Why Resilience Matters
Severe weather is a threat everywhere. It disrupts people’s lives, damages our built environment, and drives financial losses. Average annual insured losses for severe storms over the last decade were nearly $18 billion.
But, we are not defenseless. While we can’t control the weather, we can reduce its impact through resilient home construction. Based on decades of scientific research, the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) developed the FORTIFIED HomeTM Standard, which aims to reduce avoidable damage and financial loss caused specifically by hurricanes, high winds, wind-driven rain, and hail.
FORTIFIED Home™ Program Overview
The FORTIFIED Home™ program is a voluntary program that provides a systems-based, multi-tiered approach for improving the resistance of homes and their contents to damage caused by extreme weather events. FORTIFIED offers significant opportunities to improve the integrity and quality of a home by providing superior construction methods and best practices that do not dramatically add to the cost of the home.
The FORTIFIED Home standards are applicable to all regions of the country and offer important guidance on how to build a stronger home. Demand for FORTIFIED construction is rapidly growing across the country and thousands of FORTIFIED homes and FORTIFIED roofs are completed each year.
FORTIFIED Home™ Designation Process and Eligibility Requirements
Typically, a FORTIFIED project is initiated by a home builder or homeowner wanting to build or renovate a stronger home. A certified FORTIFIED Wise Roofing Contractor and any additional contractors will build or renovate the home to meet FORTIFIED requirements. Throughout the construction process, a FORTIFIED Evaluator will visit the job site to gather documentation and verify that FORTIFIED requirements have been met. This documentation is submitted to IBHS for review and approval.
FORTIFIED designation certificates are tied to the property’s address, and valid for five years. Re-designation after five years is necessary, mainly to verify the expected remaining life and condition of the roof covering. FORTIFIED Home can be applied to single-family homes, duplexes, certain HUD manufactured homes, and townhouses.
Stay In The Know
Do you want to keep up with the latest resiliency research? Would you like timely tips and reminders to keep your home safe from Mother Nature? Are you interested in the science behind the FORTIFIED standard? Then sign up for the FORTIFIED Update, today!