Key Challenges for the Region:
Extreme Hail Severity: Texas regularly experiences high-intensity hailstorms, with large hailstones capable of causing catastrophic damage to solar infrastructure.
Rising Insurance Pressure: Growing concerns around the insurability of renewable energy assets have reduced available capacity and driven insurance rates higher across the state.
Operational and Financial Impact: Severe hail events can result in major physical damage, operational disruptions, and prolonged revenue loss for large-scale solar farms.
Key benefits of parametric insurance
Transparent Terms
Policies are built on measurable triggers—like rainfall or temperature—so clients and their brokers know exactly when payouts occur. No fine print, no ambiguity.
Fast, Predictable Payouts
Once a triggering event occurs, payment is issued quickly and automatically—no need for on-site assessments or lengthy claims processes.
Customized Coverage
We work closely with brokers to build each policy around the client’s specific risk and budget profile, providing protection where traditional insurance often cannot.
Flexible Use of Funds
Payouts are based on the severity of natural events occurring, not solely on proven losses, giving clients immediate access to funds and empowering them to cover any type of financial loss, not just for physical damage.
Hailstorms are one of the most damaging perils for solar energy assets, with large hailstones capable of shattering panels and rapidly reducing generation capacity.
Descartes’ Parametric Hail Insurance: Data-Driven Protection for Renewable Energy Assets
Descartes’ parametric hail insurance provides fast, transparent protection based on objective hail metrics such as maximum hail size and the percentage of area impacted. By relying on predefined triggers and third-party data, the solution enables immediate payouts without on-site loss adjustment. This approach delivers rapid liquidity to support recovery following severe hail events.
case study example
Parametric Hail Solution for Solar Farms in Texas
In March of 2024, a severe hailstorm struck the Fighting Jays Solar Farm near Houston, Texas. Baseball-sized hail caused catastrophic damage to the site, shattering thousands of solar panels and significantly reducing production capacity. This event increased insurers’ concerns about the insurability of renewable energy assets against extreme weather events. Available capacity subsequently diminished, and insurance premiums increased.
Problem
The owners of Fighting Jays faced a significant protection gap. The insurance program they had in place had a $50 million sub-limit for hail damage. This meant that although the actual damage likely exceeded $50 million, the insurance payout was capped at that amount, leaving them to cover the remaining balance. It’s also unlikely that they had enough insurance in place to cover all the revenue they lost due to the site’s decreased production capacity.
Solution
Descartes’ parametric hail solution would have measured the precise impact of this hail event thanks to advanced radar data, ultimately providing Fighting Jays with: • Much-needed excess coverage for hail damage • Rapid liquidity to accelerate the rebuilding process • Coverage of all financial losses, including BI and NDBI
Result
If the payout structure to the right had been in place in March of 2024 with a limit of $40 million, Fighting Jays would have received $26 million in liquidity to accelerate their recovery.
Contact Us
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