Home Owners Insurance Rebate

[zcaveman]

This was discussed in an earlier thread but I thought I would start a new one.

Would you like to get a rebate on your home owners insurance? Here is a chance to get one.

The state of Florida has been offering a free wind inspection program for quite a while now. From what I read at the site it is still free. When I called my homeowner's insurance company to see what this meant to me, they said that if you qualify, you can get up a rebate on your hurricane coverage that is in your homeowner's policy.

I had my home inspected and the inspector gave me completed form to give to my insurance company. The inspection takes about 1/2 hour. They check up in the attic for the number of nails in the joists and the type of strapping that holds the roof to the base of the house and other items. They also check outside for certain structural items. Certain roof styles also qualify for an additional rebate.

I asked why we had to have the inspections since we live in TV and all houses should be the same. He replied that just because all of the houses look alike does not mean that the builders followed the same rules.

For most houses in my section of TV, there is a $200-600 reduction of our insurance rates. This means a rebate check if you pay in full or a reduction in your monthly payment if you pay monthly. And the inspection is noted on your policy for the following years.

The wind inspection has nothing to do with the rebate program that was highlighted in the Daily Sun today.

Go to www.mysafefloridahome.com and click on Wind Inspections on the left hand side and go to the Q&A to see if you qualify. Most of us do. Read the information at the site to see what you need to do to arrange for a free wind inspection for your home. Then click on the Application for Wind Inspection to fill out a wind inspection form.

[Skip]

Had mine inspected weeks ago. Still waiting for the report in the mail. When did you get yours?

Skip

[zcaveman]

The inspector gave me the report and I made a copy for myself and drove the other one over to the insurance office.

I had mine done after October 31, They had to give us the form to speed things up according to the blurb at the site - http://www.mysafefloridahome.com/

Maybe there is someone you can call.

[drdodge]

Central Florida is not in the wind damage area. There was an article in the Sun this last week about the wind program and it gave the areas that it covered There is another program about how your house was constructed and by what code and I think the state has suspended it. I had my house done and the inspector gave me a copy of the report before he left
drd

[zcaveman]

As I mentioned in my post that the wind damage has nothing to do with the wind inspection. If you want a rebate on your home insurance follow the instructions in my post.

If you have any questions or concerns, please call your home insurance company and ask.

[Indy-Guy]

The fellow that did my home inspection told me that the insurance company's are billing people as if their homes are not built to hurricane code. When you have your home inspected to prove that it was built to hurricane code and the proper paper work is sent to the insurance company then your rate will change and you will be refunded the difference. Then next year your rate will be based on the fact that your home was built to code. The burden is on us the homeowner to follow through with this to lower the rate.

Mine was inspected on November 1st and I got the paper work from the inspector a couple of days later. The inspector mails the paper work to the insurance company. I got the paper work from my insurance agent. Now I will see how long it takes to get my refund and how much it will be.

[drdodge]

I have been to my ins co and there are two seperate programs one is
the wind inspection that is available only for South Florida and another for code info that is availabe in this area. The Daily Sun had an article about the programs this last week
drd

[drdodge]

The program for this area is a wind migation and the inspection is to see if the house is constructed to the latest code. This program is for the wind blown debris thru the air and striking the dwelling and doing damage. If the house is constructed to the latest code you may get a rebate. A lot of houses are not built to the latest code because they were built before the latest hurricane fearures were required
drd

[shy]

I did not see the article in the Sun paper so I am relying on suggestions from the Forum members.

I am in the process of purchasing a new home in TV. I called Marion Sumter insurance and asked about the rebates. The woman said she did not know anything about insurance rebates. I asked her about the inspections and she told me the inspections were not necessary since the new house was build to the new codes. She said that the rate of $938. with a non-hurricane ded. of $500. This is on a $425K house. I would appreciate any information on the rebates, please.

[villages07]

Shy,

I would say $938 is reasonable on a $425K house....of course, the replacement value of the house is far less than $425...that figure included the lot/lot premium. It also depends on what deductible you have on other losses and the value of your personal property.

For awhile, those who got HO Insurance from ASI via Villages Insurance had the windstorm mitigation factors built in. Travellers may not have built them all in or, in my case, seemed to throw them out on my first year renewal. When I had the inspection done, my premium went down about 15% from year 1, versus the almost 50% increase they were going to tag me for.

