TL;DR
Florida insurance carriers are now flagging asphalt shingle roofs at 15 years rather than 20 — but carriers will still insure an older roof if an inspection proves it has useful life remaining. The challenge is that most homeowners cannot produce that proof. What looks like a roofing problem is actually a documentation problem, and it is costing Florida homeowners tens of thousands of dollars in unnecessary replacements.
A West Palm Beach homeowner named Jeff Marks has lived in his home since 1988. His roof was installed around 2006 with what were advertised as lifetime shingles. Twenty years later, the roof does not leak and the shingles appear intact. Marks believes it has at least five to ten more years of useful life.
His insurance company inspected the property and told him the roof was too old, along with several other items that needed to be addressed to maintain coverage. Marks is now replacing a roof he believes is functional. The unexpected expense forced him to tap his retirement savings. wflx
His situation is becoming common in Florida, and the threshold just moved closer to millions more homeowners.
The 15-year rule
Robert Norberg, president of Arden Insurance Associates in Lantana, told CBS12 that many Florida insurance carriers are now using 15 years as an important underwriting benchmark for asphalt shingle roofs. "In general today, the guidance is for a 15-year-old shingle roof to be the maximum age limit that carriers want," Norberg said. wflx
That threshold was previously around 20 years. It did not change because shingle roofs suddenly became less durable at year 15. It changed because Florida's claims data — shaped by years of intense heat, storms, and hurricane seasons — shows problems becoming more prevalent as shingle roofs age past that point.
The age carriers accept also depends on material. Tile roofs may typically be accepted for 25 to 30 years. Metal roofs can be accepted for around 40 years. For the majority of Florida homeowners with asphalt shingles, the clock just moved up five years without any notice. wflx
The part most coverage omits
Here is the detail that changes the entire story: Norberg said some carriers will insure older roofs if an inspection shows the roof is in good condition and has enough useful life remaining. wflx
That means the 15-year rule is not an absolute cutoff. It is a documentation threshold. Carriers are not refusing to insure older roofs categorically. They are refusing to insure older roofs that cannot demonstrate condition.
Jeff Marks did not have a documented inspection history. His roof may be functional. But without proof, the insurer had no basis to treat it differently from a roof that was genuinely deteriorated. The absence of documentation collapsed the distinction between a well-maintained older roof and a neglected one.
That is what is actually costing homeowners money. Not the age of the roof. The absence of a record.
The metal roof that did not help
Anier Sosa installed a new metal roof on his West Palm Beach home two years ago expecting the upgrade to reduce his insurance premium. Instead, his premium did not change. When he asked why, the insurer told him: "It's because your roof is too expensive." Sosa described the situation as "like a lose-lose."
Metal roofs can exceed $50,000 — roughly double the cost of conventional roofing materials — and last up to 40 years. But the higher replacement cost means the insurer's exposure in a claim is greater, not smaller. The durability of the material did not offset the cost of replacing it.
Homeowners in Florida are caught in a genuine bind: shingle roofs age out of coverage at 15 years, metal roofs are more durable but cost $50,000 and may not lower premiums, and the market is providing almost no guidance on what actually protects coverage long-term.
The answer is documentation — and the industry has started saying so directly.
Get the inspection at year 10
Mark Friedlander of the Insurance Information Institute told WPTV that homeowners should have their roof professionally inspected when it reaches 10 years old — five years before the 15-year threshold. "Realistically, with the weather conditions in Florida as they are between heat and the storms, you should have your roof inspected at least when it's 10 years old, have a professional inspect it because we call the roof the first line of defense," Friedlander said.
That is concrete guidance. Get a professional inspection at year 10, document the condition, and use that record to demonstrate to carriers that the roof has useful life remaining at year 15.
The problem is that this guidance assumes homeowners know how old their roof is and have a system to surface the year-10 mark before it passes. Most do not. Roof installation dates live in old closing documents, faded permits, or memory. There is no reminder. There is no system. The year-10 window comes and goes, and most homeowners miss it.
That is not a roofing problem. It is a home management problem.
This is not just Florida
Florida's insurance market is the most stressed in the country, which makes it the leading indicator for trends that eventually reach the rest of the nation. Insurers are using drones to audit properties in states across the country and making coverage decisions based on aerial assessments of condition. The 15-year shingle threshold in Florida today is the preview of where other markets are heading as claims data accumulates and carriers tighten underwriting.
Recent Florida legislation prevents insurance companies from canceling policies solely based on roof age — but higher premiums still apply to older roofing systems. Homeowners in other states do not yet have that legislative protection. When their markets reach the same tipping point, the documentation gap will matter just as much. wflx
The homeowners who will be in the best position — in Florida and everywhere else — are the ones who can produce an inspection history, demonstrate maintenance over time, and make the case that their roof's condition does not match its age.
What that record looks like in practice
A documented home maintenance record for a roof includes the installation date, the material and manufacturer, any inspections performed with dates and findings, any repairs made, and any maintenance work done over time. It is not complicated. It is the kind of record that takes fifteen minutes to create and years to be grateful you have.
The Farnsworth Group's research on homeowner behavior shows that most homeowners do not track this information. It lives in memory, scattered paperwork, and old emails that become harder to find every year.
Oply is an AI-powered home maintenance platform that tracks system ages, logs inspection dates, stores service records, and surfaces reminders when systems approach important thresholds — like a roof turning 10 years old, five years before a carrier's cutoff. That record is a system of record for your home, and in a market where carriers are scrutinizing condition before extending coverage, it is what actually protects a claim from denial.
The Florida homeowners replacing roofs they believe are functional are not paying for a bad roof. They are paying for the absence of proof that the roof was good. That is the gap Oply is built to close.
The bottom line
Florida's shingle threshold just moved from 20 years to 15. Carriers will still cover older roofs — but only with documented proof of condition. The homeowner who can produce an inspection record is negotiating from evidence. The one who cannot is negotiating from memory. In today's insurance market, that difference is measured in premiums, replacements, and retirement savings.
Read the CBS12 coverage here: Florida homeowners with 15-year-old roofs could see insurance options shrink
Read the WFLX coverage here: 'Like a lose-lose': Florida homeowners weigh roof costs, materials and insurance
