JULY 15, 2023CALGARY HAILSTORM
South-central Calgary
- INSURED LOSS
- OVER $110 MILLION
- HAIL
- UP TO GOLF BALL, AS REPORTED BY RESIDENTS
What happened on July 15, 2023
On the evening of Saturday, July 15, 2023, a hailstorm developed over the western part of Calgary and swept south, dropping hail on neighbourhoods in the city's south centre and breaking part of the ceiling at Chinook Centre mall. IBC reports over $110 million in insured damage.
Environment Canada told CBC the storm developed over the west of the city and moved south. Residents reported golf-ball hail in Riverbend and Marda Loop, and Global News also named Heritage Meadows.
IBC published the figure in September 2023 as part of a summer that cost over $300 million across Alberta and the Prairies. No revised estimate has been published.
July 15, 2023, in figures.
- South-central Calgary[1]
- Saturday evening[2]
- Up to golf ball, as reported by residents[2]
- over $110 million (estimate as of September 2023)[1]
- [1]IBC, September 2023: Summer storms in Alberta and Prairies cause over $300 million in insured losses
- [2]CBC News, July 17, 2023: Calgary weekend hailstorm
- [3]Global News, July 16, 2023: Calgary hailstorm, July 15
Every figure on this page comes from the published sources above, not from us. Last checked against them on October 11, 2026. Insured-loss estimates are revised after a storm, sometimes for years, so treat any figure as an estimate.
What it means for your roof today
Hail damage can sit on a roof for years without a leak. A bruise can look like nothing from the street, and the longer it waits the harder it is to tell from ordinary wear. If you were in the area on July 15, 2023 and nobody has looked at your roof since, have it checked and keep the date with your notes.
In Alberta, the statutory conditions in a home policy require prompt written notice of a loss, and a court action over a property claim generally has to start within 2 years of when you knew or ought to have known about the damage. Your policy may set other time limits, such as a deadline to claim depreciation. That's general information, not legal advice: your policy wording governs, and your insurer or a lawyer can tell you where you stand.
Check your hail or wind deductible on your declarations page before you file. Filing is your decision. We inspect, photograph every slope and write the damage up against the storm date; you and your insurer handle the claim.
Signs of hail damage
The Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) lists these as the signs of hail on an asphalt shingle roof, and the metal on the house usually backs them up:
- A random pattern of marks across a slope, not a line or one cluster.
- Bruises: soft spots you can feel when pressing on the shingle, where the mat under the granules has fractured.
- Cracked or broken shingles, especially along the ridge caps.
- Dents on the metal: the top of the eavestrough, vent caps, fence caps and the air conditioner, on the side the storm came from.
- Chips, cracks or holes in siding and window screens, which often show before anything on the roof does.
Look from the ground, not from a ladder. What it looks like in photos is on our hail damage guide.
STRAIGHT ANSWERS.
Is it too late to claim damage from the July 15, 2023 storm?
It depends on your policy and on when you found the damage. Alberta's statutory conditions require prompt written notice of a loss, and a court action over a property claim generally has to start within 2 years of when you knew or ought to have known about the damage. If you've only just found damage from this storm, report it now and ask your insurer what it needs. This is general information, not legal advice.
How do I show the damage came from this storm and not from age?
Hail leaves a recognisable pattern: random impacts, granule loss at the strike points and bruising you can feel, plus dents on the soft metals, which reads differently from even weathering. A report that photographs that pattern slope by slope, with scale references, and reasons from it to a dated storm is what ties damage to a date of loss. An assertion without that reasoning is not documentation.
My roof was replaced after this storm. Should I still get it looked at?
It can be worth it. Vents, flashing, skylights, eavestrough and siding take hail on their own, and they can be left out of a roof-only scope. If anything on the house wasn't replaced, it's worth a look.
WAS YOUR ROOFIN ONE OF THESE?
Tell us the storm date and your address. We'll document what's actually on the roof.