Hail or wind damage on a Liverpool, NY roof: find out what the storm did first

The county's storm record lists golf-ball-sized hail at Liverpool, 1.75 inches across, in April 2011. It is one record, and it does not tell you what happened on your street. It does show that large hail has fallen in the village before.

Walk around the house after a storm and look at what is soft: vent caps, the metal trim, the caps on the chimney. Dimples there suggest hail reached the roof. Take photographs with the date visible and write down the time of the storm.

Ask the roofer to say, in the estimate, what they see on each slope: bruises, missing shingles, cracked tabs, a split in the deck under a fallen limb. The wording matters later, so ask for it in writing and keep your photographs next to it.

Wind leaves different marks. Look for shingles creased across the tab or missing along the ridge and the edges, because that is where wind gets under them first. Check the yard and the driveway for pieces, and count them if you can. Tell the roofer where you found them so they start on the right slope.

A storm does not automatically mean a new roof. Wind can lift a few shingles and leave the rest sound. Hail can bruise one slope more than another. The price of a replacement depends on what the roofer finds, so have the roofer write the smaller job and the bigger one down together.

If you plan to make an insurance claim, read your policy first. New York's Department of Financial Services shows with a roof example how the same damage is paid differently under actual cash value and replacement cost, and how depreciation comes into it.

We do not handle claims, and nobody here can tell you what a policy will pay. Ask your insurer, and ask the roofer to describe the damage in plain terms you can show them.

The state's example shows that depreciation, which follows the roof's age, shrinks a payout. Ask your insurer how it applies, and ask the roofer to describe only what they saw.

Door-knockers often follow a hailstorm, and some are honest. Slow down anyway. New York requires the home improvement contract to be written and to carry a three business day cancel notice, and the Attorney General advises against a cash deposit before you sign.

Ask for the roofer's workers' compensation coverage and check it in the state's coverage search. Ask who applies for the village permit, since a new covering is on the village's list. A roofer who has answers to those two questions on the spot is a different proposition from one who says it will all be sorted out later.

Think about urgency too. A roof with a few lifted shingles and a roof with a hole are different cases. Tell us which yours is when you book.

If the roof has an open hole or a missing section and rain is coming, a tarp is a sensible stop-gap. Ask whether a temporary cover is part of the roofer's visit or a separate charge, and keep every photograph you take before it goes on.