Hail, turf and homeowners insurance: what a Weld or Larimer storm can do, and how to check your policy

01How much hail do Weld and Larimer County yards get?

A lot, and some of it large. NOAA’s Storm Events counts for 2011 through 2025, with the Colorado Division of Insurance’s 2026 estimate of hail’s share of premiums:

Sources: NOAA NCEI Storm Events and the Colorado Division of Insurance, which gathered premium data from 20 insurers. The counts are reports, so they reflect where people were watching as well as where hail fell.

Some of the stones behind those counts:

• 2.75 inches, baseball size, less than a mile from Johnstown on June 17, 2025.
• 2.75 inches about 3 miles northeast of Wellington on August 3, 2013.
• Up to 1.75 inches, golf-ball size, at Berthoud on June 24, 2026.

NOAA’s National Severe Storms Laboratory counts quarter-size hail, 1 inch across, as severe. It puts the fall speed of 1- to 1.75-inch stones at 25 to 40 mph and of 2- to 4-inch stones at 44 to 72 mph, while noting much uncertainty in those figures (NSSL).

02What can a hailstorm do to artificial turf?

Less is known than turf advertising suggests. The turf makers’ pages and sports-field maintenance guides we read either skip hail or say turf can take it without showing a test, and we found no hail test for landscape turf. A claim that turf is hail-proof, or that one storm ruins it, is a guess. What is certain: turf doesn’t grow back, so whatever a storm does stays until someone fixes it. Once the storm passes, look for:

• Debris. Shredded leaves, twigs, branches, shingle grit and gutter parts. The Synthetic Turf Council says every loose foreign object can damage turf “by abrading the grass fibers and/or contaminating the infill,” and that debris left on the surface works its way in and slows drainage (STC guidelines). See getting leaves and debris off turf.
• Moved infill. Look for sand or granules washed into low spots or off the edges. Thin-looking patches point to how often to add infill.
• Flattened blades, tears, holes, open seams or lifted edges. Flat spots are a brushing job (matted turf); a tear or hole is a patch; edges have their own fixes (turf edges lifting).
• Standing water a day after the storm, which is a drainage question.
• A putting green that rolls differently. Putt your usual lines and check the cups and fringe; see our putting greens page.

After the storm: the roof crew

The Colorado Division of Insurance warns that after major hail storms “contractors will flock to Colorado” (Division of Insurance). Before roof work starts, ask the crew to cover the turf under the eaves and keep ladders, dumpsters and shingle piles off it. Afterwards, run a magnet over it: the Synthetic Turf Council recommends one for ferrous metal, and roofing nails are exactly that.

03Does homeowners insurance cover hail damage to artificial turf?

It depends on the policy, and the policy may not say. The Colorado Division of Insurance says damage from windstorms or hail storms “is usually covered,” and that policies “vary from company to company” (Division of Insurance). That rule is about the house. For turf, the question is which part of the policy it belongs to, and neither the common ISO homeowners form nor Colorado’s required summary of coverage names artificial turf.

Here is what the ISO Homeowners 3 form (sample form, HO 00 03) says about each place turf could fall:

The same form names “Windstorm Or Hail” as the second peril for belongings, and leaves it off the lawn list. If an insurer reads your turf as a lawn, hail damage may not be covered at all; if it reads the turf as part of the house or an other structure, it may be. Ask before the next storm.

Questions for your agent or insurer, answered in writing:

• Is my artificial turf covered as part of the dwelling, as an other structure, as a lawn, or not at all?
• Does hail count under that coverage?
• Is there an endorsement that adds hail for landscaping, and would turf count?
• Is my hail deductible a fixed amount or a percentage of the dwelling limit, and how much is that in dollars?
• Would turf damage go on the same claim as roof damage from the same storm?

The turf maker’s written coverage is a separate document.

04How do the deductible and the claim change the math?

Start with the deductible. Colorado’s summary of coverage says a deductible “may be a fixed amount, a percentage of the dwelling limit, or a combination of both.” A percentage deductible is sized by the house’s coverage, not the turf, so it can exceed a whole turf repair. Your declarations page shows which kind you have.

Two lines of the ISO form matter after a big storm:

• One total, one deductible. The deductible comes off “the total of all loss payable” under the property section, not off each item. If the roof claim already clears it, turf damage from the same storm isn’t facing a second one, as long as your policy reads the same way and covers the turf at all.
• Repairs you document. The form asks you to protect the property from further damage and to “keep an accurate record of repair expenses.”

Before deciding whether to file, get a written repair estimate for the turf alone; if it comes in under your deductible, the question answers itself. For older turf, weigh a repair against how long artificial turf lasts.

05What should I photograph and check after a hailstorm?

Before anyone rakes, blows or brushes anything:

1. Measure a few stones. NSSL says a ruler, calipers or tape measure gives a truer size than comparing stones to a coin or a ball. Photograph them next to the ruler.
2. Photograph the whole yard from each corner, then close-ups of holes, torn blades, thin patches, seams, edges, puddles and whatever fell on the turf.
3. Keep the damaged pieces. The ISO form asks homeowners to show the damaged property as often as the insurer reasonably requires, so don’t haul away cut-out turf before the adjuster sees it. The Division of Insurance notes that an adjuster “works for the company” and determines the coverage owed.
4. Find the paperwork: the installation invoice, the product spec sheet and the turf maker’s written terms. The Division says an insurer will ask for proof of purchase for items on a claim.
5. Give prompt notice if you plan to claim. It is the first of the form’s duties after a loss.
6. Then clean up: debris off with a leaf blower or plastic rake, flattened areas brushed, and a magnet pass if roof work follows.

06Who can I ask when the policy isn’t clear?

Start with your agent or insurer, in writing. If you can’t get a straight answer, or you disagree with how a claim was handled, the Colorado Division of Insurance’s Consumer Services team answers insurance questions and investigates complaints (File a Complaint). Its homeowners toolkit explains the terms an adjuster will use.

Colorado law also hands you a plain-language map of your policy. Under C.R.S. 10-4-111, every homeowners insurer must give policyholders a summary of coverage, and the homeowners summary comes every year (Division of Insurance); the Division’s Bulletin B-5.15 sets its wording. The summary doesn’t replace the policy, and where they differ the policy wins. Not legal advice.