How does a wind and hail deductible work on homeowners insurance?
Short answer. A wind and hail deductible is a separate deductible that applies only when windstorm or hail causes the damage. In Georgia it is often a percentage of your dwelling coverage limit, commonly 1 or 2 percent, which turns into several thousand dollars on a typical home. It applies to every wind or hail claim, including trees blown onto the house, while other causes use your regular deductible.
When it applies
- Hail damage to the roof, gutters, siding, windows and vents
- Wind tearing off shingles or siding
- A tree or limb blown onto the house during a storm
- Wind-driven rain entering through a wind-created opening
Lightning, fire, a dead tree falling on a calm day and burst pipes use the all other perils deductible instead.
How the amount is figured
Multiply the dwelling limit on your declarations page by the percentage:
- $280,000 at 1 percent = $2,800
- $280,000 at 2 percent = $5,600
It does not depend on the size of the damage or the cost of the roof. If your dwelling limit increases at renewal, the deductible increases with it.
A claim example
Hail causes $17,000 of roof and gutter damage. With a $5,600 wind and hail deductible on a replacement cost policy, the insurer pays $11,400 in total, part of it after the work is done, and you pay $5,600.
Key points
- One storm means one deductible, even if the roof, fence and siding are all damaged.
- Two storms on different dates mean two deductibles.
- No contractor can legally pay or waive it in Georgia.
- Changes take effect at renewal or by endorsement, not after a storm.
Full details: percentage wind and hail deductibles, date of loss and can a roofer pay your deductible.