Deferred repairs pose $317bn threat to insurers

August 7, 2025

A new study from ZestyAI has found that over 60% of U.S. homeowners are postponing critical home maintenance, potentially exposing insurers to an eye-watering $317bn in claims.

In 2024, Severe Convective Storms (SCS)—which include tornadoes, hail and wind events—caused $58bn in insured losses, overtaking hurricane damages and making it the second-most expensive SCS year in US history, ZestyAI stated. These storms now account for more than 60% of all catastrophe-related claims across the country, it added.

Data from the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) further reveals that roof damage alone can represent up to 90% of residential catastrophe-related losses.

ZestyAI’s survey of 517 U.S. homeowners living in single-family homes, conducted in March 2025, found that 62% had deferred necessary maintenance due to budget concerns. That figure translates to roughly 59 million homes with known vulnerabilities. Worryingly, 40% of respondents said they would depend on an insurance payout for major repairs such as roof replacements, raising the total exposure for carriers to an estimated $317bn.

Knowledge gaps are compounding the issue. Among those surveyed, 63% of homeowners who were not living in their home during the last roof replacement admitted they did not know how old the roof was—leaving insurers and policyholders alike unable to detect structural vulnerabilities before disaster strikes. Additionally, 12% of homeowners acknowledged they would put off repairs indefinitely, further increasing the likelihood of loss.

ZestyAI’s past analysis has identified more than 12.6 million properties across the U.S. that are highly susceptible to hail-related roof damage. The estimated cost of replacing these roofs sits at $189.5bn, underlining the scale of the issue and the urgent need for mitigation.

ZestyAI co-founder and chief product officer Kumar Dhuvur said, “Deferred maintenance has long been a known risk factor, but today the stakes are higher than ever.

“With claim severity rising and storm losses compounding, insurers need more than hazard maps to navigate this landscape. Property-level insights allow carriers to proactively address known vulnerabilities, improve underwriting precision, and work with homeowners to reduce losses before they happen.”

ZestyAI, a leading provider of AI-powered property risk analytics, continues to play a pivotal role in equipping insurers with the tools needed to assess and manage risks from climate-driven and structural threats. The company’s models are based on climate science and historical claims data, and are used widely by property and casualty insurers and regulators throughout the U.S.