Hailstorms have been known to damage homes by breaking windows and damaging roofs, siding, paint, gutters, skylights, air conditioning units and shutters. Hailstorms can even damage your vehicle parked in front of your home or your new patio furniture in your backyard. When a serious hailstorm occurs, frozen water droplets the size of golf balls or larger can shower down on your home and damage everything in sight.
What to Inspect After Your Texas Hailstorm
When high winds are coupled with larger hailstones, serious damage may occur to your home and property. Some damage is noticed right away, such as broken windows and indentations on your car, or dents to the side of your home; however, sometimes hailstones can damage things unseen. A roof is typically a good example of this.
Since a homeowner doesn't inspect the roof every day, you may not realize that your roof has sustained damage from a hailstorm until time goes by. You may later realize that your roof has a water leak or that shingles have split apart. Sometimes a roof will not spring a leak right away. Marble-sized to golf-ball-sized hailstones have been known to create dents in the metal, poke holes in the roof, weaken shingles and damage roofing materials. When this happens, roof damage may go unseen for some time.
Time is of the Essence
If you wait too long to turn your Texas hailstorm damage claim in to your insurance company, they may deny your claim. This is why it is important that you talk to a skilled lawyer immediately after you sustain any type of hail damage to your home or property. You most likely need to have your roof and property inspected by a trained professional who knows what damage to look for and can provide evidence to support your hail damage claim.
When you file an insurance claim, your insurance company will send out an inspector to review your home and property for damage. They may not spend time closely looking at your roof or materials that could have been weakened by the hailstorm. They may claim your roof has signs of wear and tear and deny your hail damage claim.
An attorney will be critical to the successful outcome of your claim. They can file an appeal, have the claim reopened, request an additional inspection, renegotiate with the insurance adjustor on your behalf, and provide evidence that supports the claim your roof or home was damaged by a hailstorm.
Call Texas insurance litigation lawyer Bill Voss at the Voss Law Firm at 888-614-7730 for a free legal consultation and to find out your rights. Also, order your FREE copy of attorney Bill Voss's book Disputes With Your Insurance Company - What All Consumers Need to Know.
