Wind Mitigation Inspection in Florida: Who Can Do It and Who Must Accept It

Florida law says who may complete the state's wind mitigation form and requires insurers to use it, which is why a single inspection can be reused across insurers when you shop for a policy. The statutes also require insurers to include discounts for qualifying features in their rates and to describe those discounts on their websites. They do not say how long a completed form stays valid, which is the question to settle with your insurer.

What the statutes require

Statute text as read on October 29, 2026.

• The form. The Financial Services Commission develops the uniform mitigation verification inspection form by rule, and all insurers must use it when a policyholder submits it to claim windstorm discounts. (Fla. Stat. 627.711(2))
• Who may complete it. A licensed home inspector with at least 3 hours of approved hurricane mitigation training who has passed a proficiency exam; a certified building code inspector; a licensed general, building or residential contractor; a licensed professional engineer; a licensed architect; or any other individual or entity the insurer recognizes as qualified. (627.711(2)(a))
• How it is done. The inspector must personally inspect the structure and attest to doing so. A licensed contractor or engineer may authorize a direct employee who is not an independent contractor to do the inspection. (627.711(3))
• Acceptance. Insurers must accept a form signed by one of the listed professionals. They may accept forms from other qualified persons but are not required to. (627.711(2))
• Notice. At issuance and at each renewal of a personal residential policy, insurers must tell applicants and policyholders about available windstorm premium discounts, on a form prescribed by the Office of Insurance Regulation. (627.711(1))
• The discounts. A residential property insurer's rate filing must include actuarially reasonable discounts, credits or other rate differentials, or appropriate reductions in deductibles, for properties with wind-mitigation features that meet the minimum requirements of the Florida Building Code. Since October 1, 2023, each insurer must also describe its hurricane mitigation discounts on its website. (Fla. Stat. 627.0629(1))

What the statutes leave open

How much each feature is worth is set in each insurer's filed rates, so the same form can save different amounts with different companies. The statute does not give a validity period for a completed form; it directs the commission to provide guidance. And it does not decide whether an insurer will ask for a separate four-point inspection.

Wind mitigation vs four-point

They answer different questions. The wind mitigation form is about features that affect windstorm discounts and is covered by the statutes above. A four-point inspection is a report on the roof, electrical, plumbing and heating and cooling systems that some insurers ask for on older homes. Unlike the form, it is an insurer's underwriting requirement rather than the subject of those statutes, so ask what your insurer needs before you pay for either.

For buyers and sellers

If you are buying, ask the listing agent whether the seller has a current wind mitigation form, and ask your insurance agent how old a form the insurer will accept. If you are selling, an existing form gives buyers' agents something concrete when they price insurance. Insurance cost belongs in your numbers either way: see Florida homeowners insurance in 2026, the buyer's guide to the insurance crisis, and what home inspections catch in Florida. The buyer net sheet shows how a premium changes your monthly cost.

Sources (statute text read October 29, 2026): Fla. Stat. 627.711 (uniform mitigation verification inspection form); Fla. Stat. 627.0629 (residential property insurance rate filings and windstorm mitigation discounts).

Ryan Solberg is the broker-owner of MaxLife Realty. This is general information, not insurance or legal advice; an insurance agent can tell you what your insurer accepts.

Related: the state grant program that can pay for roof and opening upgrades: My Safe Florida Home eligibility.