THE SHORT ANSWER
Snow and ice on a roof can lead to three different kinds of damage: snow or icicles that fall and hit someone, a roof that gives way under the weight of snow, and meltwater that gets in. Each case follows its own rules, and insurance treats them differently.
Under the Public Order Act, the owner is responsible for removing snow and ice that could fall onto a public place. If the roof of the dwelling collapses under snow load, Konsumenternas says house insurance usually covers it. This guide shows where to read what applies to a house, a holiday home and a tenant-owned apartment. [1][3]
Keep these points in mind
- The owner must remove snow and ice that could fall onto a public place.
- Snow load on the roof of the dwelling is usually covered, but not porch roofs or garages.
- A claim for damages from someone who was injured is handled by liability cover.
STEP BY STEP
How to check your cover
Find out who the owner is and what the law requires
Under the Public Order Act, snow and ice that could fall and injure people or damage property in a public place must be removed from roofs, gutters and similar structures without undue delay. The duty rests on the owner, or on whoever stands in the owner's place through a lease or on another basis. Anyone who breaks the rule intentionally or through carelessness can be fined.
The Act defines a public place as including public roads, streets, squares and parks, and other areas used for public traffic. Boverket, the Swedish building authority, writes that the building rules require protection against falling ice and snow at the entrances of new buildings where there is a particular risk of injury, and that these rules can be seen as a complement to the Public Order Act.
[1][2]Read what liability cover does if someone is hurt
If someone or something is hit by snow or ice from your roof, the person affected can claim damages from you. Liability cover is the part to read. According to Konsumenternas, the insurer investigates whether you caused the damage through negligence and represents you against the injured party. If you are found negligent, the insurer pays the injured party and you pay the excess; if not, the insurer helps you dispute the claim.
Read in which role the cover applies. In one insurer's pre-purchase information for house insurance from October 2025, liability cover applies to you as owner of the insured property, up to 5 000 000 kronor with an excess of 1 800 kronor. In another insurer's holiday home terms, the insurer is not bound if you admit liability or pay without its permission. Read more in the guide to liability and legal expenses cover.
[5][6][7]Check what the terms say about snow load
According to Konsumenternas, house insurance as a rule always covers the load-bearing structure of the roof of the dwelling collapsing under the weight of snow. In most policies it must be the roof's load-bearing structure, such as a roof truss, that has broken. Some insurers also pay for other snow load damage to the load-bearing structure, and then the roof does not need to have collapsed completely.
Damage to roofs over decks and conservatories is not covered, and neither is snow load damage to other buildings such as garages and outbuildings. The terms also have their own exclusions. In the pre-purchase information above, damage from snow sliding off the roof is not covered, nor is damage if the roof structure was not built to the building standards and snow zone that applied.
[3][4][6]If you own a holiday home: read the cover level and exclusions
According to Konsumenternas, most but not all holiday home policies have similar cover for snow load. In the holiday home terms above, from December 2025, snow load is included only in the most comprehensive level, and the cover applies when the outer roof of the holiday home collapses. Roofs over a porch, deck, balcony or conservatory are excluded.
The same terms exclude damage from snow that slides along or falls from the roof. Under the terms, the property must also be maintained, looked after and checked at least once a quarter. How house and holiday home insurance is built up is described in the guide to house and holiday home insurance.
[4][7]
Meltwater leaking in through the roof
When snow and ice melt, water can get in through the roof. According to Konsumenternas, house insurance normally does not pay for damage from water that runs into the house through the roof, the facade or the drainage. That is a different kind of event from water escaping unexpectedly from the pipes inside the house.
Extended policies may pay something. In the holiday home terms above, water that has unexpectedly entered through the outer roof or facade is paid for up to 20 000 kronor in the most comprehensive level. The roof itself is not paid for, and neither are leaks through roofs older than 30 years.
[3][7]Is your home a tenant-owned apartment?
Under the Tenant-Owner Housing Act, a housing cooperative grants apartments in the cooperative's building. The cooperative therefore owns the building, and the duty under the Public Order Act to deal with snow and ice on the roof rests on the owner. The cooperative must also keep the building in good condition, to the extent that the duty does not rest on the apartment holder.
