Applied Research Associates' IntraRisk Division is the leader in performing detailed evaluations of buildings for wind mitigation construction features. ARA's IntraRisk division has performed over 15,000 certifications to date.

To qualify for these credits, most insurance companies require a building professional's certification. ARA has a network of trained property surveyors throughout the state of Florida. ARA can perform wind certification surveys for any building type and insurance wind mitigation rating plan.

The cost of the certification is $150 for homes with less than 4,999 square feet (See Question 6 below). Please note our cancellation policy.

Questions and Answers on ARA Wind Certification Service

1. Why are insurance companies offering discounts?
2. What construction features qualify for discounts?
3. What is the value of the Insurance Discounts?
4. What is ARA's Wind Certification Service?
5. How is a Wind Certification Survey Conducted?
6. How much is a Wind Certification Survey?
7. How to order a Wind Certification Survey?

1. Why are insurance companies offering discounts?

The state legislation adopted provisions for a new statewide building code (the 2001 Florida Building Code), which became effective on March 1, 2002. The same legislation included a requirement for insurance companies to provide property insurance discounts for homes that have construction features that reduce the losses in windstorms. Each insurance company was required to submit new rates by February 28, 2003 and include discounts for wind damage reduction (mitigation) construction features.

The discounts are justified because stronger, more wind-resistive houses have lower windstorm losses, and lower windstorm losses means reduced costs to insurance companies. The insurance discounts provide some financial incentives for homeowners to strengthen their existing homes and for new construction to be built to the strongest options in the Florida Building Code.

These new insurance rate discounts in Florida begin to take place in 2003. They apply to both existing construction (houses built prior to 2002) and new construction built to the new statewide Florida Building Code (FBC).

To qualify for these discounts, most insurance companies require a certification of the key construction features.

2. What construction features qualify for discounts?

The following figure shows typical features that reduce wind damage. Over 90% of existing houses have one or more of these wind resistive construction features and may qualify for some insurance discounts. In addition, houses built after 1994 in Miami-Dade or Broward Counties and houses built after 2002 in the rest of the state generally have many wind resistive construction features and will likely qualify for significant credits.

The following items are building features that reduce wind damage for which many insurance companies offer wind premium discounts. To learn more about each of these categories, click on the highlighted portion of the text.

1. Roof coverings, such as shingles that meet the FBC Requirements.
2. Roof decks that have been installed with large nails and close spacing.
3. Hurricane clips/straps that hold the roof structure to the walls.
4. Protection of Openings such as windows and glass doors with impact resistant glazing or other protection systems.
5. Secondary Water Resistance that prevents the roof from leaking if the roof covering is blown off in a windstorm.
6. Newly Constructed Homes built to the Florida Building Code since March 1, 2002
7. Homes built to the South Florida Building Code in Miami-Dade and Broward Counties after 1994.

Please note that insurance companies may have more features that qualify for credits such as doors and gable end bracing.

See our Retrofit Options document for more information on how to add these features to your home.

3. What is the value of the Insurance Discounts?

The dollar value of the discounts depends on three primary factors.

1. The number of wind resistive construction features present on your home - Some individual features may qualify for 10% discount and others only a few percent. The more wind resistive features you have, the higher total discount will be. The discounts can be as high as 30% or more of the wind portion of the insurance premium. (The portion of your premium that is for wind losses is provided on your policy declaration page).
2. The location of your home-Wind insurance rates vary by location within the state. If your wind insurance rates are high, then the percentage discounts will result in more dollars for a house in a high rate area versus the same house in a lower rate area.
3. The value of your home- Discounts are calculated as a percentage of the wind premium for your specific home. High value homes have higher premiums, hence, the dollar value of the discounts will increase as the value of the home increases.

Contact your insurance agent or company to determine the potential value of the discounts for your house.

4. What is ARA's Wind Certification Service?

Applied Research Associates (ARA) has established a service to perform the detailed surveys to qualify a home for wind insurance discounts. ARA has a network of trained property surveyors that perform these detailed surveys throughout the state of Florida. Upon receiving a request for a Wind Certification, ARA assigns the request to one of our local trained surveyors. The surveyor will contact the homeowner to arrange a time to perform the wind certification survey. (The homeowner needs to be present at the time of the survey since attic access is required for part of the survey.) The survey generally takes less than 1 hour. The survey will be completed and you will receive a detailed report of the results to provide to your insurance company. Your insurance company can then determine the amount of discount for your home.

Applied Research Associates' IntraRisk Division is the leader in performing detailed evaluations of buildings for wind mitigation construction features. ARA has developed detailed inspection methods for the State of Florida's Residential Construction Mitigation Program and has performed insurance wind mitigation inspections since 2000.

5. How is a Wind Certification Survey Conducted?

After you submit an order, we will assign the order to one of our local property surveyors. The local surveyor will call you to set up a convenient appointment time.

At the scheduled time, the surveyor will arrive on site and complete the survey. As part of the survey, the surveyor will also conduct a survey of the attic and use a device to identify the roof deck attachment pattern, framing details, and roof-wall connection.

The results of the survey are forwarded to our main office for processing, where two items are produced:

• A report for the home owner summarizing the results of the survey.
• Completed forms for you to submit to your insurance company to qualify your home for insurance discounts for any of the wind resistance features that are on your home.

Typically, it is the homeowner responsibility to forward these papers to their agent or company (unless you sign a release allowing us to transmit the results directly to your company - Note that this service is not available for all insurance companies.)

6. How much is a Wind Certification Survey?

For houses with less than 5000 square feet (under roof), the cost of a survey is $150. The cost increases for larger houses.

The surveyor will verify square footage to confirm fee. Please note our cancellation policy.

7. How to Order a Wind Certification Survey?

There are three ways to order a Wind Certification Survey.

1. Internet request with credit card payment, click here.
2. Download a request form and mail or fax it in, using either a check payment (via mail only) or a credit card payment, click here.
3. Call 1-888-936-4272 to place an order and pay by credit card.

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