The short answer
Usually not. Moss growing on a roof is normally treated by insurers as a maintenance matter, so a claim for damage that moss has caused over time is often refused. Your policy wording decides, so check the booklet and put your question to the insurer in writing before you assume anything. Keeping dated photos, invoices and cleaning records is the best way to show a roof has been looked after.
Why moss damage claims are often turned down, what policies tend to say, and the records worth keeping before you ever need them.
Why moss is treated as a maintenance matter
Home insurance is written to pay for sudden, unexpected events: a storm that strips tiles, a tree through the roof, a burst pipe. Moss does not arrive suddenly. It builds up over seasons, holds water against tiles and fills the gaps between them, and the harm it does is gradual. Insurers tend to class gradual deterioration as something the owner is expected to prevent, in the same group as wear and tear.
That is why a leak that traces back to moss packing a valley or lifting tiles can end with a refusal, even though the water damage inside the house looks like an accident. The insurer may argue that the cause was neglect rather than a sudden event the policy was written for.
This is general background, not a statement about any one company. Policies differ, and some are more generous than others. The only reliable answer sits in your own policy booklet and schedule, under the sections on exclusions, maintenance and gradual damage. We cannot read a policy for you or promise how a claim will go.
Reasons a roof claim gets refused
Refusals follow a pattern. The insurer's surveyor decides the roof was in poor condition before the event, that the damage built up over a long time, or that the owner had not kept it up. Moss, blocked gutters, slipped tiles left unrepaired and cracked flashing are the usual evidence.
A storm claim can fail for the same reason. If tiles blew off a slope that was already loose and mossy, the insurer may say the roof was not sound to begin with. Which? reported in November 2025, citing the financial regulator's figures, that only 32% of storm-related claims made in 2024 resulted in a payout, so it pays to expect questions about the roof's condition.
Photographs taken before the event, even ordinary ones from the garden, help show what the roof looked like the week before. None of this means a claim is hopeless. A genuine storm event, supported by photos of fresh damage and a roofer's report that the roof was otherwise sound, gives the claim a stronger footing. A neglected roof gives the insurer an easy reason to say no.
If a claim is refused and you disagree, ask the insurer for its reasons in writing, then use its complaints process. The Financial Ombudsman Service handles unresolved complaints.
Records that show a roof has been looked after
Good records turn an argument into a short conversation. Keep an invoice and a note of the date every time the roof is cleaned, treated or repaired, and ask for photos of the work. A survey with photographs of the tiles, ridge and gutters, taken before and after, shows the condition on a given day.
Store them together, in a folder or an email you can find later, along with receipts for gutter clearance and any tree work. If you have a clean in your history, you can say the roof was maintained. If you have photos of the same slope over several years, you can show nothing was ignored.
A survey from us comes with pictures of the tiles, ridge and gutters taken that day, and the total price is set once we have seen the roof. File those pictures beside your policy papers, because they date the condition of the roof and give an insurer something concrete to read. Casual snapshots of the roof from the garden, taken on any dry day, add to the record. If the work was a repair after damage, our page on whether moss can cause a roof leak explains how growth and leaks connect.
What to do if moss damage is already there
Start with the damage, not the argument. Stop further water getting in, which for a leaking roof means a temporary repair, and take dated photos of the ceiling, the tiles and the moss before anything is moved. Keep every receipt.
Then read your policy, and tell the insurer promptly if you think a claim might apply. Telling them does not commit you to anything, and an insurer who learns late may use the delay as a reason to refuse. Let them see the evidence before permanent repairs begin, unless the roof cannot be left open.
Cleaning moss off a roof does not need an insurer's approval, and it often prevents the damage from growing. Our pages on roof cleaning cost and the wider roof cleaning and moss removal service explain what the work involves and what sets the price. A written report with photos from your roofer can be passed to the insurer if you decide to make a claim.
More on this in Roof Cleaning & Moss Removal in Crawley
Two more moss and policy questions
Will my insurer pay to remove moss?
Very rarely. Cleaning moss is routine upkeep, and most policies leave routine upkeep to the owner. Some policies cover accidental damage to the roof from a named event, but removing growth is a maintenance cost. Check your wording for the sections on wear and tear and gradual damage, or ask the insurer a direct question in writing.
Should I clean the moss before a storm claim?
Photograph the roof as it is first, then tell your insurer. Let them see the damage and make temporary repairs to stop water getting in. Cleaning before the photos are taken can remove the evidence of what happened. Once the insurer has what it needs, cleaning the rest of the roof is sensible.