Roof inspections in Wekiwa Springs, FL

Fla. Stat. 627.7011(5) stops an insurer from turning away a policy solely because the roof is under 15 years old. Once the roof reaches 15, you hold a separate right: you may pay an authorized inspector to examine it before the insurer demands replacement. With 44.6 percent of Wekiwa Springs homes built before 1980, many owners here may reach that point.

A passing result carries weight. If the inspector finds 5 or more years of useful life remaining, the insurer cannot drop or refuse you for roof age alone. The insurer decides which inspectors count, so ask it for its list before you pay anyone. The statute names home inspectors, code inspectors, roofing and general contractors, engineers and architects as possible choices.

Some insurers set their own age lines. Citizens, for example, wants documentation of 5 remaining years for shingle roofs over 25 years old and for tile, slate or metal roofs over 50.

The roof section of the 4-point form records the covering material, roof age, remaining useful life, last permit date, and whether the roof was fully or partly replaced. Citizens asks for a 4-point inspection on homes more than 20 years old, which covers most of the pre-1980 homes here.

• Cracking, curling or cupping of the covering
• Exposed asphalt or felt where the granules have largely worn away
• Missing, loose or cracked tabs or tiles
• Soft spots in the decking and leaks in the attic or on ceilings

Reasons to schedule one include a purchase or sale, a roof-age letter from your insurer, or a storm. Hurricane Irma left 162 residential structures with major damage in Seminole County, and Hurricane Ian left 1,076, so storm checks are common here.

If you hire a roofer for the inspection, Fla. Stat. 489.147 bars contractors from offering anything of value for an inspection or from advising you on coverage. Take coverage questions to your insurer or agent, not the roofer. For permit questions on any repair that follows, the Seminole County Building Division issues them for this unincorporated area.