It’s Florida, it’s hurricane season and your insurer is taking a good look at the most important thing over your head, and it’s not your favorite baseball cap.
It used to be that a roof needed to be replaced every 20 to 30 years, sometimes even 40 years depending on where you live and the material of your roof. Well, we live in Florida and it’s probably the worst environment for roofs in the country if you’re not including states north of Massachusetts where purchasing a snow broom and a variety of snow shovels are the norm.
To complicate the weather issues, we also have insurance issues which thankfully are starting to work themselves out. After a rising number of homeowners had their insurance policies canceled or their insurers refused to offer them coverage simply due to the age of their roofs, the Florida Legislature implemented new roof requirements for homeowners’ insurance in Florida in May of 2022. It’s not perfect, but the legislation has helped many homeowners.
According to the Tampa Bay Times: “Companies would be blocked from denying coverage because of a roof’s age if the roof is less than 15 years old. And for roofs that are older than 15 years, insurers would have to allow an insurance agent or homeowner to have an inspection on the roof’s condition before refusing coverage. If the inspections show the roof has five or more years of useful life left, the insurance company could not reject coverage simply because of age.”
Essentially, the legislation aimed to improve conditions for both homeowners and insurers. While insurers could no longer drop homeowners simply because of the age of their roof, they also received financial protection to cover their own losses. This reduced the likelihood of unnecessary roof replacements when repairs would be sufficient, lowering homeowner premiums and costs to insurers.
In addition, insurance companies can now offer policies that pay out the actual cash value for roofs over 10 years old rather than the cost of a full replacement. Homeowners can now opt to buy a policy with a stated value limit for roof coverage and lower payments based on a schedule for roofs over 10 years old subject to an inspection.
And while we’re talking inspections, any roof inspection should be performed by a certified roof inspector, not by a contractor who may have an interest in installing a new roof. Inspectors can be found on certification organizations’ websites such as the National Roof Certification & Inspection Association.
A homeowner’s situation with their insurer is one problem facing them today. The other issue is buyers who want to know that they’re buying a secure and preferably new roof so they don’t have any insurance issues. It frequently comes up in negotiations, especially if a potential buyer hires a roof inspector. If you have an older roof, even if you haven’t experienced any leaks, be prepared to get pushback from buyers.
Finally, the type of roof you have is key to longevity. Metal roofs can last for 50 years. Concrete or clay tiles also last up to 50 years. Wood is more vulnerable and even the old standby asphalt shingles are also vulnerable to Florida’s weather. How insurance companies treat roofs that have a long life even if they are over 15 years old is going to be on a case-by-case basis.
Do what you can to keep the most important thing over your head in good shape by keeping up with repairs and adding roof straps or clips. At least you’ll be safer in a storm even if your insurance company isn’t happy.
