Many shingle manufacturers produce an impact-resistant shingle product. These are rated as Class 1 – Class 4, depending on the size of impact it is designed to resist, with Class 4 being the greatest impact-resistant shingle. A Class 4 shingle is made to resist a 2” hail strike without breaking or cracking the shingle mat on the bottom of the shingle.
A Class 4 shingle is an upgraded product, so it costs more than the standard shingle you may put on your roof. If you're replacing your roof through an insurance claim, this upgrade cost would be in addition to your deductible payment that you would have to make.
So, why would you want to install a more expensive shingle? Because most insurance companies will give you a pretty hefty discount on your insurance rates for having this on your roof. Some companies give up to a 40% discount for having a Class 4 shingle, while an average discount is in the 24% - 28% range. The typical time to pay back your investment in a Class 4 roof is about 3 ½ to 5 years. Then your discount keeps paying after that! We've even seen some clients get such a huge discount on their Class 4 roof, that their pay-back time was as short as 2 years.
In addition to getting a nice discount on your insurance rates, you also should have fewer claims for hail damage, thereby saving you from submitting multiple claims and paying your deductible multiple times.
The Class 4 product that we use and recommend is the CertainTeed Northgate. This is an SBS Modified asphalt shingle which is rubberized! This allows more “flexibility so the shingles resist cracking even in extreme cold weather.” This allows us to install these year-round here in Colorado Springs. It's definitely one of the better shingle products on the market.
All around, the Class 4, Impact-Resistant shingles are the best deal in any area which gets pounded by hail every year.