A guide from the bench
Your hail claim, explained by the person who writes the estimate
What the deductible really means, what the adjuster is reading, why supplements happen, and the traps that arrive with the storm crews. Written to be useful whoever ends up fixing your car.
Four things to know before you call anyone
It is a comprehensive claim
Hail is weather, so it comes out of the comprehensive side of your policy, not collision. Liability-only means no coverage on your own car.
The deductible is yours to pay
It is your share of the loss and it is owed to whoever does the repair. Anyone offering to cover it is offering you fraud, not a discount.
Light decides the dent count
Hail is counted under controlled lighting. A number written in a bright driveway will be low, and low is what you argue about later.
You choose the repairer
Your carrier can recommend a shop. It cannot require one. What it owes is a proper repair, wherever you take it.
The order it actually happens in
A hail claim is not complicated, but the steps come in a particular order, and doing one out of turn is what makes claims drag. Here is the whole shape of it.
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Photograph the car, and pin down the date
Before anything else, take wide photographs of every panel and the roof, in shade if you can. Then write down the date of the storm and where the car was parked. Carriers check storm dates against weather records, and a specific date turns a question mark into a straightforward claim. If you are not sure which storm it was, say so honestly rather than guessing.
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File the claim
Call your carrier or file in their app. Keep the claim number, the adjuster's name and their direct contact somewhere you can find them, because you will be handing those to the repairer. You do not need an estimate to file, but see step three before you let anyone write the first number.
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Get the damage read properly
This is the step that decides how the rest goes. Hail damage is counted under controlled light, panel by panel, and the difference between a proper reading and a walk-around in the sun is routinely dozens of dents. Have a paintless dent repair technician write a panel-by-panel estimate before or alongside the adjuster's inspection.
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Meet the adjuster with a document in hand
The adjuster writes their own estimate — that is their job and it is not adversarial. But two estimates written in the same estimating system can be compared line by line, which is a conversation. An estimate written on a notepad against a professional one is not a conversation. This is the practical reason Vale certification matters on hail work: it is the language the claim is already written in.
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Supplements, if the first reading missed something
When the repairer finds damage or operations the first estimate did not include, they submit a supplement — the additional lines, with photographs. The carrier reviews it and pays what it approves. On hail this is normal and expected, not a dispute. Ask your technician up front whether they handle supplements directly with the carrier, because the alternative is you relaying it.
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Repair, and pay only your deductible
The carrier pays the repair cost less your deductible. You owe the deductible and nothing else, unless you have added work outside the claim — an old door ding from last year, say, which is a fair thing to add while the car is there, as a separate line you agreed to.
What to have ready
None of this is hard to gather, and having it in one place turns a week of phone tag into a single conversation.
- Your claim number, and the adjuster's name and direct line.
- The storm date and where the vehicle was when it was hit.
- Your declarations page, or at least the comprehensive deductible amount.
- Photographs of every panel, taken before any repair.
- The estimate, panel by panel, in writing.
- Whether you have rental coverage, and for how many days — worth knowing before the car goes in.
The deductible question, answered plainly
Your deductible is the part of the loss you agreed to carry when you bought the policy. It is not a fee, it is not negotiable, and it is paid to whoever repairs the car rather than to the insurer.
Nobody should offer to cover it
After every storm, somebody offers to "eat", "waive", "cover" or "work around" the deductible. It is usually done by inflating the estimate to hide it. In Florida that is treated as insurance fraud — and the claim it is committed on is yours, under your name, with your carrier.
The person making the offer leaves the state when the season ends. You do not. Treat it as the end of that conversation.
There is a legitimate version of the same instinct: ask whether the repair is worth claiming at all. Get a written estimate first. If it lands near or below your deductible, filing gains you nothing and you may prefer to pay outright. If it lands well above, claim it. Any technician should give you that number without a claim number attached.
Why hail is a paintless job
Hail dents are typically round, shallow and unbroken through the paint, which is precisely the case paintless dent repair exists for: the original metal is worked back into shape from behind the panel and the factory finish never leaves the car. That matters twice over. It is faster and cheaper than replacing and refinishing panels, which is why carriers prefer it. And it leaves nothing on the car for a resale inspection or an appraiser to find later.
