Hail damage calculator

Hail dented your car. File a claim, or pay for dent repair?

Hail is a comprehensive claim: nobody's fault. Many insurers raise rates little or not at all for one, so filing often makes sense. Sometimes it doesn't. We do the math with your deductible, your insurer and your state, and tell you which way it goes.

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Written by Todd Whittington, Editor·Last reviewed October 19, 2026

1How many dents?

2How big is the largest dent?

3Any broken glass, or cracked or chipped paint?

Cracked paint means the panel has to be repainted, which costs more than pushing dents out.

Have a shop estimate? It beats our ranges.

4Do you have comprehensive coverage?

It's the part of your policy that pays for hail, theft and glass. It's on your declarations page.

5Your insurance company

6Your ZIP code

Tells us your state. A few states bar a rate increase for a comprehensive claim.

7What you pay a year for car insurance

Optional. Without it we use the national average for full coverage.

8Claims in the last 3 years, of any kind

Hail season, and why to count your claims

Hail can hit almost anywhere, but it is most common on the high Plains. Nebraska, Colorado and Wyoming see the most hailstorms, and the season peaks in late spring and early summer.

“Nebraska, Colorado, and Wyoming usually have the most hailstorms. The area where these three states meet – “hail alley” – averages seven to nine hail days per year.” — NOAA National Severe Storms Laboratory

Southern Plains and South: earlier. In West Central Texas, May is the most active month (NWS San Angelo); around Fort Smith, Arkansas, the peak is March through May (NWS Tulsa).
Northern Plains and Rockies: later. Around Cheyenne, Wyoming, the peak is June, with a second peak in late July (NWS Cheyenne).

Where hail is common, claims add up. Hail is nobody's fault, but insurers still count how often you claim. There's no national rule. Some states set one:

“An insurer may cancel or nonrenew a policy if you have filed three or more “not-at-fault” claims within a three-year period of time.” — Maryland Insurance Administration, A Consumer Guide to Auto Insurance

Maryland counts comprehensive claims, like hail, as not-at-fault. Texas protects hail claims: an insurer can't refuse to renew your policy solely because of a weather claim that didn't involve a collision, like hail (Texas Auto Consumer Bill of Rights, item 24). Even where a hail claim is protected, it still counts toward your claims history, so in a hail-prone area save the claim for damage worth claiming.

How the calculator decides

It compares what you'd pay out of pocket: the whole repair if you pay the shop, or your deductible plus any rate increase over three years if you file.

No comprehensive coverage: insurance can't help, so it's a cash job.
Not sure of your coverage or deductible? We assume comprehensive with a $500 deductible and say so.
Repair under the deductible: pay the shop. A claim would pay nothing.
A big job and a gentle insurer: if the repair is more than three times your deductible and your insurer raises rates little or not at all for a comprehensive claim, file it.
Otherwise we weigh the deductible plus the likely rate increase against the repair. Inside the margin of error, we call it close and tell you what settles it.
The rate increase uses the same insurer tiers as our windshield calculator, because glass and hail are both comprehensive claims. They are labeled "glass-derived" until we find hail-specific rate filings. California, Michigan, North Carolina and Pennsylvania law bars a surcharge for a comprehensive claim, for every insurer.
No estimate? We use typical paintless dent repair ranges by how many dents there are, placed by the largest dent's size. Cracked paint switches to conventional body repair prices. These ranges are sample data, not quotes.

Paintless repair isn't always possible. AAA:

“The process is not an option if the paint is damaged, a dent is too large or the body panel has been creased” — AAA Mid States

Repair ranges: pdr-cost-bands.json (sample data, with the sources we compared them to). Insurer tiers: carrier-rate-tiers.json (glass-derived). Shop tips: Texas Department of Insurance, New Mexico Attorney General, Colorado Division of Insurance.

Frequently asked

Does a hail claim raise your car insurance?

Usually little or not at all for one claim. Hail is covered by comprehensive coverage and is nobody's fault, so insurers treat it far more gently than a crash you caused. A few states bar a surcharge for a comprehensive claim outright. Several claims in a few years can still cost you.

What is paintless dent repair?

A technician pushes each dent out from behind the panel, so nothing is sanded or repainted. It works when the paint isn't cracked, the metal isn't creased and the dents aren't too big. It's usually faster and cheaper than conventional body repair.

Is a hail claim worth it with a high deductible?

Only if the repair costs well more than the deductible. If a few small dents cost less than your deductible, insurance pays nothing and the claim still goes on your record. If the whole car is dented, filing usually makes sense.

How many hail claims are too many?

There's no national number. In Maryland, an insurer may cancel or nonrenew after three or more not-at-fault claims in three years, and comprehensive counts. Texas goes the other way: an insurer can't refuse to renew your policy solely because of a hail claim.

What if the shop finds more damage once it starts?

That's common with hail. Tell your insurer about the extra damage before the shop does the extra work, and get it added to the claim in writing.