The short answer
Solar panel insurance usually means making sure your home policy recognises a rooftop or ground-mounted system and any home battery. Panels add to the cost of rebuilding, so the dwelling limit may need to rise, and some insurers ask about the installer, permits and inspections. Warranties cover defects, not storms or fire. If the system is leased, the contract decides who insures it. A licensed broker can confirm how insurers treat your setup.
- Homeowners who have just had panels installed or have signed a contract
- Owners on the Prairies weighing panels against hail exposure
- Households adding a home battery, with or without panels
- Owners with a ground-mounted array or panels on a garage or shed
- Anyone leasing a system, or buying a home that already has one
4 licensed brokers in the network handle this. In Alberta, Canada, a request for home solar panel insurance can be offered to up to three of them, chosen because they are licensed for this line and place. They are test brokers while we are in demo.
See the brokers → Outside Alberta, Canada you can prepare and save a request today; sending opens place by place. Brokers answer with their own quotes. Broker.insure does not quote, advise or take commission.
01 / What it covers
The parts worth understanding
Telling the insurer
A solar installation changes the building, its electrical system and sometimes how the home is used. Many insurers want to hear about it, and some ask for the installer's details and the electrical permit. Report it when the system is switched on rather than at the next renewal.
Updating the dwelling limit
Roof-mounted panels are generally treated as part of the house, so the building limit should account for replacing them along with the structure. A system worth a meaningful share of the home is easy to leave out of an old figure.
Hail, wind and snow
Panels are tested for hail impact, but a severe Prairie storm can still crack glass or damage frames and wiring. Ask how the policy's wind and hail deductible applies to panels, and whether they are settled at replacement cost or a depreciated value.
Warranties are not insurance
Manufacturer product and performance warranties and the installer's workmanship warranty cover defects and poor installation. Insurance responds to sudden events such as hail, fire or a falling tree. Keep both sets of documents, since one loss can involve each.
Ground mounts and outbuildings
An array on its own frame in the yard, or on a detached garage, may fall under a limit for other structures. That limit may not stretch to a large system, so ask how it should be listed.
Home batteries
A battery storage unit adds electrical and fire questions. Insurers may ask where it is installed, who installed it and whether it was inspected, and some ask for the product certification details.
Liability from the roof
Snow and ice can slide off smooth panels in sheets onto a walkway, a car or a neighbour's property. The home's liability cover generally applies, but a broker may ask about snow guards and which way the panels face.
02 / Get ready
Bring this, and expect these questions
Gather
- The installation contract or invoice, showing system size, components and total installed cost
- The installer's name, and the electrical permit and inspection record for the system
- Panel make and model, inverter type, and any battery model and where it is in the home
- Manufacturer and workmanship warranty documents, with their start dates and terms
- Roof age and material, and whether the roof was replaced before the panels went on
- Whether the system is owned outright, financed or leased, and the contract if it is leased or financed
- Your interconnection or micro-generation approval from the utility or distribution company
- Photos of the array, the mounting, the inverter, the disconnect switch and any battery
- Your current home policy, showing the building limit and the wind and hail deductible
A broker will ask
- When was the system installed, and who installed it?
- Was an electrical permit taken out, and did the installation pass inspection?
- Is the system on the house roof, on a garage, or on a ground mount in the yard?
- What did the system cost to install, and is that reflected in the building limit?
- Do you have a home battery, and where is it located?
- Is the system owned, financed or leased?
- How old is the roof under the panels?
- Do you send power to the grid under a micro-generation or net metering arrangement?
Not sure of an answer? Leave it. "Not known yet" is a fine answer, and a broker will help you fill it in.
03 / Build your request
Answer a few questions. Get your own list.
Pick what fits. Your answers shape the list beside them, and they are saved to your request as plain facts a broker can read. "Not sure yet" is always a fine answer.
04 / Three situations
See which one sounds like yours
A Regina family deciding on panels in hail country
A family in Regina has a quote for a rooftop array on a twelve-year-old asphalt roof. Neighbours lost windows and shingles in a storm last summer, and the family wants to know how panels change their insurance before they sign.
First steps. Ask the installer for the panel model, its hail test rating and the warranty terms, and get a roofer's opinion on whether the roof will outlast the panels. Ask the broker how insurers would value the panels, which deductible would apply to hail and whether re-roofing first changes anything.
