Does insurance cover hail damage?

We all know that weather can damage homes and cars. Hail season, in particular, can wreak havoc on your home, damaging roofs, siding, and windows—and it can do a number on your car too, leaving you with costly repairs or window replacements. Want to know what your home and car insurance covers when it comes to hail damage? Let’s break it down.

How does home insurance cover hail damage?

If this is your first time buying home insurance, you may not know that there are a few different ways that home insurance can cover hail damage. Here's how it works:

Dwelling coverage

Most home insurance policies cover hail damage under dwelling coverage. Dwelling coverage protects the physical structure of the home as well as detached structures, like garages, sheds, and gazebos. That means things like broken windows, damaged siding, damaged AC units or BBQs, damaged sheds or gazebos, and roof repairs are typically included under dwelling coverage, which protects the home from things like fire, lightning, smoke, theft, falling objects, wind, and hail damage. This means it covers hail damage such as flying debris, falling branches or trees, or water entering your home from the holes left by the hail.

If you need to file a claim for roof damage, some insurance companies factor in depreciation. This means the payout might depend on your roof's age, the materials used, and even where you live. For example, in southern and central Alberta, roofs can wear out faster due to frequent hailstorms and temperature swings from chinooks. Depreciation, along with your deductible, could mean you’ll have some out-of-pocket costs for a roof repair or replacement.

The good news? Other parts of your home, like siding and windows, are usually covered at their full replacement cost, so you won’t have to worry about depreciation there.

Contents coverage

Also, if your belongings were damaged in the process, you can get coverage for that too under your contents coverage. Say large hail broke through your window and heavy rain poured in, damaging your furniture or other belongings. This could be filed under the same hail damage claim.

However, hail often goes hand-in-hand with other severe weather, like major storms, that bring risks of severe damage due to high winds, flooding or sewer backups. It's important to note that this type of water damage is not covered by home insurance and if your area is known for it, adding additional sewer backup insurance or flood insurance can be very beneficial.

Another thing that we want to mention is that contents coverage, like all coverage, comes with a policy limit, which is the maximum amount your insurance company will pay out for a claim. This means if you own any high-value items, like musical instruments, expensive artwork, or antique items, it may be a good idea to talk to your insurance advisor about high-value home insurance.

Additional living expenses

Further, if the insured damage from the hail was so severe that you need to temporarily stay somewhere else until it is repaired, your additional living expenses portion of your home insurance policy can help cover those expenses.

Hail damage is also generally included as part of tenant insurance and condo insurance policy. However, if you own insurance on a mobile home or trailer, you may or may not be covered for hail damage. It's important to discuss this with your insurance provider.

You may also be wondering whether home insurance covers vehicles in a driveway, but the answer is no. That's where your car insurance comes in. However, home insurance does cover your belongings inside your vehicle under your contents coverage.

What does car insurance cover for hail damage?

It's important to protect your car from hail damage, and one way to do that is by having the right car insurance. But whether you're covered for hail damage under your car insurance policy depends on what type of car insurance coverage you have.

Basic auto insurance, which includes third-party liability coverage and accident benefits coverage, as well as uninsured automobile coverage and direct compensation-property damage coverage, depending on where in Canada you live, does not cover hail damage. Then what does hail damage cover? Comprehensive or all-perils coverage.

Comprehensive coverage

If you have comprehensive car insurance, you’re covered for damage caused by hail, strong winds, or flying debris. Comprehensive coverage covers non-collision-related damage, including fire, theft, vandalism, weather damage, and falling objects. This means your comprehensive coverage can cover things like:

• Dents or dings
• Cracked or shattered glass
• Paint damage
• Scratches
• Damaged mirrors

However, as you may have gathered earlier, car insurance does not cover your damaged belongings inside your vehicle—that's where your home insurance steps in. So, if hail cracks or breaks a window on your car and rain damages your belongings, like a brand new laptop sitting on your backseat, you'll have to file a separate claim under your home insurance policy. If you don't have home insurance, you may want to consider getting contents insurance.

Now, if the costs to repair hail damage to your car's exterior are more than what your car is worth, your insurer might declare it a total loss. In that case, they’ll usually pay you the car’s current cash value—that’s the amount your vehicle would sell for in today’s market. How much you get depends on your insurance company’s process, but it’s typically based on the car’s market value at the time. Just keep in mind that to start the repair or replacement process, you’ll need to pay your car insurance deductible first.

What classifies as a hail storm?

Hail forms when a thunderstorm’s strong upward winds push raindrops up into freezing clouds, where they cycle up and down, adding layers of ice each time. Eventually, these frozen droplets grow heavy enough to fall as hail. While most hail is about the size of peas, stronger storms can produce hail the size of golf balls—or even bigger! Hailstorms can happen anywhere in Canada, but they’re most common in Alberta and southern Ontario.

How can I protect my home and car from hail damage?

If you live in an area known for summer hail storms, there are several things you can do to protect your home and car from hail damage:

Protect your home

Here’s how you can help protect your home from hail damage:

• Hire a professional to inspect your roof every spring before hail season begins and fix any issues to prevent hail from making them worse.
• Look for any tree branches that could break from hail and damage your home and trim them.
• Keep your eavestroughs, drains, and downspouts clear to avoid ice dams.
• Sign up for weather alerts on your phone so you’ll know when severe weather is on the way.
• When you know there may be a hail storm, close all drapes or shades to minimize the risk of flying glass if a window breaks.
• Or you can add protective film to your windows to prevent glass from shattering during a storm.
• You may also want to consider investing in hail-resistant roofing and siding for added protection.
• Move or tie down your patio furniture, barbecues, and anything else that could be damaged into a sheltered area or cover it.

Protect your car

The easiest way to protect your car from hail damage is to park it inside a garage—either yours or an indoor parking garage. However, if you don't have access to a garage, here's what else you can do:

• Again, sign up for weather alerts on your phone so you'll know when to prepare.
• Purchase a hail car cover and cover your car with it before the storm starts.
• If you don't have a hail car cover, try covering your car with a few thick blankets.
• If you don't have enough blankets, try laying thick, flattened cardboard boxes on top of your car and tie them down with bungee cords or rope.
• You can also use your car's floor mats to cover your windshield—rubber side up.
• Don't forget to fold your side mirrors in.
• Finally, review your car insurance policy to make sure you have comprehensive insurance.

Learn more about insurance coverage from BrokerLink

Being prepared can help you avoid unfortunate circumstances in the event of hail. In addition to proper maintenance, it’s good practice to review insurance coverage and understand what is covered by your home and auto insurance policies. A BrokerLink insurance broker can offer insurance advice and help you review your coverage to ensure you're protected from whatever life throws your way. We can even help you through the claims process if you find yourself needing to file a hail damage claim.

You can reach us by phone, email, or in person at any one of our locations throughout Canada. No matter how you choose to get in touch, a BrokerLink insurance advisor will be happy to assist you. We also encourage you to take advantage of our free online quote tool that can provide you with a competitive quote in minutes.

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FAQs about hail damage and insurance coverage

What does hail coverage cover?

Hail coverage is typically part of your home insurance policy under your dwelling coverage. It covers things like broken windows, damaged siding, damaged AC units or BBQs, damaged sheds or gazebos, and roof repairs that are due to hail damage.

Does home insurance cover hail damage in Calgary?

In Calgary, standard home insurance usually covers weather damage, including hail, under your dwelling coverage. But you’ll want to make sure your policy limit is high enough to cover the full cost of replacing anything that might need fixing or replacing. Review your home insurance policy and, if it isn't, talk to your insurance broker or provider about increasing your policy limit.

If you have any questions, contact one of our local branches.