Hail on Your Fence and Mailbox Needs Its Own Quote

Most hail photos go to the roof and stop there. The fence panels, the aluminum mailbox, the light fixture by the door and the gate hardware sit in the same yard, took the same storm, and are usually priced by a different trade or not priced at all. On a St. Louis lot after a hailstorm, those items often end up in a second pile of paperwork, and the homeowner finds out late that the roof quote never mentioned them. This page is for the homeowner who has already walked the roof and is now looking at the yard.

Storm and hail

Hail season in the St. Louis area runs mostly from spring into early summer, and the storms that drop hail often arrive in short, hard bursts. The damage in the yard follows the direction the storm was moving. A fence that faces the storm's path will show more marks than one tucked behind the house, so do not assume a quiet side of the lot means a quiet side of the storm.

Hail that is large enough to damage shingles usually leaves a pattern on metal surfaces that face the sky. Look at the top rail of an aluminum fence, the lid of a steel mailbox, the hood of a grill left outside, and the top of a metal light pole. Hail also breaks things. Vinyl fence boards can crack at the point of impact, and vinyl is more brittle in cold weather, so a spring storm followed by a hard freeze can show cracks that were not obvious the afternoon of the hail. Wood pickets can split or show a bruise on the face, and plastic mailboxes tend to crack along the top edge.

Walk the yard in daylight with the sun low, because a dent on a flat surface is much easier to see at an angle. Run a hand over the metal and feel for dimples that the eye misses. Count the dents in one square foot on a fence rail or mailbox panel and write the number down, then move to the next panel. A cluster of marks on one side and few on the other tells you which way the storm came in, and that pattern should line up with what the roofer reads on the roof.

Photograph each item from two distances. One shot from about six feet shows the whole panel, and one close shot shows the dent with a coin, a tape measure or a pen beside it for scale. Keep the phone's time stamp switched on. Do not clean the dents, paint over them or straighten a bent rail before the photos exist. If something needs fixing right away, such as a panel that leaves the yard open to the street or a gate that will not latch, take the photos first and then make the repair.

What it costs

Fence, mailbox, gate and light work is almost always a separate line of work with its own price. A roofing proposal normally covers the roof surface, the flashing and the vents, and it stops at the eave, the gutter line and the wall. If the fence is part of the same job, it has to be written as its own line with the materials and the labor shown, and the quote should say whether the price is per panel, per section of run, or for the whole fence. Ask which one, every time.

A single vinyl panel priced alone can cost much more per foot than the same panel as part of a full run, because the installer has to set up, cut and fit the panel regardless of how many others it sits beside. The reverse can also be true. A fence may need only a few panels, and a bid that replaces every section can bury the real damage inside a large total. Ask the fence contractor to price the damaged panels by number, with a note beside each one that says which storm mark it matches.

Mailboxes are cheaper to replace than most people expect, but a steel post that has been struck can bend below the ground line, and that changes the job. Ask whether the post needs to be reset, and whether the quote includes the hole, the concrete and the box itself. An outdoor light by the door is usually wired to the house, so it should be shut off at the panel before anyone touches it. Put that step on the quote so nobody has to remember it on the day.

Keep a plain list while you work through the yard. Use one line per item with its location, the number of marks you counted, the file name of its photos and what the quote says for that line. A two-column sheet is enough. When two bids come in, the list tells you quickly whether each contractor priced the same damage.

Insurance may or may not pay for any of this, and whether it does depends on your policy wording and on what your insurer decides. Missouri law (RSMo 407.725) bars a roofing contractor from representing or negotiating a homeowner's insurance claim, so a roofer should not be the one arguing your fence line with the insurer. Keys documents damage, puts a written scope with photos and measurements in your hands, and attends as the contractor while you deal with your own insurer. Keep the yard photos in the same file as the roof photos, and send the insurer the full set yourself.

What to ask

Bring these questions to whoever is quoting the roof, the fence or the mailbox. The answers should be written down before anyone signs.

• Which items on the proposal are roof work, and which sit outside the roof? If the fence, mailbox and light lines are not included, ask the contractor to mark them as not included.
• For each damaged item, is the price per panel, per section of run, or for the whole fence?
• Does the mailbox quote include the post, the hole, the concrete and the reset, or only the box?
• Who shuts off the power to an outdoor light or a gate opener before the work starts, and is that step written on the quote?
• Do the photos show each dent with a reference for scale, and does each photo file name match the item on your list?
• If the fence contractor and the roofer are different companies, who sets the access route for the material and the trucks?

The last question matters on a sloped St. Louis lot, where a dumpster or a pallet of shingles can sit across the fence line you meant to protect. Put the access route on paper before the first truck pulls in. Mark the fence panels you want left alone with a strip of tape, and tell the crew which gate they will use.

Start with the yard walk, count the marks, and photograph each item with a reference beside it. Take those notes to every contractor who will quote the fence or the mailbox, and ask for each line to be written separately. That way the roof bid and the yard work can be compared without guessing what each one covers.