Those with fortified roofs may see their homeowners insurance discounts disappear several years from now. That’s because the Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety is expected to change the way it designates roofs, certifying them as fortified for only 15 years. Insurance Commissioner Tim Temple says without the fortified certification, insurance companies would no longer offer premium discounts for fortified roofs.
“With the 15-year designation roof, at year 15, it doesn’t mean you have to replace your roof; it just means that the Fortified discount drops off,” Temple explained.
Temple says exposure to the severe weather that Louisiana is prone to, will degrade a roof. But he says that does not mean that fortified roofs older than 15 years are any worse than non-fortified roofs.
“You still benefit from having a stronger or structurally engineered roof, but the homeowner will then have to make the decision: Do they want to replace it and continue to have a discount, or do they want to just roll forward without that discount going on?” Temple asked.
Temple says despite the likely change, getting a fortified roof is still a great investment.
“People are getting $10,000, state dollars, to fortify their roofs; so I haven’t had anybody complain about the roof that they’ve received, looking at something 15 years down the road, on whether or not they’re going to continue to get an insurance discount,” Temple noted.
While IBHS released the Fortified Home program back in 2010, the first fortified roof wasn’t installed in Louisiana until 11 years later. So that means for those earliest adopters, those discounts would disappear in 2036.