The theoretical problem of the electric response of biased dielectrics and piezoelectrics subjected to planar stress pulse loading is considered. The materials are taken to exhibit dielectric relaxation in the sense that changes in the polarization induced by electric fields do not occur instantaneously with changes in the fields. While this paper considers arbitrary stress pulse loading of the specimen, examples that are amenable to projectile impact techniques are considered in detail. They are shock reverberation, thin pulse, and ramp loading experiments. It is anticipated that these experiments will play a role in investigations of dielectric relaxation caused by shock induced damage in insulators.