Roofing in ChristchurchShaken, wind-blown and mostly dry.
Christchurch roofs carry the history of the 2010 and 2011 earthquakes, take regular punishment from nor'west gales, and go long stretches with little rain before a lot arrives at once. Tell us what's happening with yours and we'll match you with a Christchurch roofer who specialises in that problem, where we have one for your area, or tell you straight away if we don't.
- Find My Roofer certified before they hear about your job
- Matched to a roofer who specialises in your job
- We tell you straight away if we don't have one near you
What's different about roofs in Christchurch
The 2010 and 2011 earthquakes
BRANZ found the most obvious outside damage to Christchurch houses was fallen unreinforced brick chimneys. Sheet and metal tile roofs mostly got off lightly, while heavy tiles in the hill suburbs often slid off their battens because they'd never been tied down, or the ties had rusted. The two big quakes produced more than 360,000 EQC claims, so plenty of roofs still carry repairs from that time.
Nor'westers and spring gales
The warm, dry nor'wester can push summer days past 30 °C. Christchurch averages 52 days a year with gusts over 61 km/h, and the airport's record of 172.4 km/h came from the west-north-west in August 1975. About 35% of strong wind days arrive in spring, so that's a good time to look up for lifted flashings and ridge caps.
Dry most days, then a deluge
The airport averages 618 mm of rain a year over 86 wet days. Then on 4 March 2014, 123 mm fell at Riccarton in one day, and at least 100 homes in Woolston, Richmond, St Albans and Mairehau were flooded that month. Spouting here has to cope with the burst, not the average.
Snow, frost and hail
Snow falls at the airport on about 3 days a year, but the June 2006 storm left roughly 15 cm in the city. There are around 34 frosts a year, and NIWA names Christchurch and Kaikōura as the Canterbury stations with the most hail. A frosty roof is as slippery as a wet one, and hail is hard on skylights and clear roofing.
Sea spray, the estuary and Lyttelton Harbour
Homes within 500 m of the open coast or Lyttelton Harbour, or 100 m of a tidal estuary, sit in exposure Zone D under NZS 3604, the high sea-spray zone. That takes in places like New Brighton, Sumner and the harbour bays. Ask your roofer to confirm your zone before they price steel or fixings.
Villas, mid-century tiles and townhouses
In BRANZ's survey, pre-1930 houses were almost all sheet roofed, while houses from 1930 to 1959 split 29 heavy tile to 32 sheet. The 2023 Census counted 109,887 separate houses and 38,835 joined dwellings. Shared roofs and tall, tight townhouse sites change how a roof job gets planned.
Heritage and character streets
The District Plan had 15 Character Area overlays in 2022, such as Dudley in Richmond and Tainui in Somerfield, and in September 2025 the council approved nine Residential Heritage Areas, Lyttelton and Inner City West among them. If your street is in one, check with the council before changing roofing material or colour.
The roofing jobs Christchurch homeowners ask about
Chimneys come first on older houses. The Natural Hazards Commission says a house built before 1970 most likely has an unreinforced brick or masonry chimney, and suggests taking it out right down to floor level, or swapping the part above the roof for a light metal flue. Removal may need a building consent. Start with chimneys and earthquakes.
Spouting (gutters) comes next, because a sudden heavy fall finds every blocked outlet: see spouting in Christchurch. Leaks after a nor'wester tend to show at flashings, ridges and flues, and 17.55% of homes here still heat with a wood burner: see roof repairs.
Tired tile and iron roofs raise the bigger question of re-roofing. Sound but faded iron can be repainted instead (roof painting), shady slopes may need moss treatment, and a dark hallway might suit a skylight.
After a quake or a big nor'wester
Stay off the roof, and never go up on a wet or frosty one. Look from the ground or through a window. Keep everyone clear of the ground below a cracked or leaning chimney. If a ceiling is sagging, stay out of that room, and if water is near lights or power points, turn the power off at the switchboard.
Quake or storm damage: who pays?
For earthquake damage to the house, you claim through your home insurer, which usually runs the Natural Hazards Commission side as well. Storm and flood damage is different: NHC covers only the land, and the roof falls to your private policy. You have up to two years to lodge a claim, but NHC encourages claiming within three months.
If a roofer uncovers more damage after a claim was settled, NHC says to stop work in that area and contact your claim manager straight away. Our NHC and your roof guide has the detail.
Where we'd start in Christchurch
If there's still an old brick chimney on the roof, we'd deal with that first, because BRANZ found falling chimneys caused most of the damage to sheet and metal tile roofs last time. Next we'd get the spouting cleared before winter, and after any strong nor'wester we'd walk around the house looking up for anything lifted. On a tiled roof in the hill suburbs, we'd ask the roofer to confirm the tiles are actually fixed down.
Want a roofer to take a look?
Tell us the job and your postcode. We match it with a Find My Roofer certified roofer who specialises in that kind of work, and they call you to quote. Your number goes to them alone.
How we fit in
We don't do roofing work. You tell us the job and your suburb, and we send it to one checked local roofer who does that kind of work, if we have one covering your part of Christchurch. If we don't, we'll say so straight away. Our LBP guide shows how to check any roofer whose job needs a licence.
Roofing jobs in Christchurch
Straight answers.
Should I take out my old chimney?
Is my street a heritage or character area?
Ready for a roofer to look at it in Christchurch?
Your postcode and three quick questions. We match you with a local roofer who specialises in your job, and tell you straight away if we don't have one near you.
Helpful next
Where this information comes from
- 15th World Conference on Earthquake Engineering (paper by G. J. Beattie, BRANZ Ltd) The Response of Houses to the Canterbury Earthquake Series 2010-2011, 2012
- Natural Hazards Commission Toka Tū Ake (formerly EQC) EQC Annual Report 2010-2011, 5 October 2011
- NIWA (now Earth Sciences New Zealand) The climate and weather of Canterbury, 2nd edition (Macara, G.R. 2016, NIWA Science and Technology Series 68), 2016
- Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (building.govt.nz) Determination 2019/039: Regarding the exposure zone for building work located near a tidal estuary at 45 John Burke Drive, Aotea, Porirua, 2019
- Figure.NZ (data: Stats NZ, 2023 Census) Types of private dwelling in Christchurch City, New Zealand, 28 October 2026
- Figure.NZ (data: Stats NZ, 2023 Census) Main types of heating used in homes in Christchurch City, New Zealand, 28 October 2026
- Christchurch City Council (Newsline) Character areas protected from housing intensification rules, 13 April 2022
- Christchurch City Council (Newsline) News from the final council meeting of the term, 17 September 2025
- Natural Hazards Commission Toka Tū Ake Chimneys can pose dangerous risk to families: NHC says check your chimney before the next earthquake, 14 October 2025
- Natural Hazards Commission Toka Tū Ake Chimneys remain common hazards on NZ homes, 23 January 2022
- Natural Hazards Commission Toka Tū Ake Guide to natural hazards cover (PDF, June 2024), 28 October 2026
- Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (Kete LBP public register) Practitioner Search (public register of Licensed Building Practitioners), 28 October 2026
Every fact and rule on this page comes from the sources above, checked on the dates shown. How we write and check these pages.