Florida Roof Age and Insurance: The 15-Year Law and Citizens Rules

What Florida's roof-age law says

For years, Florida homeowners heard the same message at renewal: your roof is 15 (or 20) years old, replace it or lose your policy. In May 2022, during a special legislative session on property insurance, Florida enacted Senate Bill 2-D, which created section 627.7011(5), Florida Statutes. It applies to homeowners policies issued or renewed on or after July 1, 2022.

The law has two parts. First, an insurer may not refuse to issue or refuse to renew a homeowners policy on a residential structure with a roof less than 15 years old solely because of the roof's age. Second, for a roof at least 15 years old, the insurer must allow the homeowner to have the roof inspected by an authorized inspector, at the homeowner's expense, before requiring replacement as a condition of coverage — and the insurer may not refuse to issue or renew solely because of roof age if that inspection indicates the roof has five years or more of useful life remaining.

An 'authorized inspector' under the statute is one approved by the insurer who is a licensed home inspector, building code inspector, licensed general, building or residential contractor, professional engineer, architect, or another individual or entity the insurer recognizes as qualified.

The word that matters: 'solely'

The protection is against decisions made solely because of roof age. It does not require an insurer to cover a roof in poor condition, and it doesn't stop an insurer from acting on other underwriting factors. In practice, several things remain open to the insurer:

• Roof condition. Visible damage, active leaks or an inspection showing less than five years of remaining life can still lead to a replacement requirement or a declined policy.
• Price. Older roofs can still cost more to insure, and wind mitigation credits tied to the roof covering may be lower.
• Coverage terms. Some Florida policies settle roof claims on an actual-cash-value basis or under a schedule that pays less as the roof ages. Read your declarations page and endorsements.
• Other underwriting factors, such as the home's other systems, its claims history or the insurer's overall appetite for new business in an area.

How Citizens treats roof age

Citizens Property Insurance Corporation, Florida's state-created insurer of last resort, publishes its own roof requirements. Shingle and other soft roofs older than 25 years, and tile, slate, clay, concrete or metal roofs older than 50 years, require documentation showing at least five years of remaining useful life, completed on Citizens' roof inspection form by a Florida-licensed inspector. If the roof has less than five years of remaining life, Citizens requires proof of a full roof replacement before a policy is written.

Citizens also requires a 4-point inspection — roof, electrical, plumbing and HVAC — on new applications for homes more than 20 years old, dated within the 12 months before the application. For many Coconut Creek homes built in the 1970s through the 1990s, that means both documents come up at once.

Citizens' underwriting rules change from time to time, and its eligibility depends on more than the roof. Check Citizens' current inspection requirements, or ask a Citizens-appointed agent, before relying on these thresholds.

How roof age is actually established

An insurer can only apply an age rule to an age it believes, and the best evidence is paperwork. The most reliable record is the roofing permit and its approved final inspection from the building department that issued it. In Coconut Creek, that's the City's Building Division through its ePermits portal; unincorporated areas and other cities use Broward County or their own departments, and Boca Raton homes use the City of Boca Raton or Palm Beach County.

Without a permit record, insurers fall back on estimates — the age of the house, an inspector's opinion, or prior policy data — and those rarely work in the homeowner's favor. A roof replaced without a permit can be treated as old as the house. If your records are incomplete, pull your permit history before your renewal, not after a notice arrives.

Keep the permit, the final inspection approval, the contractor's invoice and the manufacturer's warranty together. The same file supports your wind mitigation inspection, a 4-point inspection and any future claim.

Using your inspection right, step by step

If your roof is 15 or more years old and your insurer is asking for replacement, the statute gives you a path:

• Get the insurer's request in writing, including the reason and the deadline.
• Ask the insurer which inspectors it will accept as authorized — the statute requires the inspector to be approved by the insurer.
• Fix obvious defects first. A cracked tile or a failed pipe boot can lower a remaining-life estimate that would otherwise be comfortably above five years.
• Schedule the inspection, at your expense, and make sure the report states an estimated remaining useful life in years.
• Submit the report to your agent and keep a copy with your roof records.
• If the insurer still refuses solely based on age despite a qualifying report, contact the Florida Department of Financial Services.

Roof-age rules are not the 25% rule

These two Florida laws are often confused because both were changed in 2022 and both turn on your roof's history. The roof-age law is insurance law: it governs when an insurer may refuse coverage because of how old a roof is. The 25% rule lives in the building code and section 553.844, Florida Statutes: it governs how much of a roof must be brought up to current code when a large portion is repaired or replaced.

They interact in practice. A large storm repair on an older roof can trigger code requirements under the 25% rule, and the resulting replacement resets the roof's age for insurance purposes. Our guide to Florida's 25% roof rule covers that side in detail.

What hasn't changed — and where to check

Proposals to change Florida's roof-age rules have been filed since 2022 — including a 2026 bill that would have expanded who counts as an authorized inspector — but the 2026 proposals did not become law. As of this guide's update, section 627.7011(5) reads as described above. Laws and carrier practices change, so check the current statute and your policy.

The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation oversees insurers' rates and forms, and the Florida Department of Financial Services runs the state's insurance consumer helpline for disputes and questions. This guide is general information, not legal or insurance advice.

If you want an independent view of your roof's condition before talking to your insurer, we offer a free inspection — about 45 minutes, with written findings. Our crews are fully licensed and insured.