How long is a wind mitigation inspection good for?

The five-year window is standard statewide and it is tied to the form itself rather than to any particular carrier. Underwriters accept the document for that period on the reasonable theory that construction features do not change on their own. What can change is the condition of the roof covering and the accuracy of what was documented, which is why the clock exists at all. Mark the date. Credits do not renew automatically and carriers are not going to remind you.

The expiration is a quiet cost. What happens in practice is that the form lapses, the carrier removes the credits at renewal, and the homeowner sees a higher premium and attributes it to the general state of the Florida insurance market. Some of it probably is. Some of it is a form that expired eight months ago. A quick call to your agent asking whether a current wind mitigation form is on file is worth making before your next renewal, and it costs nothing.

Certain events should trigger a new form regardless of where you are in the five years. A roof replacement is the big one, because it can change roof covering compliance, deck attachment, and secondary water resistance all at once, and those are three of the more heavily weighted sections. Adding impact-rated windows or shutters changes opening protection, which is scored on the weakest protected opening and therefore tends to move as a block. Any structural work that changes roof geometry counts as well.

There is also the case where the original form understated the house. It happens more often than you would expect, usually because the original inspector did not enter the attic far enough to document connectors at the required locations and defaulted to a lower tier. If you have reason to think your home has better features than your form shows, particularly if the form was completed quickly or without attic access, a fresh inspection is a reasonable thing to order rather than waiting for the five years to run.

For buyers, always ask whether the seller has a current form. A wind mitigation form performed on the home within the last five years may be usable, and it tells you something about the house before you close. It is not a substitute for your own if the form is aging or if the roof has been replaced since, but it costs nothing to ask, and sellers who have one usually have it in the same folder as the roof permit.