Fortified Home standard growing popular as insurance costs rise

By John Hilton

Louisiana is following the lead of Alabama and North Carolina in endorsing fortified roofs as public policy to fight hurricane and tropical storm threats.

The Louisiana Fortify Homes Program is part of an ambitious package of reforms designed to stabilize the property insurance market.

Based on decades of research from the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety, the Fortified Home program helps families protect their homes from severe weather by identifying key construction and roofing practices that can minimize damage from winds up to 130 mph, torrential rain and hail up to 2 inches in diameter, the institute explained.

Alabama first recognized IBHS's building standards in 2009 by passing legislation requiring insurers to provide discounts for homes with a Fortified designation, and 2020 legislation ensures a Fortified endorsement is available to every homeowner in Alabama.

Adoption of the program in the state was boosted by the Strengthen Alabama Homes program, which provides grants to encourage homeowners to upgrade to a roof that meets the Fortified Roof standard.

The Fortified Standard "takes a scientifically proven systems-based approach to strengthening homes against wind damage," Alabama explained in a set of FAQs. There are 3 levels of the program: Roof, Silver and Gold:

Roof: The Roof level addresses the roof system of a house (including soffits and gable ends) with the primary goal of keeping water out.

Silver: The Silver level addresses the Roof requirements in addition to openings, attached structures such as porches or carports, and the bracing of gable ends.

Gold: The Gold level requires a “Continuous Load Path” for the main structure of the home, pressure rated windows and doors, and requires chimneys to be well anchored into the roof structure.

Established by the legislature in 2011, Strengthen Alabama Homes is designed to help homeowners improve property resilience with retrofits that reduce damage caused by hurricanes or other catastrophic windstorm events. When funds are available, the Alabama Department of Insurance offers up to $10,000 to qualified homeowners to assist in the cost of retrofitting their homes, the department said in a news release.

Funding for the program comes from the insurance industry in Alabama and is not funded from the state's general budget, the release said. Alabama helped more than 3,000 families with grants as of the state's last tally.

InsuranceNewsNet Senior Editor John Hilton covered business and other beats in more than 20 years of daily journalism. John may be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @INNJohnH.

InsuranceNewsNet Senior Editor John Hilton has covered business and other beats in more than 20 years of daily journalism. John may be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @INNJohnH.