Re-roofing under an existing array in Medicine Hat
A homeowner in Medicine Hat needs a new roof, but panels installed six years ago cover most of the south slope. The roofer's quote has a separate line for removing and reinstalling the array, and the installer says its workmanship warranty depends on who does that work.
First steps. Tell the insurer before the panels come down, since the system and roof will both be exposed during the work. Ask the broker whether a covered roof claim would include removing and reinstalling panels, and confirm that both the roofer and the solar contractor carry liability insurance.
A buyer taking over a leased system in Edmonton
A buyer is purchasing a house in Edmonton with panels and a battery that the seller leases from a solar company. The lease will transfer to the buyer, and it has a clause about insurance the buyer has not read yet.
First steps. Get the full lease and read the sections on ownership, insurance and damage. Send it to the broker with the home details, and ask whether the leasing company insures the equipment itself or expects the homeowner policy to cover the panels and name the company.
05 / Words you will hear
The jargon, in plain words
- Inverter
- The device that converts the direct current made by the panels into the alternating current used in the home and sent to the grid.
- Micro-generation
- In Alberta, the arrangement under provincial rules that lets small generating systems at homes and farms connect to the grid and receive credit for power they export.
- Net metering
- A billing arrangement used in some provinces where electricity sent to the grid offsets electricity drawn from it. Each province or utility sets its own rules and credits.
- Workmanship warranty
- The installer's commitment to fix problems caused by how the system was installed, such as roof leaks at mounting points, for a stated period.
- Removal and reinstallation
- Taking an array off the roof and putting it back, usually for re-roofing or a roof repair. It is specialized work that carries its own cost.
06 / Common mistakes
What trips people up
- Leaving the building limit where it was before a large system was added to the roof.
- Assuming a long panel warranty will pay for hail damage.
- Putting panels on a roof that will need replacing in a few years without planning for the removal cost.
- Installing a battery without a permit or inspection where the municipality expects one.
- Signing a solar lease without checking who must insure the equipment and against what.
- Forgetting that snow sliding off panels can damage a neighbour's fence or a parked car.
Ready when you are
Turn this into one clear request.
Save it, add what you know, and choose when to send it. A licensed broker who handles home solar panel insurance takes it from there.
07 / Questions people ask
Straight answers
Does home insurance cover solar panels?
Panels attached to the house are commonly treated as part of the building, so a home policy may cover them against the same causes as the roof, such as fire, wind and hail. That works only if the insurer knows about them and the building limit includes their replacement cost. Ground mounts, batteries and leased systems can be handled differently, so ask the broker how each part of your setup is treated.
Will solar panels raise my home insurance?
They can. Adding panels increases what it would cost to rebuild, and a higher building limit usually means a higher premium. Some insurers also ask more questions about the electrical work. The change varies by insurer and by system, so give the broker the installed cost and the permit details and ask what each insurer would need from you.
Are solar panels damaged by hail on the Prairies?
Panels are built and tested to withstand hail up to a certain size, and many come through ordinary storms unharmed. Large hail can still crack the glass, bend frames or break wiring and connectors. After a storm, have the installer inspect the array and check the production data. Before storm season, ask the broker which deductible applies to hail and how panels are valued in a claim.
Is lost net metering credit covered if my panels are damaged?
A home policy is usually not designed to replace credits for electricity you would have exported. Some insurers may treat generation differently, and in many places the credit is a billing arrangement rather than income. In Alberta, small home systems are typically connected under the province's micro-generation rules, which credit power sent to the grid. Ask the broker whether any loss of generation is covered and whether exporting changes how the home is classified.
Who insures a leased solar system?
The lease or power purchase agreement decides. Often the leasing company owns the equipment and either insures it or requires the homeowner to. Some contracts ask to be named on the home policy. Read the sections on ownership, damage and insurance, and give the lease to the broker so the policy and contract neither leave a gap nor cover the same thing twice.
Do I need to tell my insurer about a home battery?
Generally, yes. A battery storage unit is significant electrical equipment, and insurers may ask where it sits, who installed it and whether it was inspected. Batteries in a garage, a utility room or outdoors are viewed differently by different insurers. Bring the product details, the installer's invoice and any permit or inspection record to the broker.
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General information, not insurance advice. Broker.insure is a directory and request service: it is not an insurer and does not quote, bind or advise. Policy terms, availability and what is required where you live depend on your situation and on licensed professionals. Updated 2026-10-31.