Does the insurance cover hail damage repairs?

Figures for recent years have shown that predictions about the effect of climate change on hydrometeorological phenomena were not far off the mark. This trend was confirmed in studies such as the one published by Nature Climate Change in 2017, which pointed out a trend towards an increase in the size of hailstones in North America and, therefore, in their potential damaging effects.

The stratospheric quantities of damage caused by hailstorms and similar events have become a constant. This fact has been reflected in Zurich’s Global Risk Report for 2018, which alerts to the increase in environmental risks and the figures for 2017, a year in which natural catastrophes were the leading cause of losses for insurance companies.

Recently, new storms have had devastating effects in different parts of Europe and America. Zaragoza in Spain, Turin in Italy, or France, or Ludwigsburg in Germany, to give some examples, have suffered the terrible damage of hailstorms.

Insurance companies and the cover of meteorological risks

Faced with this reality and the prospect that it will get even worse, insurance companies are being required to take firmer action in relation to climate-related risks, but it seems that few of them, for the moment, have taken serious and specific measures in this regard.Although it varies from country to country, the most common cover for damage caused by weather is

associated to the concept of extraordinary risk and to a body that takes care of handling such damage. These extraordinary risks, such as floods or earthquakes, are undertaken by that body and not by the insurance companies, although the vehicle must be insured before this can happen. To take advantage of this aid, having general liability insurance is sufficient to benefit from the cover provided by the public body in such cases.

The question is defining, out of all the damaging atmospheric phenomena, which are classified as extraordinary and which are not. The damage caused by the former will be covered by the body or the state, while the damage caused by other phenomena will be the responsibility of the insurance company in the terms contracted with it by the user.

What is considered to be an extraordinary risk

For example, in the case of Spain, the Insurance Compensation Consortium (Consorcio de Compensación de Seguros), which handles aid to the affected parties, considers within this category, as far as natural phenomena are concerned, earthquakes, extraordinary floods, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions, atypical cyclonic storms and falling astral bodies. The concept of atypical cyclonic storm includes, in any case, wind with gusts of more than 120 km/h.

Both wind with gusts below that limit and snow and hailstones are expressly excluded from the cover for extraordinary risks, which generates a situation of uncertainty in which insurance companies and insured persons can be adversely affected.

Does the insurance cover hail damage repairs?

Lever Touch and its support to insurance companies and customers

As a result of the situation explained above, a partner with the standing and experience of Lever Touch in claims caused by hailstones is of great value for insurance companies. This has led us to sign global repair agreements with the major European insurance companies, which are thus assured of fast, effective and economic action in response to damaging meteorological events, even though they affect a large number of vehicles, guaranteeing the satisfaction of their insured in any claim relating to hailstorms.

Furthermore, the benefits of dealing with Lever Touch from the customer’s point of view can be summarized in a single sentence: We take care of everything.

We contact the user, collect and deliver the vehicle, offering alternative ways of getting around, process the pertinent paperwork with the insurance company and, naturally, repair the vehicle that has suffered damage caused by hailstones. As well as the advantages of one-stop shopping, we also offer the advantages of a repair carried out using PDR techniques: the original paintwork of the vehicle is not altered and the bodywork is restored to perfect condition without using aggressive means, so that the manufacturer’s warranty remains intact.

More and more users can benefit from this service through global agreements with their insurance company or by directly using our extensive and growing network of repair shops. So, whether you are an insurance company or a private individual, in the event of any type of damage caused by hailstones, contact us and we will advise you on your best option.