the damage.
Step 4: Choose the contractor carefully
Storms bring out-of-town crews to Austin within days. TDI’s checklist is simple and worth following:
- Get more than one bid or repair estimate.
- Do not pay in full up front.
- Check references and phone numbers, and ask where the company’s local office is.
- Read the contract. For work of $1,000 or more paid from an insurance settlement, Texas requires a notice that you must pay your deductible. It is illegal for a contractor to offer to waive, rebate or absorb it.
- Know who handles the claim. Texas does not allow a roofer to act as your public adjuster on a job it is doing. A good roofer documents the damage and makes sure nothing gets missed in the scope; the claim stays yours.
Our guide to storm roofing and how to vet a storm roofer goes deeper on the warning signs, and how a roofer inspects for hail damage explains what a real inspection includes.
Step 5: Report the damage to your insurer
TDI says to file as soon as you can if hail or strong winds damaged your home, and some Texas policies set a one-year deadline (see every Texas roof claim deadline, from reporting to the 61-day notice). Have your photos, receipts and the contractor’s inspection report ready when you call. Ask your agent which parts of the policy apply to the storm, including any separate wind and hail deductible. Our Austin roof insurance claim help guide lists the deadlines your insurer has to meet.
What Austin rules mean for the repair
Inside City of Austin limits, replacing asphalt shingles with asphalt shingles, or any roof covering that does not adversely affect the roof structure, is exempt from a building permit on one- and two-family homes and townhouses, unless the property is in the Wildland-Urban Interface area and 50 percent or more of the roofing is replaced. Replacing more than 128 square feet of decking needs a permit, and exempt work must still meet the building code. Suburbs set their own rules: Cedar Park needs no permit for a non-structural roof covering, San Marcos exempts a re-roof unless the new roof is heavier than the old one, and Kyle does not mention roofing on its permit lists at all. Ask your contractor which applies.
When the roof is replaced, many Austin owners move to an impact-rated shingle. Hail can also hide in plain sight on older roofs; see hail damage or normal wear: how to tell. For the bigger picture on Austin storm work, see our Austin storm damage repair page.
Call our Austin office
Integrity Roofing and Painting is veteran-owned and has been family-run since 1990, with an Austin office at 13341 W US Hwy 290 and 650+ Google reviews across our markets. We are an Owens Corning Platinum Preferred contractor. Call (512) 610-5897 or book a free Austin roof inspection, and we will reply the same business day.
Before you sign with anyone, work through our printable hiring a roofer checklist for Colorado and Texas.
Sources: Texas Department of Insurance, Hail damage to your home or car?, Roofing and insurance: know the law and Home insurance guide; City of Austin, Work Exempt from Building Permits; National Weather Service Austin/San Antonio, Past Weather Events.
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