[Bryant]

$938 for a $425M home sounds very very reasonable.
I would guesstimate my home resale value around $249M. The dwelling coverage on my policy is $183M with $500 hurricane deductible and $500 other perils thru ASI (Sumter-Marion Ins. is the agent). My premium went up in 3/07 from $694 to $908 (a 31% increase). I would take that $938 premium and run.

I just spoke with a friend in Polo Ridge who had the wind inspection and received the copy in the mail. The suggestions were to make upgrades to her home (new roof shingles, longer nails, etc.) to the tune of $10M in order to receive a $94.00/yearly rebate. What's that all about???? I wish I had called her before I completed the application on line; seems like a big waste of my time!!

[Indy-Guy]

The fellow that did my home inspection told me that the insurance company's are billing people as if their homes are not built to hurricane code. When you have your home inspected to prove that it was built to hurricane code and the proper paper work is sent to the insurance company then your rate will change and you will be refunded the difference. Then next year your rate will be based on the fact that your home was built to code. The burden is on us the homeowner to follow through with this to lower the rate.

Mine was inspected on November 1st and I got the paper work from the inspector a couple of days later. The inspector mails the paper work to the insurance company. I got the paper work from my insurance agent. Now I will see how long it takes to get my refund and how much it will be.


I just got my check from my Insurance Company for $451.56 glad I had my home inspected and the paper work done

[drdodge]

I guess the size of the rebate depends on how much they overcharge you

DRD

[zcaveman]

I guess the size of the rebate depends on how much they overcharge you

DRD


It is a matter of what they charged plus what they would have charged if they had personally examined your house. I got a $400 rebate myself.

The free home inspection is not a come one. It is a real deal! And it is still available. Hence the word FREE.

[Barefoot]

I had a "Mysafefloridahome" inspection and asked my Insurance Company if I'd be getting a break on my Insurance rates. Following is the reply.


ASI will automatically give the Windstorm Loss Reduction credits at your May renewal. They don’t require the inspection, they automatically are going to give the discount based on the year the home was built . The only thing the inspection would do from there , is if it indicated you have a HIP roof . Then I would need a copy of it.

Karyn Halstead
Home/Auto/Life/Medical
Insurance Agencies of The Villages
Sumter Marion Insurance
3513 Wedgewood Lane
The Villages, Fl 32162
352-751-6560
352-751-5951 Fax
866-556-0456 Toll Free
karyn.halstead@thevillages.com

[gratton]

Had my home inspected around Jan 4th, got the report about 2 weeks later VIA email, sent the report to Royal Palm ins in leesburg, Got the check 2 weeks later for 451.00, The system finally worked. But think of all the other folks who are being over charged because they don't know of the inspection or are not here to have it done, Insurance companys don't you lovem.

[Midge538]

Why didn't/wouldn't the VHA provide details of this program for all VHAs? It would have been helpful.

[jmreynolds]

I was under the impression that it would cost $100 - $150 for the wind migration inspection. I am moving to the Villages in late August early September and I need a name for a good and reasonable homeowners insurance agency. Any suggestions???

Thanks -- jmreynolds

[mulligan]

Why would the VHA have anything to do with insurance ?

[gomoho]

Please note this is a post from 07 / no longer applicable.

[crgski]

Zcaveman, i went to the site but there is NO link for wind inspection. I checked around the site and found one link but all it brought up was advertisements. Maybe it was recently moved off the site? thanks for sharing the info..

[DangeloInspections]

Perhaps I can shed some light on this issue.

First, this is an old thread. At the time it was started in 2007 all of the first posts were true. The state of Florida had a program called My Safe Florida Homes. They hired folks who would come to your house and take a quick look in your attic, etc and fill out a small form and you would get a reduction in your homeowners insurance premium. The person was at your home for about 10 minutes. I know this firsthand because I had it done on MY home back then.

A few years went by and insurance companies found that many of these forms were inaccurate, and not done well, thus negating any value they wee meant to provide.

They responded by rewriting the rules completely. The current wind mitigation form is four pages and a bit complicated. It needs to be filled out by a licensed Home Inspector or Engineer. There is no longer a "free state program" to do this.

The Home Inspector needs to inspect your attic and take pictures of at least 5 different things up there. He needs to have access up there, sometimes moving tons of storage items to do so.

He then needs to take pictures of the outside of your home, roof, etc, and calculate the footprint of the home, type of windows, doors, etc. If you have any hurricane shutters, etc they need to be documented, etc.

