How A Wind Mitigation Inspection Saves You Money
The state of Florida was one of the first in the nation to require insurance companies to provide discounts for individuals who secure their home against wind damage. These savings are realized in the form of “wind mitigation credits” that are applied to your account depending on what safety features your home has.
Of course, it’s required that you actually prove that your home has these features and that’s the main purpose of a wind mitigation inspection. Not just anyone can perform these inspections, in order to qualify for credits the inspection must be performed by someone licensed and insured in the state of Florida.
Unlike home inspections wind mitigation inspections are not required by insurance companies, so you could be missing out on savings without even knowing it. Typically you can expect to save enough to at least cover the cost of this inspection during your first year, so there’s really no harm in having one performed.
What Will Your Inspector Look For?
During your inspection the inspector will check out a few key areas including the roof, the walls, and the openings.
When inspecting the roof they will look for the following things:
- How old is the roof? In Florida, building code standards received a major update in the early 2000s thanks to Hurricane Andrew. If your home was constructed more recently it’s likely that your roof is pretty sturdy.
- How is your roof attached? Nails were the standard for a while but these days the most sturdy roofs are attached with clips or hurricane straps. If your roof has these clips or hurricane straps it could lead to savings on your homeowners insurance.
- What is the shape of your roof? If your roof is a hip roof it’s likely that you’ll end up saving some money.
When checking out the walls the main thing your inspector will look at is the construction type. Steel reinforced concrete fares much better against wind than your traditional wood frame homes.
The final thing your inspector will check out are the windows and doors, including your garage door if you have one. Features like hurricane shutters, door braces, and flood barriers are the big money savers here.
Whether it’s hurricane season or not, a wind mitigation inspection could result in savings on your homeowners insurance. At Super Inspection Pros. we’ve been performing wind mitigation inspections in Central Florida for decades, so we know exactly what to look for to get you the best savings. Please contact us today to set up an appointment or to learn more about our wind mitigation inspections.
