As of November 2026, Texas law gives you 60 days' notice of a non-renewal and keeps hail and other weather claims out of the three-claims rule, but it does not stop a company from non-renewing an aging roof or raising the wind and hail deductible at renewal, as long as it tells you in the renewal notice. Send me the notice, the declarations page and the roof's age, and I will tell you which markets are still open to the house.
Why North Texas roofs are underwritten so hard
The National Weather Service office in Fort Worth keeps the record. On May 5, 1995, storms dropped hail up to the size of softballs across Tarrant and Dallas counties during Fort Worth's Mayfest; the Weather Service still calls it one of the costliest hailstorms in history. On April 11, 2016, a single supercell crossed Collin County and hit Wylie, where the Weather Service reports 80 percent of homes were affected and a 5.25-inch stone set the record for its forecast area.
Tornadoes are the second wind peril. On December 26, 2015, twelve tornadoes were confirmed across North Texas, and the Sunnyvale–Garland–Rowlett tornado was rated EF4 with ten deaths, the highest-rated December tornado on record in Dallas County.
Hail and tornado wind are covered by a standard Texas homeowners policy outside the coast. Dallas–Fort Worth is far from the fourteen coastal counties where the state windstorm association operates, so there is no separate wind policy here. What changes from one company to the next is the deductible and how the roof is paid.
Percentage deductibles, ACV roofs and cosmetic damage
Three policy terms matter more in DFW than the premium:
- Wind and hail deductibleThe Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) says it is often higher than the deductible for other losses. It is usually a percentage of the dwelling limit and it applies to every claim.
- Roof settlementThe Office of Public Insurance Counsel (OPIC) warns that a replacement cost policy may still pay the roof at actual cash value, meaning depreciation comes off first. TDI says many policies cut roof coverage by age and material.
- Cosmetic damageTexas has allowed endorsements that exclude hail damage to a roof covering that is only cosmetic since a 1998 TDI order tied them to impact-resistant roof credits.
TDI's own worked example shows why this matters: with a two percent deductible, an actual cash value policy pays less each year the roof ages, and nothing at all on the twenty-year-old roof. TDI also cautions that a company might not pay for a whole new roof just because replacement shingles do not match. OPIC's advice is to ask which endorsements are mandatory before you buy; I read them for you and show the deductible as a figure, not a percentage. The arithmetic is on my Texas roof and hail deductible page. And if a roofer offers to cover the deductible, decline: TDI says that is illegal in Texas, and the insurer can ask for proof you paid it.
Impact-resistant roofs and the discount
When the roof has to be replaced anyway, the material can change which companies will write the house. TDI recognizes roof coverings tested for impact resistance and classified Class 1 through Class 4, with Class 4 earning the highest premium credit. Each company sets its own discount, decides which test standard and labeling it accepts, and asks for its own paperwork from the contractor, so keep the installer's certificate and the product label information. Ask at the same time whether the credit comes with a cosmetic damage exclusion; that pairing goes back to the 1998 order.
What Texas law says about the notice and your claims
A non-renewal has to be mailed at least 60 days before the policy expires under Insurance Code section 551.105, or the company must renew if you ask. The company owes you a written reason on request. A change that reduces coverage at renewal, such as a higher wind and hail deductible or a new roof schedule, is treated differently: section 551.1055 says it is not a non-renewal if the company explains each material change in plain language, in a conspicuous place in the renewal notice, at least 30 days before renewal. That is why many DFW owners find the change on the renewal packet instead of receiving a non-renewal.
On claims, section 551.107 lets a company refuse renewal after three claims in three years, provided it warned you after the second. Hail, wind, freeze and other natural-cause claims do not count, nor do claims that were filed and not paid. The same section lets a company add a surcharge after two countable claims in three policy years. A phone call asking whether damage would be covered is not a claim, and section 551.113 bars a company from holding it against you. Background is on my Texas non-renewal rules page.
None of this prevents a non-renewal for the condition of the house. TDI says companies usually give at least six months to make repairs first, which in practice is the window to replace a worn roof and keep the policy.
Freeze, water and flood
The February 2021 winter storm is the other event in every North Texas file. DFW Airport fell to two degrees below zero on February 16 and spent 139 consecutive hours at or below freezing. Sudden pipe bursts are a standard homeowners claim; slow leaks are not, and TDI notes most policies do not cover a continuous leak and lists foundation or slab damage and sewer backup among the coverages sold as add-ons. Flood from rising water is excluded everywhere in Texas and is a separate policy, with a 30-day wait on most. How flood coverage works.
If no company will write the house: the Texas FAIR Plan
Before the FAIR Plan I try surplus lines insurers, which Texas permits once admitted companies have been approached; they are often the answer for an older roof or a claims history. The Texas FAIR Plan Association comes after that. It needs two declinations from insurers that are authorized and actually writing home insurance in Texas, and it will not take an applicant who has a policy in force, a renewal offer, or a comparable offer from an admitted company. Only an agent can submit the application.
It is basic coverage. The dwelling is insured at actual cash value unless a replacement cost endorsement is added, the dwelling limit tops out at one million, and the Plan's own list of what it does not cover includes falling trees and limbs, the weight of ice and snow, freezing of plumbing, and sudden water discharge without a limited endorsement. It can also decline a home with existing damage, so an unrepaired hail roof has to be fixed first. Policyholders are expected to try the regular market again every two years. More on how the Texas FAIR Plan works.
What to send me
The renewal or non-renewal notice, the current declarations page with its endorsement list, the roof's install date, material and impact class if it has one, with the contractor's certificate, your claims in the last five years and which were hail or wind, any open repairs, and the date you need coverage. With those I can tell you which companies will look at the house and what each would do with the roof.
Common questions
Why did my home insurance go up so much in Dallas?
Usually because of the roof and the hail exposure: at renewal a company can raise the rate, enlarge the wind and hail deductible or move the roof to an age schedule. Compare the renewal's deductible and roof settlement terms with last year's before comparing the premium.
Can my insurer non-renew me for hail claims in Texas?
Not for the number of claims: weather claims are excluded from the three-claims rule in Insurance Code section 551.107. A company can still non-renew for the roof's condition, usually after giving time to repair it.
Who insures a home with an older roof in Dallas–Fort Worth?
Some admitted companies will with the roof on an actual cash value schedule, and surplus lines insurers write many of the rest. The Texas FAIR Plan is the last step, after two declinations.
What is a two percent wind and hail deductible?
It is two percent of the amount the house is insured for, not of the damage, and it comes off every wind or hail claim. Work it out as a figure before you accept the quote.
Do Class 4 shingles lower home insurance in Texas?
Often. TDI says Class 4 roof coverings earn the highest impact-resistance credit, but each company sets its own discount and paperwork, and some pair the credit with a cosmetic damage exclusion.
Is Dallas covered by the Texas windstorm association?
No. TWIA writes only in the fourteen first-tier coastal counties and part of Harris County, so in DFW wind and hail stay inside the homeowners policy under their own deductible.
Where can I compare Texas home policies or file a complaint?
HelpInsure.com, run by TDI and OPIC, shows sample rates and coverage by company. TDI's Help Line, 800-252-3439, takes complaints about insurers, agents and adjusters.
General information about home insurance in the Dallas–Fort Worth area as of November 2026, not legal advice. Notice and claims rules are in Texas Insurance Code chapter 551; Texas FAIR Plan eligibility and coverage are set by the Legislature and the Association and change. Your own policy wording controls deductibles, roof settlement and exclusions. Coverage depends on underwriting and the terms, conditions and exclusions of the policy actually issued.