Thousands of insurance claims come in following hail storm
WILLIAMSON COUNTY, Texas - The cleanup from Sunday’s storm continued Tuesday for Round Rock residents like Robert Jett. The impact of the hail storm is something Jett will not forget.
"We all of a sudden heard this one bang. Said ‘what is that’, all of a sudden whoosh. We looked outside from our garage and just watched this car demolished. Our roof is leaking water, so it's pretty messy," said Jett.
At local insurance offices, it was also a busy day.
"The last 48 hours have been, pretty crazy," said Marc Nascimento with State Farm Insurance.
The agency, as of noon Tuesday, Sept. 26, was working 6,700 home and auto claims from the Round Rock area. With each client, Nascimento has the same advice.
"Look for a company that's local, that's reputable, that's been around for a while that you can get references from. That would probably be the key thing to look for on there. Definitely check up on the references and make sure that they're legit and certainly never pay anybody out of pocket any cash before any of the work has been completed," said Nascimento.
That advice is also being offered by Sterling King with Roofer Direct.
"Let me tell you, these people are going to have leaks pretty quick here. The hail went straight through the shingle, through the rock to the tower, and we're pretty much looking at fiberglass and paper at the moment," said King.
King’s company has been busy in the area since the June hail storm.
"In Cedar Park, we got roughly 15 contracts that we haven't put a roof on yet that I'm hoping didn't get hit with baseball hail. But the roofs, I mean, it's crazy. Austin right now…hail this late in the year, it's just not common," said King.
Getting doubled dinged by Mother Nature, for some, will mean another hit in the wallet.
"That that's a concern for everybody. And unfortunately, because it's a separate event, it is handled as a separate claim, just as any other claim would be handled. Meaning there will be another deductible with that new claim," said Nascimento.
Art Espinosa, with Falcon Point Roofing, was worried about some of his former and current customers.
"The demand is crazy right now," said Espinosa.
Espinosa’s crew was in Cedar Park wrapping up one of their last June storm contracts. At this time, there are no reports of a shingle shortage, but Espinosa is worried that may change because of the large number of homes hit by the Round Rock storm.
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"My guess would be that we will end up having a shingle shortage just because so many homes are impacted by this last storm. I would highly recommend file a claim. Get on the list. Find yourself a great roofing company and get on the list right now so that you're not subjected to a shortage like that. That could make the difference from getting replaced in 3 to 4 weeks to 2 to 3 months," said Espinosa.
An upgrade to impact resistant shingles may not provide protection in an event like Sunday with baseball sized hail. But insurance companies like State Farm do provide discounts for having them on your house.
"So I have dealt with this, and you got to get on that quick, As soon as something like this happens. Contact the insurance company immediately. Immediately go file a claim online. If you don't have a computer, you can do it on your phone filing because if you wait, and you put on the back burner," said Jett.
Last year, insurance payouts from hail storms exceeded $500 million, according a spokesperson with State Farm insurance. That ranked Texas second in the nation for hail insurance claims.