Roof Inspections in Florida: 4-Point, Wind Mitigation, Roof Certification, and Decking

The four Florida roof inspections at a glance

Most confusion comes from using one word for four jobs. Here is the short version. Each one is explained below.

What is a 4-point inspection?

A 4-point inspection looks at the four systems that cause the most insurance claims: the roof, the electrical system, the plumbing, and the heating and cooling (HVAC). The inspector records the age, type, and condition of each and takes photos, including each side of the house and each slope of the roof.

Citizens Property Insurance requires a 4-point inspection on property applications for homes more than 20 years old. Other insurers set their own age limits, so check with your agent. Citizens’ form must be signed by a verifiable Florida-licensed professional, for example a general, residential, or building contractor, a building code inspector, or a home inspector. The form adds that a trade-specific licensed professional may sign off only on the section for their own trade.

On the Citizens form, the roof section, with photos of each slope, can take the place of a separate roof inspection form.

What is a wind mitigation inspection?

A wind mitigation inspection documents the features that help a home hold up in a hurricane, on Florida’s Uniform Mitigation Verification Inspection Form, OIR-B1-1802. The current version is Rev. 04/26, adopted by Rule 69O-170.0155 of the Florida Administrative Code effective April 1, 2026. The form covers the building code the home was built under, roof covering, roof deck attachment, roof-to-wall attachment, roof shape (hip or gable), secondary water resistance (a sealed roof deck), and opening protection. Note that standard underlayment or hot-mopped felt does not count as a sealed roof deck on the form.

Why it matters: under Florida Statute § 627.0629, insurers must include discounts, credits, or deductible reductions for homes with features shown to reduce wind losses. The law does not set the percentages, and they vary by insurer, so we will not quote one. The form says it is valid for up to five years as long as nothing material about the house changes.

Who can sign it: under § 627.711, insurers must accept the form from a licensed home inspector with hurricane mitigation training, a certified building code inspector, a licensed general, building, or residential contractor, a professional engineer, or a professional architect. Insurers may also accept other qualified people. If your insurer asks for a wind mitigation form, use an inspector from that list.

What is a roof certification for insurance?

A roof certification, usually called a roof inspection form, documents your roof’s age, material, condition, and remaining useful life. Insurers ask for it when a roof is getting older. It does not cover wind mitigation features; that is the OIR-B1-1802 form’s job.

Florida law limits how insurers can use roof age. Under § 627.7011(5), an insurer cannot refuse to write or renew your policy just because your roof is less than 15 years old. For a roof that is 15 years or older, the insurer must let you get an inspection by an authorized inspector, at your expense, before requiring a replacement, and cannot refuse you over roof age alone if the inspection shows 5 years or more of useful life left. A roofing contractor is one of the authorized inspector types in that law.

Citizens has its own rule: shingle and other soft roofs older than 25 years, and tile, slate, clay, concrete, or metal roofs older than 50 years, need documentation of at least five years of remaining useful life. Citizens’ Roof Inspection Form can be signed by a general, residential, building, or roofing contractor, a building code inspector, or a licensed home inspector.

What is a roof decking inspection?

The roof deck is the plywood or wood boards under your shingles, tile, or metal. A roof decking inspection happens during a reroof, after the old covering is torn off and before the new one goes on. It is the only time anyone can see the whole deck: rot, soft spots, delamination, and how well the deck is nailed to the trusses.

This matters because of Florida law. Under Florida Statute § 553.844(3)(a), a roof replacement on a site-built, single-family home must include two hurricane upgrades: strengthening the roof-deck attachment and fasteners, and a secondary water barrier. The statute aims these at homes built before the Florida Building Code took effect. The Florida Building Code, Existing Building, spells out the details in Sections 706.7.1 (deck attachment) and 706.7.2 (secondary water barrier), including when existing nailing is good enough and what extra fasteners are needed when it is not. Your roofer applies those rules on site, and the building inspector checks them under the reroof permit.

The Florida Building Commission is preparing the 9th Edition (2026) of the code. Its October 2026 workplan lists the effective date as to be determined, so ask your building department which edition applies when your permit is pulled.

Deck re-nailing and a sealed deck are also two of the upgrades that earn wind mitigation credit, and two of the roof upgrades the My Safe Florida Home grant helps pay for. Doing them during a roof replacement is the cheapest time, because the deck is already exposed.

How much does a roof inspection cost in Florida?

No state agency publishes prices for these inspections, so the figures below are industry estimates from 2026, not official rates. A Florida insurer’s blog puts a wind mitigation inspection at $75 to $150, a 4-point inspection at $75 to $150, and the two bundled at $150 to $250. A Florida inspection company’s guide gives a similar range of about $75 to $200 for a 4-point. Prices depend on the size of the home, the inspector, and whether you bundle.

Roof certification prices vary more, and we did not find a reliable published range, so we will not guess. A decking inspection is part of a reroof, and any deck repairs it finds are priced in your replacement quote. Ask for the price in writing before any inspection.

How the free My Safe Florida Home inspection fits in

The state’s My Safe Florida Home program offers a free wind mitigation inspection to eligible homeowners: the home must be your homesteaded, owner-occupied, site-built home. The state assigns the inspector, and you get a report of recommended upgrades and estimated insurance savings. You can get the inspection even if you do not qualify for the grant.

If you do qualify for the grant, which in 2026 means a household income below 120% of the area median, that report is what decides which roof upgrades can be grant-funded. Our My Safe Florida Home guide covers who qualifies, what it pays for, and the current funding status.

Roof inspections in Brooksville and central Florida

Tri Peak Roofing is based in Brooksville and inspects roofs across Hernando County, Citrus County, and Pasco County. We get on the roof, check the covering, flashing, penetrations, and every slope, look in the attic where we can for signs of past leaks, and give you a written report with dated photos that you can hand to your insurer or a buyer.

We will tell you plainly whether the roof needs a repair, a replacement, or nothing at all. When we replace a roof, the deck attachment and secondary water barrier the law requires are part of the job. If you are in Brooksville, see roof inspection in Brooksville, or book a free roof inspection.