Open repairs

Broken roofs after hail: time is running out

Storm Volker left a trail of devastation in many parts of Upper Austria in June 2021. The hail in particular destroyed many roofs. Because tradesmen were in short supply, repairs were delayed.

(Bild: Markus Wenzel, zVg, Krone KREATIV)

Storm Volker caused extensive damage and many broken roofs in Upper Austria in June 2021. More than two years later, not all repairs have been carried out. Read here to find out what's behind it and until when insurance companies will pay. 

Hurricane-force gusts of wind, plus hail! The storm called Volker in June 2021 left a trail of devastation in its wake. "The hail caused damage of 160 million euros for our customers," says Othmar Nagl, Director General of Oberösterreichische Versicherung.

We are still nibbling away at the hail damage from 2021, which resulted in many orders. We have very, very good capacity utilization.

Othmar Berner, Innungsmeister der Dachdecker in OÖ

Because the construction industry was running at full speed back then, roofers were already in short supply. Today, more than two and a half years later, the situation has improved in terms of available tradespeople - but not all the damage from the early summer of 2021 has been repaired by any means.

(Bild: Markus Wenzel (2), stock.adobe.com, Krone KREATIV)

Oberösterreichische Versicherung alone therefore has provisions of almost 32 million euros.

The storms in June 2021 caused more than 17,600 claims for our customers, of which almost 4,100 are still open.

Othmar Nagl, Generaldirektor OÖ Versicherung

Othmar Berner, the regional guild master of roofers, glaziers and tinsmiths, confirms that not all the roofs that were damaged by the hail have been covered yet. However, this is also due to the fact that some are using the opportunity for a renovation project. "Some, for example, are building up," says Berner.

This does not make it more expensive for the insurance company: the customer is only entitled to the amount of damage determined by the expert and approved by the insurance company. However, time is running out for implementation: the limitation period is three years from the date the damage occurred. The repair must therefore be carried out by the end of June 2024.

If time is running out, a discussion with the insurance company is advisable
What if the roofer is still running out of time? "The best thing is for those affected to contact their insurance company directly and ask them to extend the deadline so that the damage can be dealt with properly," says Berner.