The letter says your policy won't be renewed, and somewhere in it is the word 'roof'. Before anything else, know this: you have statutory rights, you have time (Florida requires advance notice of non-renewal), and the roof question has more answers than 'replace it or lose coverage'. We're roofers, not insurance advisors (your policy decisions belong to you and your agent), but the roof half of this problem is ours, and here's the honest map.
Your rights under Florida Statute 627.7011
- Under 15 years old? An insurer may not refuse to issue or renew your policy SOLELY because of your roof's age. If your roof is younger than 15 and the letter is purely about age, that's worth a direct conversation with your agent.
- 15 years or older? You have the right to get a roof inspection by an authorized inspector (at your expense) before an insurer can require replacement as a condition of coverage.
- 5+ years of useful life in that inspection? Then age alone can't be the reason to refuse you. The inspection report becomes your document.
- How age is counted: from the last date 100% of the roof surface was built or replaced to code, so a documented full replacement resets the clock completely, and your permit history is the proof.
- These protections apply to policies issued or renewed on or after July 1, 2022.
The playbook, in order
- 1. Read the letter's actual reason and date: non-renewal isn't cancellation, and the notice period is your planning window.
- 2. Pull your roof's permit history (we do this routinely): it establishes the legal age of your roof, which may be younger than the insurer assumes.
- 3. If the roof is 15+, consider the §627.7011 inspection: a passing report (5+ years of life) is leverage the statute itself defines.
- 4. Get an honest roof assessment in parallel: sometimes targeted repairs restore both function and insurability documentation; sometimes the roof genuinely is done.
- 5. If replacement is the answer, make it work twice: a documented, code-compliant replacement resets the age clock AND adds wind-mitigation features that Statute 627.0629 requires insurers to credit (captured on the OIR-B1-1802 form from April 2026, credits applied from July 2026).
- 6. Shop with your agent while you decide, and if you're income-eligible, the My Safe Florida Home program can put grant money toward hardening (see our MSFH guide below).
What we won't tell you
We won't tell you a repair will definitely save your policy (that's your insurer's call, not ours), we won't invent urgency the letter doesn't contain, and we won't recommend a replacement your roof doesn't need. What we will do: establish your roof's real age from permits, assess its real condition, put the repair and replacement numbers side by side in a written, free, no-obligation estimate, and if you replace, hand you the documentation that makes the new roof count everywhere it can.
Frequently asked questions
My insurer says my roof is 'too old' but it was replaced 12 years ago. What now?
Pull the replacement permit: under §627.7011, a roof under 15 can't be the sole reason for refusal, and the permit is how age is established. If the permit exists, your agent has a statute to point at.
Will repairing my roof stop the non-renewal?
Sometimes, if the stated reason is condition (not age), documented repairs plus a favorable inspection can change the picture. Honestly, sometimes it won't, and the money is better saved toward replacement. We'll tell you which case yours looks like, with photos and a written scope.
Does a new roof guarantee I'll find coverage?
No one can guarantee an underwriting outcome, and we won't pretend to. What a documented replacement does guarantee: your roof's age resets by statute, its wind-mitigation features become creditable under §627.0629, and the most common reason on Florida non-renewal letters disappears from your file.
Ready for a real number instead of a range? Request your free, no-obligation estimate.