When Andy Hatcher, owner of Allen’s Frame and Body Shop, took a look outside his home in New Hope Monday night and saw hail hitting the ground, he knew he was in for a busy couple of weeks at the shop.
He immediately got on the phone and called in some extra help.
“I was in contact with my (paintless dent repair) guy … (and) I was holding the hail in my hand, (while) he was in Jackson. I’m saying, ‘Hey buddy, I hope you’re ready.’ … He goes, ‘I’m loading up my truck. I’ll see you in the morning.’ This wasn’t my first rodeo regarding a hailstorm.”
Hatcher said he has received about 50 calls from local car owners since Monday and is expecting more in the coming weeks.
“We have seen an influx of (calls),” Hatcher said. “And how these hail storms and damages typically work is … since it happened Monday night, people are still learning that they have hail damage. … And each day I (will) have a little more here, a little more there … of people coming in and trying to dodge the traffic.”
After a severe weatherstorm Monday evening brought wind gusts as high as 60 mph and golf-ball sized hail, vehicle body shops and roofing companies throughout Columbus have received more than 100 requests for car and home repairs this week.
Hatcher said costs for car repairs can vary based on the severity of damage done. Most repairs for hail damage, which typically include hood, roof and windshield repair or replacement, can run car owners anywhere from $5,000 to $10,000.
“Depending on the year, make and model the prices vary,” Hatcher said. “Obviously a newer car is going to cost more than an older car (to repair), and depending on if we have to replace the hood and replace the windshield, your prices kind of vary.”
Most repairs, Hatcher said, can be done in about two to three days, but others with parts on back order can sometimes take up to two weeks.
Bethany Gore, an associate agent with Alfa Insurance on Alabama Street, said she has gotten roughly 100 calls from customers, mostly in New Hope and East Columbus, about hail damage to their cars and homes, with about 20 to 30 of those customers actually filing claims.
Gore said those with a comprehensive coverage plan on their car, which covers weather damage like hail, typically pay a deductible between $250 and $500. Customers with liability insurance are not covered for that damage.
Chris Hardin, owner of Hardin’s Body and Glass, said his shop has received about 30 calls regarding hail damage. Hardin has been booking out appointments for repairs and expects it will take between two to three months to finish them all.
“We’re trying to address one to two (cars) a day,” Hardin said. “… (If there was) more than that, it would just sit. And I don’t like cars sitting, because I’m responsible for them.”
Tyi Curry, owner of Tyi Curry’s Bodyshop LLC, said he has gotten about 10 calls since Monday’s storm and has been addressing repairs as they have come in.
Hardin, Curry and Hatcher agreed that typically around this time of year they receive an influx of calls for weather related damages to cars, ranging from falling tree limbs to dents caused by hail.
Hardin and Hatcher said the busiest hail damage season they’ve had was in June 2023, when another severe thunderstorm brought hail as large as baseballs to the area.
Tyshon Miller, owner of T Miller’s Roofing, said the storm also caused damages to several local homes, including 15 homeowners who had called since Monday about roof repairs.
Miller said the damage he’s seen has varied from some houses needing a few shingles replaced while others have had more extensive damage and need their entire roof replaced.
“Some of the people who called (already) needed a (new) roof and the storm just (confirmed) it,” he said.
Miller said average costs on repairs range from about $500 to $2,000 for minor shingle replacement work to between $12,000 and $15,000 for an entire roof replacement.
For minor repairs it can take less than an hour to fix while an entire roof repair could take closer to a day, Miller said.
“We are probably booked up for a couple of more weeks out, but I’m sure there’s gonna be more (roof repairs), because a lot of them are just waiting on insurance (agencies),” Miller said.
Those with roof damage who have a basic homeowners insurance policy typically pay a deductible between $1,000 and $2,000, Gore said.
If a homeowner thinks they have roof damage, she recommends contacting a local roofer to check for damage before filing a claim through insurance to see if it is significant enough to warrant going through insurance.
“You have to weigh out if the damage is more than your deductible,” Gore said. “… Because if you file a claim, even if you change your mind and they close it out, it’s still on your record. It’s a zero paid claim, and multiple of those can hurt you. So we like to get a local roofer that (is) trusted to verify the damage, and then we’ll get the claim filed and go from there.”
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