Granule loss

A hail impact on an asphalt shingle creates a concentrated granule-loss pattern — a circular or oval zone where granules have been knocked loose, leaving exposed dark asphalt at the center. That exposed asphalt begins degrading from the first UV exposure after the storm. Six to eighteen months later, the mat starts cracking. A roof that appeared intact after the storm is failing by the following summer. This is why prompt documentation matters: granule-loss impact patterns photograph clearly soon after a storm, but rain and wind scatter the loose granules over the impact zones within weeks.

We use granule-loss documentation as a core part of every storm-damage claim package — close-up photos of impact sites, granule accumulation in gutters, and comparison photos of undamaged areas on the same roof. Carriers argue that granule loss is attributable to normal aging rather than storm impact. The counter-evidence is distribution pattern: normal age-related loss is uniform across a whole slope; hail-impact loss is concentrated and circular. That distinction is what gives the supplement its legs.