Under the same Act, you are responsible for keeping the apartment in good condition, unless the cooperative's statutes say otherwise. If damage occurs inside the apartment, for example from water that has leaked in, read the statutes and contact the cooperative. How responsibility is shared after water damage is described in the guide to water damage in a tenant-owned apartment, and your own supplement in the guide to the tenant-owner supplement.
[8][1]Read liability and snow load in your own documents
Keep the policy documents and terms for your house or holiday home in My Forsio. You then have the liability cover, the snow load section and the exclusions in one place, and each detail shows the passage it came from. If the terms are missing from your documents, the cover is shown as Not verified, not as confirmed absent.
Forsio does not decide who is liable for damages, whether a roof gave way under snow load or whether damage is paid for. The insurer decides that, and in a dispute a court. Forsio is not an insurance intermediary and does not provide insurance advice.
Fictional example
Snow on the roof, three different questions.
Alex owns a house next to a pavement and reads the insurance after a snowy week.
- Snow load on the roof of the dwelling
- Included in the terms
- Maximum amount for liability cover
- Not verifiedThe amount is not shown in the documents.
- Snow load on the detached garage
- Not includedPotential gapOther buildings are excluded in the terms.
The roof of the dwelling is covered. The liability amount needs confirming, and the garage has no snow load cover in these documents.
Common questions
Who is responsible for snow and icicles falling from the roof?
The owner of the building, or whoever stands in the owner's place through a lease or on another basis. Under the Public Order Act, snow and ice that could fall and injure people or damage property in a public place must be removed from roofs and gutters without undue delay. In a housing cooperative, the cooperative owns the building. [1][8]
Does house insurance pay if the roof collapses under snow?
As a rule, if it is the roof of the dwelling. According to Konsumenternas, house insurance as a rule always covers the load-bearing structure of the roof of the dwelling collapsing under snow load. Roofs over decks and conservatories, and other buildings such as garages and outbuildings, are not covered. The terms may also exclude roofs not built to the building standards and snow zone that applied. [3][4][6]
What happens if snow from my roof injures someone?
The injured person can claim damages from you. Report the claim to the insurer. According to Konsumenternas, the insurer investigates whether you were negligent and represents you. If you are found liable, the insurer pays the injured party and you pay the excess; if not, the insurer helps you dispute the claim. [5]
Do I need to clear snow from the roof?
The Public Order Act requires snow and ice that could fall onto a public place to be removed. For the roof itself, Boverket writes that there is no reason to clear it because of a risk of collapse if the roof was designed, built and maintained correctly. This applies particularly to small houses, where the risk of damage from clearing snow is often higher. If clearing becomes necessary, Boverket writes that it is best done following a clearing plan. [1][2]
Is water damage from meltwater leaking through the roof covered?
Normally not under the basic cover. According to Konsumenternas, house insurance normally does not pay for water that runs in through the roof, the facade or the drainage. In one insurer's holiday home terms, such leaks are paid for up to 20 000 kronor in the most comprehensive level, but the roof itself is not. [3][7]
Is damage covered when snow slides off the roof?
Not under the snow load section. In one insurer's pre-purchase information for house insurance, damage from snow sliding off the roof is not covered, and in another insurer's holiday home terms, damage from snow that slides along or falls from the roof is excluded. Whether another section or another policy applies, for example for a car, is stated in that policy. [6][7]
MY FORSIO
See what your insurance says about snow and roofs.
Keep the policy documents and terms for your house or holiday home in My Forsio. Read liability cover, snow load and exclusions with the passage each detail came from. Free for individuals.
Sources and references
Sources checked
This guide explains general principles of Swedish insurance. Your policy schedule and terms set out what applies to you.
- Swedish Parliament: Public Order Act (1993:1617), Chapter 1, Section 2 and Chapter 3, Sections 3 and 22
- Boverket: roof safety, clearing snow and protection against falling ice and snow
- Konsumenternas: natural damage and snow load in house insurance
- Konsumenternas: compensation for damage caused by snow load (February 2019)
- Konsumenternas: liability cover in home insurance
- An insurer's pre-purchase information for house insurance, October 2025
- An insurer's holiday home insurance terms, December 2025
- Swedish Parliament: Tenant-Owner Housing Act (1991:614), Chapter 1, Section 1 and Chapter 7, Sections 4 and 12