The short answer
Keep people away from the fallen tiles, photograph what you can from the ground and look indoors for any sign of water. Ring a roofer for a make-safe if the underlay is exposed, and tell your insurer early if you may claim. Missing tiles should be replaced quickly, because water, wind and birds turn a small gap into a much bigger repair.
First, make sure everyone is safe
Tiles that have blown off usually land somewhere: the drive, the garden, a neighbour's car or the pavement. Broken pieces are sharp and heavy enough to injure. Pick nothing up barefoot, keep children and pets indoors until the area is cleared, and use gloves for any fragments you have to move.
Do not stand directly below the damaged slope. Neighbouring tiles may be loose, and a second gust can bring more down. If tiles have fallen onto a public footpath, put something visible there to warn passers-by, and call a roofer without delay.
Stay off the roof and off ladders. Tiles that look secure can slide when you step near them, and a wet surface gives no grip. Everything useful can be done from the ground at this stage, including checking whether a chimney pot or ridge piece has shifted. Our page on a roof leak near electrics covers what to do if water has reached lights, sockets or the consumer unit.
Photograph and look for signs of water
Take wide and close pictures of the slope from the garden, of the tiles on the ground and of anything else the same gust damaged. Write down when it happened and what the weather was doing. Photographs taken now carry weight if you decide to claim, because the gap will be covered or repaired within days.
Then look inside. Check the ceilings below the damaged area for stains or a sagging patch, and put your head through the loft hatch with a torch to check for daylight, wet insulation or drips. Do not step between the joists. If a ceiling is bulging with trapped water, our page on a ceiling bulging with water explains why it needs careful handling.
Place a bucket or a bowl under any drip and move furniture away. A towel on the floor around it stops the spread.
Why missing tiles should not be left
Tiles do more than keep off the rain. They hold down the underlay and shelter the battens, and each one helps carry load across the slope. Once a tile goes, the felt or membrane beneath takes the weather directly. Underlay is made to cope with a little moisture that slips past, not to be the main waterproof layer for weeks.
Wind catches the exposed underlay and lifts it, tearing it and working loose the tiles around the gap. Rain runs onto the battens, which swell and begin to rot. Birds and squirrels also enter through open gaps. What began as two missing tiles can grow into a section that needs stripping and relaying, with new battens as well.
It is also worth asking why the tiles went. Rusted nails, brittle clips, worn nibs or earlier repairs done carelessly are common reasons. A roofer looking at the slope can see whether the wind exposed an old weakness, and that finding affects both the repair and any insurance discussion.
Temporary cover, and the insurer
If rain is forecast, a temporary make-safe is sensible. That may mean replacing a few tiles with spares, fitting a strip of sheeting under the adjoining courses or covering the area with a heavy-duty sheet secured to battens. That only holds the position, so the lasting repair has to come next.
If you may claim, ring your insurer before you commission anything beyond that make-safe, keep every receipt and photograph the area before and after. Many insurers measure a storm against gusts of 55mph or more, a point Which? reported in November 2025, and our page on what counts as a storm for insurance explains it. We cannot say whether a particular claim will be paid.
How the repair is done
Replacing blown tiles starts with matching them. Concrete interlocking tiles are easier to match than weathered clay or old plain tiles, and a roofer may take spares from a hidden part of the roof if a match is hard to find. Slates are replaced individually, either by sliding in a new one held by a tingle, which is a narrow strip of copper or lead, or by refixing the surrounding slates.
The roofer also checks the underlay, battens and fixings around the gap. Damaged felt is cut back and patched, rotten battens are replaced and the neighbouring tiles are refixed with new nails or clips. If a ridge or hip tile has gone, the replacement needs a proper mechanical fixing under BS 5534:2014, with the mortar there for the finish.
Where the gap is a sign of widespread failure, a roofer should say so plainly and show you the photographs. Our advice is to repair what has failed and nothing more, rather than sell a larger scheme. Our page on what to do about a roof leak sets out the first steps if water is already coming in.
Booking us for the work
When water is getting in, we deal with the roof ahead of routine work, starting by stopping any further damage. The survey follows, along with photographs of your slope, and a written quote comes after that for the repair. We tidy up and take our rubbish with us, and the finished repair is covered by a 10-year workmanship guarantee.
Our number is 01793 626096, and WhatsApp or the website form will reach us as well. The emergency roof repairs page has more about how urgent calls are handled.