The form is then filled out, signed and sent to both the homeowner and the insurance agency.

The cost of $100-$150 is normal for this area. I know some Home Inspectors that charge double that for doing a wind mitigation inspection.

The discount you receive is usually a percentage off what your home in insured for. This inspection is good for 5 YEARS, so an annual savings of say $300/year will net you a savings of $1500.00 in those 5 years.....so the investment of a few hundred dollars to have the inspection can be well worth it.

The first thing you would need to do is to speak to your insurance agent to see if they have already given you this discount, and if they will lower your premium if you get one done.

To be honest I do them, but do not "push" them. I've been more then busy doing "new buyer" and warranty inspections so I fit these in when I can. If there is a demand for these I may just set aside a day just for these every few weeks, or perhaps fit one in after a morning inspection. I need to think about this more.

As a licensed Home Inspector here in Florida I do many types of Home Inspections.....New buyer inspections, Warranty Inspections, Wind Mitigation Inspections, Roofing Inspections and Four Point Inspections, (for homes 30 years old and older).

Again, the first thing you should do if you are interested in this is to speak to your insurance agent.

It is a challenge for me to balance fulfilling the needs of my customers whom I am grateful for and making sure what I do business-wise remains profitable in terms of time and travel, etc.

I hope this helps answer some questions. Sorry for such a long post. I am actually writing this from NY, as I have taken a bit of a vacation to "inspect" my new granddaughter......

Rspectfully, Frank D'Angelo, ACI

[zcaveman]

Perhaps I can shed some light on this issue.

First, this is an old thread. At the time it was started in 2007 all of the first posts were true. The state of Florida had a program called My Safe Florida Homes. They hired folks who would come to your house and take a quick look in your attic, etc and fill out a small form and you would get a reduction in your homeowners insurance premium. The person was at your home for about 10 minutes. I know this firsthand because I had it done on MY home back then.

A few years went by and insurance companies found that many of these forms were inaccurate, and not done well, thus negating any value they wee meant to provide.

They responded by rewriting the rules completely. The current wind mitigation form is four pages and a bit complicated. It needs to be filled out by a licensed Home Inspector or Engineer. There is no longer a "free state program" to do this.

The Home Inspector needs to inspect your attic and take pictures of at least 5 different things up there. He needs to have access up there, sometimes moving tons of storage items to do so.

He then needs to take pictures of the outside of your home, roof, etc, and calculate the footprint of the home, type of windows, doors, etc. If you have any hurricane shutters, etc they need to be documented, etc.

The form is then filled out, signed and sent to both the homeowner and the insurance agency.

The cost of $100-$150 is normal for this area. I know some Home Inspectors that charge double that for doing a wind mitigation inspection.

The discount you receive is usually a percentage off what your home in insured for. This inspection is good for 5 YEARS, so an annual savings of say $300/year will net you a savings of $1500.00 in those 5 years.....so the investment of a few hundred dollars to have the inspection can be well worth it.

The first thing you would need to do is to speak to your insurance agent to see if they have already given you this discount, and if they will lower your premium if you get one done.

To be honest I do them, but do not "push" them. I've been more then busy doing "new buyer" and warranty inspections so I fit these in when I can. If there is a demand for these I may just set aside a day just for these every few weeks, or perhaps fit one in after a morning inspection. I need to think about this more.

As a licensed Home Inspector here in Florida I do many types of Home Inspections.....New buyer inspections, Warranty Inspections, Wind Mitigation Inspections, Roofing Inspections and Four Point Inspections, (for homes 30 years old and older).

Again, the first thing you should do if you are interested in this is to speak to your insurance agent.

It is a challenge for me to balance fulfilling the needs of my customers whom I am grateful for and making sure what I do business-wise remains profitable in terms of time and travel, etc.

I hope this helps answer some questions. Sorry for such a long post. I am actually writing this from NY, as I have taken a bit of a vacation to "inspect" my new granddaughter......

Rspectfully, Frank D'Angelo, ACI

Thanks. Your explanation was great.

I have had a PM about this. I mentioned that this thread was from 2007 and I found this on the internet:

https://apps.fldfs.com/WINGS/InspectionApp/default.aspx

Thanks,
Z

[Moderator]

This thread is from 2007. See response from DeAngelo Inspections above.

Thread closed.