Insurance companies offer a hefty discount to homes with upgraded hurricane ties. This discount is generally 25-35%, and sometimes up to 50%.
For a realistic example, if you pay $3,000 for your yearly insurance premium, a hurricane strap retrofit can lower your premium to $2,000 per year… Making a $1,000 per year savings.
That’s every year from now on. A $1,000 savings per year is $10,000 per decade. Imagine that! Your investment would only be about $1,400 to perform a third nail retrofit.
If you live on the Space Coast in a city that ends with the word “Beach” or “Island” then it is possible for you to save $3,600 or more per year in a 1600 square foot house! Some of these retrofits require new single wrap straps and would cost about $4,500… for a savings that accumulates to over $36,000 per decade.
How Do I Get Started?
We start by inspecting your current roof-to-wall connections to determine what level of upgrades is possible and/or practical. At the same time, you contact your insurance agent and ask them how much money you would save from upgrading your hurricane straps. They should be able to give you a dollar amount for all levels of upgrades. If you want to learn more about the different levels of upgrades, please read the rest of this page or give us a call.
Your agent can also send you a copy of your last wind mitigation inspection report (Form 1802), if you do not already have a copy. This inspection must be performed every 5 years by a qualified home inspector for any insurance discounts to apply. It contains photos and a grade for your existing roof-to-wall attachments.
We perform this inspection upon completion of our retrofit so your new discount can be applied immediately. No pressure, but realize, you are losing over $300 a month if you are living near the coast and paying a non-discounted price for your insurance. Even if you live inland, you are possibly losing $100 per month. That is free money that could be going into your pocket.
We cannot give you an exact estimate until you call us and we perform an inspection, although a typical hurricane retrofit costs about the same as six months of your homeowners insurance. Then you save about 35% off your insurance premium ever year thereafter. This is typical, but not guaranteed. Call us at (321) 307-7320 to find get an exact quote.
How Do I Report the Upgrade?
After receiving a hurricane retrofit, we conduct a free wind mitigation inspection. This inspection report will go to your insurance agent and trigger your discount.
Wind mitigation inspections include a section for logging the status of your roof-to-wall connections. Here’s what it looks like:
On Form 1802 (see above): Take a look specifically on page 2, #4 Roof-to-Wall Attachment:
Click here to view or download a blank Wind Mitigation Report (form 1802)
Unless you live in a concrete structure such as a condo or apartment, your possibilities of roof-to-wall Attachments are:
A: Toe Nails B: Clips C: Single wraps D: Double Wraps
The best level for both the security of your home and your insurance costs is Level D: Double Wraps.
The weakest and lowest level is Level A, referred to as Toe Nails. These are minimal anchors between the roof and wall. If your home was built prior to 1962, and a hurricane strap retrofit was never performed, your home is probably at Level A roof-to-wall connections.
Levels B, C and D represent increasing levels of protection. Insurance companies consider coastal cities at greater risk of wind damage, so you stand to save even more money if you own a house closer to the coast.
Level B: Clips have been the FBC – Florida Building Code requirements since 2002, but for clips to be rated as level B, they must be secured to the truss with a minimum of 3 nails. Otherwise, clips (and even straps) will be rated as Level A (lowest rating) and insurance companies will not allow a discount.
Level C: Single Wrap Straps: These straps wrap over the truss and have a minimum of 2 nails on the front side and 1 nail on the back side.
Level D: Double Wrap Straps: These are either 2 single wraps, or one wrap that goes over the truss and is secured to the wall on both sides. These must have a minimum of 3 nails on each side.
Levels E and F do not apply to standard, single-family houses with wood trusses.
During our initial free inspection, we will determine what level of upgrades we can perform and calculate how much it will cost to perform the upgrade. We can work with the insurance company to save you the most money. Your agent can confirm how much you will save for each level – B, C, or D. Then we will do what makes the most sense… and the most cents!
