Roof damaged by the July 27 storm? Here is where hail fell.

The adjuster who inspects your roof is hired and paid by the insurance company.

They stand in the driveway, look up at the slope, and ask a question you have no reason to know the answer to: this looks like wear and tear to me — which of these marks is hail?

That question is the whole claim. Knowing which mark is hail, documenting it, and defending it when the answer is challenged is what a licensed public adjuster does.

Two things worth knowing before you call. Your deductible is yours to pay on any claim, whether or not you have help with it. And the fee for that help is set in writing before any work begins.

The National Weather Service logged 47 hail reports across Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake and Will counties on July 27, 2026. The largest measured three inches near Shorewood in Will County. If you are in one of those areas, the useful question is not whether hail fell — it is whether it did anything to your roof, which is a different question and is not answered from the ground.

What was reported, by county

DuPage recorded 18 reports and Cook 17, the two heaviest concentrations. Will recorded nine, including the largest stones of the day at three inches near Shorewood and two and a quarter inches north of it. Kane recorded two and Lake one. McHenry County recorded none.

Two and a half inch hail was reported west of Westmont and two inch hail at and near Clarendon Hills and Minooka, with an inch and three quarters at Oak Brook, Carol Stream, Tinley Park, Lemont, Mokena and Willowbrook. These are point observations from trained spotters, the public and radar-estimated reports — they mark where hail was seen and measured, not the full extent of where it fell. A swath is continuous; reports are scattered.

Where these numbers come from

Figures on this page are National Weather Service Storm Prediction Center preliminary storm reports as of the evening of July 27 2026. Preliminary reports are revised as they are reviewed, and counts move for days after an event.

That is not a disclaimer for its own sake. The count on this page rose from ten reports to forty-seven over the course of the day as observations came in. If you are comparing against a figure you saw elsewhere, check which snapshot it came from before assuming one of them is wrong.

You just got hit. What to do first.

Hail damage roof — what do I do?

Document it before anyone touches it, and call before you authorise any work.

Photograph what you can see from the ground with today's date. Keep anything the storm knocked loose — a piece of shingle in the yard is evidence. Do not let anyone start a repair, and do not sign an authorisation that assigns your claim to somebody else.

The reason for the order is simple: the first documented inspection becomes the baseline the whole claim is argued against. A roof that has already been worked on is a roof nobody can assess.

Storm damaged my roof — who do I call first?

Call us first, and the reason is the scope, not the sales pitch.

Whoever inspects first writes the record. If that inspection is thorough and documents every elevation, the claim starts from a complete picture. If it is brief, or covers one slope, the claim starts from an incomplete one and everything afterwards is an argument to add things back.

You can call anyone in any order — this is your claim. But the sequence has consequences that are hard to undo later, which is why it is worth knowing before you pick up the phone.

Do I call my insurance or a roofer first after hail?

Either is allowed, and both start a clock you cannot stop — so know what each one begins.

Calling your insurer opens the claim, which is generally good: filing a proof of loss pauses the limitation period while the carrier reviews (215 ILCS 5/143.1). It also sends their adjuster, whose assessment becomes the settlement unless somebody documents a different one. That adjuster is hired and paid by the insurance company.

Calling a contractor gets you an opinion on the roof, not a claim. Be careful what you sign: some authorisations hand over the right to deal with your carrier directly, which is a bigger decision than it looks on the page.

What we would say either way: get the damage independently documented before the record is set.

Hail hit my house — should I file a claim?

Find out whether there is real damage first, then decide — an inspection is not a claim.

A claim you file and lose still shows on your claim history, so filing blind is the expensive option in both directions. An inspection costs you nothing and tells you whether there is something worth filing.

Two things make it worth checking rather than guessing. Damage to a roof is rarely visible from the ground. And rates are set by rating territory, not house by house, so after a hail event the reassessment reaches your area whether or not you personally file — declining to file does not exempt you from it.

How do I know if hail damaged my roof?

Look at the metal, not the shingles — you can do this yourself today, from the ground.

Hail marks soft metal before anything shows on a covering. Check gutters and downspouts, the metal wraps around windows, vents and flashing, and the fins on your air conditioning condenser. Dents there are not wear: metal does not weather into that shape.

Then look at your neighbours. Hail falls in swaths rather than on single houses, so homes nearby going under scaffolding after the same storm is the strongest free signal you will get that your roof was under the same hail. If you find dented metal or a re-roofing street, there is something to inspect.

Hail that size does real damage

Stones of an inch and larger routinely bruise asphalt shingles and dent soft metals. At two inches and above, damage to vents, flashing, gutters and siding is common and often visible from the ground even when the roof itself is not.

Look at metal first. Gutters, downspouts, vents, window wraps and the fins on an air conditioning condenser register strikes before anything shows on shingles, and none of them require a ladder.

What to do this week

Photograph what you can see from the ground, including the date. Keep anything the storm dislodged. Do not authorise repairs before the damage is documented, because a repaired roof is a roof nobody can assess.

If you file, file early. Submitting a proof of loss does more than start the repair — it pauses the limitation clock while the carrier reviews, which is the opposite of how most people assume the timing works.

Your claim clock

Illinois sets no statutory deadline for filing a property insurance claim. The limit is written into your own policy — the suit limitation clause, commonly about one year from the date of loss — and your policy's terms control. Under 215 ILCS 5/143.1 that period is suspended between your proof of loss and a formal denial, so time the carrier spends deciding generally does not count against you.

Common questions

My town is not in the report list. Does that mean no hail fell?

No. Storm reports are point observations — somebody has to see hail, measure it and call it in. Hail falls in continuous swaths across areas nobody reported from, so an absence of reports near you is an absence of observers, not evidence your roof was missed.

How big does hail have to be to damage a roof?

Smaller than most people expect. Stones around an inch can bruise asphalt shingles and mark soft metals, and damage accumulates with wind driving the stones at an angle rather than straight down. The July 27 reports run from one inch to three inches across the metro.

Should I wait to see if the roof leaks?

No. Hail damage frequently does not leak for months or years — it shortens the covering's life by knocking granules loose and fracturing the mat, and the leak arrives long after the claim window has closed. Waiting for a leak is waiting past your deadline.

How long do I have to act on this storm?

Your policy's suit limitation clause governs, typically about a year from July 27 2026, and Illinois adds no deadline of its own. Read your own policy. Filing a proof of loss pauses that clock while the carrier reviews, under 215 ILCS 5/143.1.

Prefer not to call? Text 847-208-8380 or email tom.jtpa@gmail.com

Hail claim help by county: Cook County · DuPage County · Kane County · Lake County · McHenry County · Will County

Sources: Where these statements come from

47 hail reports across Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake and Will counties on 2026-07-27; largest 3.00 inches 2 WSW Shorewood, Will County. https://www.spc.noaa.gov/climo/reports/today_hail.csv (checked 2026-07-27)