Study: Cars Are No. 2 Casualty When Hail Rains Down

CARS.COM — Just weeks after Midwestern and Great Plains states were pummeled with hail, a new study is showing that as the hail falls, the costs mount. According to a just-released report by the Des Plaines, Ill.-based National Insurance Crime Bureau, despite the number of hailstorm-related car insurance claims falling in recent years, the severity and related costs are spiking — and cars are one of the biggest casualties.

Related: Should You Buy a Hail-Damaged Car?

The survey examined the years 2013 through 2015, showing that about 720,000 hail-damage claims were filed across all loss categories in 2013 and more than 824,000 in 2014. That number dipped by 31 percent to just 572,000 in 2015, and by 21 percent for the three-year period. During that time, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reported 10 major hail-producing storms — each causing more than a billion dollars in property damage.

While most hail-related insurance claims (53 percent) came from homeowners, the “personal auto” category accounted for more than a third of all hail claims, totaling nearly 724,000 from 2013 to 2015; the commercial auto category accounted for nearly 22,000 claims.

From 2000 through 2013, NICB reported citing Verisk’s A-Plus property database, insurers paid nearly 9 million hail claims that totaled $54 billion across all loss categories. That dollar figure, NICB noted, was heavily lopsided on the latter half of that timeline.

“In recent years, the costs of these hail-related claims has dramatically increased,” NICB stated. “The average claim severity during the period 2008-2013 was 65 percent higher than it was from 2000 through 2007.”

Frank Scafidi, director of public affairs for NICB, said consumers feel the impact of these increased costs. The cause, he said, is an overall rise in the cost of parts, materials and labor in recent years, especially as cars become exponentially more sophisticated.

“After a significant hail event, cost of materials and labor can soar as both become scarce due to the increased demand,” Scafidi explained. “The cost increase has been dramatic and leads to the severity factor. For consumers this means that eventually their insurance costs will increase.”

OK, so you get it: Hail is damaging to your property, particularly to your car. So what can you do to prevent that damage and the ensuing insurance hassles?

Well, first, you can determine if you live in a high-hail-threat area. Texas is far and away the hail-damage capital of the U.S., laying claim to nearly 395,000 — about 1 in 5 — claims from 2013 to 2015, NICB reported. The Lone Star State is followed by Colorado, with 9 percent of claims; Nebraska, 7 percent; Kansas and Illinois, 6 percent each; Oklahoma, 5 percent; Missouri, Minnesota and South Dakota, 4 percent each; and Indiana, 3 percent.

Then you can figure out when you need to be most cautious with your car. High-hail-damage season, according to NICB, runs from March to August. April, May and June on average are the worst with each accounting for more than 100,000 hail claims across all damage categories during the three-year span — or combined nearly two-thirds of the total for all 12 months.

As we previously reported, if you do live in an area at high risk for hail damage, purchase covered parking if you can. If you can’t and a big storm is brewing that could produce hail, find someplace to shelter your car such as a parking garage at a local mall. You also can cover your car with blankets from home or with one specifically designed to guard against hail, but be sure to secure it tightly against strong winds likely to accompany a hailstorm.