Insurance claims stemming from hail-related damage haveincreased markedly in the past two years, according to the NationalInsurance Crime Bureau (NICB). In its latest ForeCAST report, NICBpoints to an 84-percent rise in the number of claims logged in 2012compared to that in 2010. To put things into perspective, 467,602hail damage claims were filed in 2010, followed by 689,267 in 2011,and then 861,597 in 2012.

It's no secret the nation has experienced severe storms ofescalating magnitude and frequency. These storms have produceddamaging winds, tornadoes, hail that have affected a largerswath of the U.S. The reason these storms are occurring in rapidsuccession is a subject of contentious debate, yettheir far-reaching impact is clear—extensive property damageand, by extension, a mound of personal and commercial p&cclaims.

Typical property damage from hail events can be as minimal as afew broken shingles or can amount to the decimationof multiple buildings. NICB's report, which focusessolely on insurance claims resulting from hail damage, not loss oflife, is divided into two sections. The first analyzes overall U.S.hail loss claims from 2010 through 2012, whereas the second sectionexamines hail loss questionable claims (QC) submitted during thesame timeframe.

Millions of Hail Damage Claims

One of the most dramatic takeaways in NICB's overall assessmentis the sheer volume of claims processed by its member companies. Infact, more than 2 million hail damage claims were processedfrom January 1, 2010 to December 31, 2012. During this period, thelargest number of claims originated in Texas, which logged atotal of 320,823. In 2010, 2011 and 2012, Texas saw 557, 741and 795 hail events, respectively. NICB notes that claims activityfollows the hail storm activity as posted on the National WeatherService's Storm Prediction Center. Trailing behind the Lone Starstate is Missouri, with 138,857; Kansas, with 126,490;Colorado, with 118,118; and Oklahoma, with 114,168.

Despite the overwhelming rise in hail-related damage claimsoverall, the number of related QCs submitted to NICB for closerinspection was more subtle. In total, 3,829QCs, designated with a loss type of “hail,” were reportedbetween January 1, 2010 and December 31, 2012. Hail loss QCsdecreased 4 percent between 2010 and 2011, thenincreasing 4 percent between 2011 and 2012. Once again leadingthe way, Texas was the state with the largest combined total ofhail loss QCs, followed by Illinois, Colorado and Arizona. Thetop ten states on the list represented 76 percent of the totalhail loss QCs during the 2010-2012 timeframe. For instance, Texasreported 1,053 QCs, or 28 percent of the total number of QCsbetween January 1, 2010 and December 31, 2013.

For a list of the Top 5 QC referral reasons and to access morehighlights of the report, view the accompanying PC360slideshow.