Wind mitigation and your new roof: discounts and the My Safe Florida Home program
What the OIR-B1-1802 form records, which roof features earn insurance credits, and how state grants have worked.
A roof replacement is the cheapest moment to make a Florida house more resistant to wind — and, because of the state's mitigation discount rules, those upgrades can lower your windstorm premium for years. This guide explains the inspection, the features that count, and the state grant program.
The wind mitigation inspection
Florida insurers use a standard form, the Uniform Mitigation Verification Inspection Form (OIR-B1-1802), to record a home's wind-resistant features. The Office of Insurance Regulation revised the form effective April 1, 2026. A completed form is valid for up to five years as long as the house isn't materially changed and no inaccuracies are found.
Under s. 627.0629, Florida Statutes, residential property insurers must offer discounts, credits or other rate differentials for features shown to reduce wind loss, and must describe those discounts on their websites. The size of the credit varies by insurer and by house, so ask your agent for the specific discounts on your policy.
What the form records about the roof
- Building code — whether the house was built to the 2001 Florida Building Code or later.
- Roof covering — whether the covering meets the Florida Building Code, with product approval and permit dates.
- Roof-deck attachment — the nail size and spacing holding the roof deck to the trusses.
- Roof-to-wall attachment — toe nails, clips, single or double wraps.
- Roof geometry — hip roofs perform better than gable roofs.
- Secondary water resistance — a sealed roof deck that keeps water out if the covering blows off.
- Opening protection — windows, doors and garage doors (not roof, but on the same form).
Why re-roofing is the moment
When a roof covering on a site-built single-family home is removed and replaced, the Existing Building code already requires the roof deck to be re-nailed to current standards and a secondary water barrier to be added. In the wind-borne debris region, homes insured or assessed at $300,000 or more also need improved roof-to-wall connections, capped at 15 percent of the re-roofing cost. Those are exactly the features the mitigation form rewards. Ask your roofer to document the nailing pattern and underlayment with photos, and book a wind mitigation inspection soon after the final inspection.
Who can do the inspection
The form lists the professionals who may sign it, including licensed home inspectors who have completed the required training, building code inspectors, general, building and residential contractors, engineers and architects. Your insurer can confirm which inspectors it accepts.
My Safe Florida Home
The Department of Financial Services runs My Safe Florida Home, which, when funded, provides free wind mitigation inspections to eligible homeowners and matching grants for recommended improvements. Roof-related items the program has covered include roof-deck attachment, roof-to-wall connections and secondary water barriers; other eligible items cover windows, doors and garage doors. Funding is appropriated by the Legislature in cycles and applications open and close as money is available, and eligibility rules (homestead, home value, whether the free inspection recommended the improvement) have changed between cycles. Always check the official site for the current status before you plan around a grant, and note that the program requires work to be done by contractors who meet its rules.
Getting the most out of it
- Before choosing a roofer, ask how they document deck attachment and secondary water barriers for the mitigation form.
- Keep the permit number, product approval numbers and final inspection date.
- Get the inspection after final approval and send the form to your agent; ask them to confirm which credits were applied.
- Re-inspect after further upgrades such as impact windows or a new garage door.
Sources
- Florida Office of Insurance Regulation — wind mitigation resources
- s. 627.0629, Florida Statutes
- Florida Building Code – Existing Building, sections 706.7 and 706.8
- My Safe Florida Home (Florida Department of Financial Services)