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Frequently
Asked Questions on PROTECH Wind Certification Service
1.
Why are insurance companies offering discounts?
2.
What construction features qualify for discounts?
3.
What is the value of the Insurance Discounts?
4.
What is PROTECH's Wind Certification Service?
5.
How is a Wind Certification Survey Conducted?
6.
How much is a Wind Certification Survey?
7.
How to order a Wind Certification Survey?
The state legislation
adopted provisions for a new statewide building code (the
2001 Florida Building Code), which became effective on March
1, 2002. The same legislation included a requirement for insurance
companies to provide property insurance discounts for homes
that have construction features that reduce the losses in
windstorms. Each insurance company was required to submit
new rates by February 28, 2003 and include discounts for wind
damage reduction (mitigation) construction features.
The discounts are justified
because stronger, more wind-resistive houses have lower windstorm
losses, and lower windstorm losses means reduced costs to
insurance companies. The insurance discounts provide some
financial incentives for homeowners to strengthen their existing
homes and for new construction to be built to the strongest
options in the Florida Building Code.
These new insurance rate discounts in Florida begin to take
place in 2003. They apply to both existing construction (houses
built prior to 2002) and new construction built to the new
statewide Florida Building Code (FBC).
To qualify for these discounts,
most insurance companies require a certification of the key
construction features.
The following figure shows
typical features that reduce wind damage. Over 90% of existing
houses have one or more of these wind resistive construction
features and may qualify for some insurance discounts. In
addition, houses built after 1994 in Miami-Dade or Broward
Counties and houses built after 2002 in the rest of the state
generally have many wind resistive construction features and
will likely qualify for significant credits.
The following items are building features
that reduce wind damage for which many insurance companies
offer wind premium discounts. To learn more about each of
these categories, click on the highlighted portion of the
text.
1. Roof coverings, such
as shingles that meet the FBC Requirements.
2. Roof decks that have been installed with large nails and
close spacing.
3. Hurricane clips/straps that hold the roof structure to
the walls.
4. Protection of Openings such as windows and glass doors
with impact resistant glazing or other protection systems.
5. Secondary Water Resistance that prevents the roof from
leaking if the roof covering is blown off in a windstorm.
6. Newly Constructed Homes built to the Florida Building Code
since March 1, 2002
7. Homes built to the South Florida Building Code in Miami-Dade
and Broward Counties after 1994.
Please note that insurance
companies may have more features that qualify for credits
such as doors and gable end bracing.
See our Retrofit Options document for more information on
how to add these features to your home.
The dollar value of
the discounts depends on three primary factors.
1. The number of wind resistive
construction features present on your home - Some individual
features may qualify for 10% discount and others only a few
percent. The more wind resistive features you have, the higher
total discount will be. The discounts can be as high as 30%
or more of the wind portion of the insurance premium. (The
portion of your premium that is for wind losses is provided
on your policy declaration page).
2. The location of your home-Wind
insurance rates vary by location within the state. If your
wind insurance rates are high, then the percentage discounts
will result in more dollars for a house in a high rate area
versus the same house in a lower rate area.
3. The value of your home-
Discounts are calculated as a percentage of the wind premium
for your specific home. High value homes have higher premiums,
hence, the dollar value of the discounts will increase as
the value of the home increases.
Contact your insurance
agent or company to determine the potential value of the discounts
for your house.
PROTECH has established
a service to perform the detailed surveys to qualify a home
for wind insurance discounts. PROTECH has a network of trained
property surveyors that perform these detailed surveys throughout
the state of Florida. Upon receiving a request for a Wind
Certification, PROTECH assigns the request to one of our local
trained surveyors. The surveyor will contact the homeowner
to arrange a time to perform the wind certification survey.
(The homeowner needs to be present at the time of the survey
since attic access is required for part of the survey.) The
survey generally takes less than 1 hour. The survey will be
completed and you will receive a detailed report of the results
to provide to your insurance company. Your insurance company
can then determine the amount of discount for your home.
PROTECH is the leader in performing
detailed evaluations of buildings for wind mitigation construction
features. PROTECH has developed detailed inspection methods for
the State of Florida's Residential Construction Mitigation
Program and has performed insurance wind mitigation inspections
since 2000.
After you submit an order,
we will assign the order to one of our local property surveyors.
The local surveyor will call you to set up a convenient appointment
time.
At the scheduled time,
the surveyor will arrive on site and complete the survey.
As part of the survey, the surveyor will also conduct a survey
of the attic and use a device to identify the roof deck attachment
pattern, framing details, and roof-wall connection.
The results of the survey
are forwarded to our main office for processing, where two
items are produced:
-
A report for the home owner summarizing
the results of the survey.
-
Completed forms for you to submit to
your insurance company to qualify your home for insurance
discounts for any of the wind resistance features that
are on your home.
Typically, it is the homeowner
responsibility to forward these papers to their agent or company
(unless you sign a release allowing us to transmit the results
directly to your company - Note that this service is not available
for all insurance companies.)
For houses with less than
5000 square feet (under roof), the cost of a survey is $150.
The cost increases for larger houses.
Living Space of Building
Cost
0 - 4999 square feet
$150
5000 - 9999 square feet
$225
10000 square feet and more
$300
The surveyor will verify
square footage to confirm fee. Please note our cancellation
policy.
There are two ways to
order a Wind Certification Survey.
1. Internet request with
credit card payment, click here.
2. Call 1-561-395-5539 to place an order and pay by credit
card.
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