It is not universal. Cracked paint, split seams, dents sitting on a sharp bodyline, and anything driven through rather than dropped on will still need conventional bodywork. A good estimate names those panels specifically rather than quietly promising everything.
The cost side is why totals matter here. Florida brands a vehicle as salvage once damage reaches a high enough share of what the car is worth, and a badly dented roof and hood on an older car can get there on hail alone if it is written as panel replacement. Written as paintless repair, the same car is very often repairable — which is the difference between fixing your car and being handed a cheque for it.
After the storm: what to watch for
Hail brings travelling crews into a market for a season. Some are excellent, and some of the best hail technicians in the country work storms for a living. The problem is that you cannot tell which is which from a knock on the door, and the guarantee only means something if someone is still here to honour it.
Sign here, estimate later
Never sign a blank authorisation or an open-ended contract before a written, panel-by-panel estimate is in your hand.
A price before anyone has seen the car
Hail cannot be priced from a phone call. A number that early is a hook, not an estimate.
"We handle everything with your insurance"
Handling the paperwork is fine and normal. Being cut out of your own claim is not — you should see every document that goes to your carrier.
No local address
Ask where they will be in six months if a panel needs a second look, and who honours the guarantee then.
If you want the longer version of that judgement call, it is here: how to choose a paintless dent repair technician.
Common questions
Does hail go under comprehensive or collision?
Comprehensive. Hail is weather damage, so it falls under the comprehensive part of your policy, not collision. If you carry liability only, there is no hail coverage on your own vehicle. Comprehensive claims are generally treated differently from an at-fault collision claim, but how your carrier handles it is worth asking them directly before you file.
Do I have to pay my deductible?
Yes. It is your share of the loss and it is owed to the repairer, not the insurer. Anyone who offers to cover, absorb, waive or eat it is proposing insurance fraud, and in Florida it is your claim and your name on it. Walk away from that offer however it is worded.
Can my insurer make me use their shop?
No. A carrier can recommend a shop from its network, and there are real conveniences to using one, but the choice of who repairs your vehicle is yours. What the carrier owes is a proper repair at a reasonable cost, and the claim settles the same way either road.
What is a supplement?
An addition to the original estimate for damage or operations the first reading missed. On hail it is extremely common, because counts written in daylight come in low. The repairer documents the extra dents with photographs and submits them; the carrier reviews and pays what it approves. Normal process, not a fight.
Is it worth claiming if the damage is small?
Do the arithmetic first. Get a written estimate: near or below your deductible and there is nothing for the carrier to pay, so filing gains you nothing. Well above, and the claim is worth making. You should be able to get that number without a claim number attached.
Can hail be fixed without repainting?
Usually. Hail dents are typically round and shallow with the paint unbroken, which is exactly what paintless dent repair is for — the metal is reshaped from behind and the factory finish stays on the car. Cracked paint, split seams or dents on a sharp bodyline may still need bodywork, and a good estimate says which panels those are.
When does an insurer total a hail car?
When the repair cost approaches a large enough share of what the vehicle is worth. Florida brands a vehicle salvage at a high percentage of value, so an older car with a badly dented roof and hood can be totalled on hail alone. Paintless repair often keeps a car on the repairable side of that line, because it costs far less than replacing and refinishing panels.
How long do I have to file?
Sooner is better, and the deadline comes from your policy and Florida law rather than from the repairer — ask your carrier for it in writing when you first call. Waiting carries a second cost: the longer the gap between storm and claim, the harder it is to tie the damage to a specific weather event.
If you want us to write it
Paul Whitehorn — Vale Certified Master Craftsman II, ARC certified for hail and retail, paintless dent repair since 1999 and past 14,000 vehicles, repairs guaranteed to $1,000,000 per panel. Fixed shop at 1410 Walt Williams Rd in Lakeland, with controlled lighting to read hail properly, and still here in six months.
Send photographs and you will get a written, panel-by-panel estimate your adjuster can read line by line — including, when it applies, the sentence that a panel belongs at a body shop instead.
Call 863-205-1582