Hail Protection

Hazard picture

Hailstones strike almost exclusively horizontal and low-pitched surfaces; the most frequently affected components are roof membranes, rooftop equipment such as ventilation and air-conditioning units, roof lights and photovoltaic modules. Because hail tracks are spatially narrow but locally intense, individual sites can suffer repeated high losses while neighbouring areas remain undamaged.

Protection measures

Tested, hail-resistant roofing materials and systems substantially reduce the risk of puncture and denting; impact-resistant roof lights and retrofittable protective grilles are available for skylights. In hail-exposed locations, photovoltaic installations should be specified with certified hail resistance or additionally protected with movable covers. Regular roof walk-downs after severe weather events allow early damage detection.

Insurance relevance

As hail represents a significant accumulation risk for property and reinsurers and is modelled separately in natural catastrophe models, some insurers reflect the use of certified hail-resistant building products in their risk grading. Inadequate hail resistance of roofs and rooftop equipment is regarded as a key weakness identified during risk surveys.