Hailstorms are often overlooked as a serious peril risk but the catastrophe that hit Brisbane last October has again demonstrated just how costly and destructive these weather hazards can be, according to Axa XL.

The Brisbane storm led to insured losses of $1.3 billion as large hail stones rained down on tiled roofs and cars in the city and its surrounding areas.

And months before the Brisbane hail disaster, a series of hailstorms struck parts of Victoria, the ACT, NSW and Queensland in January, costing the insurance industry some $1.66 billion in payouts from 130,982 claims lodged.

Axa XL Risk Consulting Property Manager Terry Behan believes the risk posed by hailstorm goes under the radar because of its low fatality rate and localised impact in terms of damage caused.

“Hail may not get as much attention as other natural perils, but it is hardly a new or novel risk,” Mr Behan said. “For instance, hail insurance was the first type of crop insurance to be offered more than a century ago and is now a well-established market in many countries worldwide.”

Coping with hailstorms can be challenging because of the difficulty of forecasting such events, Mr Behan says. However, researchers in the US have created models for predicting hailstorms up to three weeks before they occur, using previous work focused on tornadoes.

While these models are currently less helpful in pinpointing the exact locations and extents of hail swaths that far in advance, it will improve as more data is collected. This should help improve understanding about the dynamics of hailstorms.

Mr Behan says eventually “researchers expect to be able to determine where hailstorms are likely to strike at least several hours to more than a day in advance”.

“Although that is a small window, it could still make a big difference in limiting losses to high-value crops like fruits and berries (including vineyards) or expensive vehicles clustered together at car dealerships,” he said.