Florida's property insurance market is not stable. Carriers exit without warning, rates move 20–40% at renewal, coverage terms change quietly between policy periods, and property replacement costs have escalated significantly since 2020. A policy that was adequate two years ago may have gaps today that don't surface until a claim is filed — at which point it's too late to fix them.
The annual insurance review is the operational habit that closes those gaps before they become losses. Done 60 days before renewal, it gives you time to act: order inspections, shop carriers, communicate changes to owners, and make informed decisions rather than defaulting to auto-renewal.
Here is the 10-item checklist to run on every property you manage, every year.
The 10-Item Annual Review Checklist
Replacement costs have increased significantly since 2020 due to labor and materials inflation. If the Coverage A limit was set 3+ years ago and hasn't been reviewed, it may be 20–30% below actual reconstruction cost. Request an insurance-to-value calculation from your broker or a replacement cost appraisal for higher-value properties.
When storm damage triggers a rebuild, Florida building codes often require upgrades that weren't part of the original structure. Standard policies don't cover these upgrade costs. Ordinance or law coverage pays the difference. Common sublimit is 25% of Coverage A — ask whether that's sufficient for the property's age and construction type.
Loss of rents coverage pays rental income lost while a property is uninhabitable after a covered loss. If the sublimit was set when rents were lower, it may not cover the actual income stream. Verify the current monthly rent, multiply by the coverage period (often 12 months), and confirm the sublimit covers the result.
Many Florida insurers moved to ACV (Actual Cash Value) coverage on roofs as part of post-reform changes. ACV pays the depreciated value — not replacement cost. On a 15-year-old roof, this could mean a 40–50% reduction in payout. If the property has an ACV roof endorsement, flag it for the owner and discuss whether an RCV endorsement is available and at what cost.
A 5% hurricane deductible on a $600,000 property is $30,000 out of pocket. As property values increase with Coverage A adjustments, the dollar exposure from percentage-based deductibles increases in parallel. Review whether the current deductible percentage still makes sense given the coverage limit and the owner's reserve position.
Properties added mid-year, transferred between owners, or recently renovated should be verified on the policy schedule. A property that's been acquired and managed for 8 months but never added to the policy has no coverage.
Check that endorsements added in prior years are still present (they can drop off at renewal) and that any new exposures are covered. Common endorsements to verify: scheduled equipment, pool screen/enclosure, detached structures, fungi/mold coverage.
Standard property policies do not cover flood damage. In a Florida hurricane, flood damage from storm surge or rising water is often the largest component of a loss — and it's not covered. Verify that NFIP or private flood coverage is in place for every property in a flood zone, and for properties in AE or VE zones, confirm the coverage limits are adequate.
Property managers and owners face liability exposure beyond what primary policies cover — particularly in multi-family settings where tenant injuries, common area accidents, and habitability claims are ongoing risks. An umbrella policy providing $1–5M in additional liability coverage is standard practice for professional property management.
Florida's carrier market has seen significant insolvency. Check the carrier's Demotech rating (minimum A required for most mortgage lenders) and verify they are actively writing policies in Florida — not in the process of non-renewal or market exit. See the guide to Florida property insurance company ratings for how to assess carrier stability.
When to Run the Review
60 days before renewal is the target. This window matters because several corrective actions have lead times:
- Wind mitigation inspections take 1–2 weeks to schedule, complete, and receive the report. You need the OIR-B1-1802 form in hand before the renewal quote is finalized.
- Competing quotes from other carriers take 2–3 weeks to fully underwrite. The 60-day window gives you time to evaluate alternatives, not just the incumbent's renewal offer.
- Owner communication — if you've identified gaps or changes, owners need time to make informed decisions before the renewal deadline.
- Coverage changes — adding ordinance or law coverage, adjusting deductibles, or adding endorsements all require underwriting time that the incumbent may need 3–4 weeks to process.
Most property managers have renewal dates scattered across the calendar. Build a recurring calendar task that triggers 75 days before each property's renewal date — giving you 15 days to pull the policy documents before the 60-day review window begins. If you manage 30 properties, you'll have reviews running throughout the year. That's fine — it's better than a single-month scramble to review all policies at once.
Florida insurers issue renewal offers 45–60 days before expiration. If you take no action, the policy renews on the incumbent's terms. After a year in which the carrier made significant changes — ACV roof endorsement, reduced ordinance or law sublimit, increased deductible — auto-renewal locks you into those terms without review. Never let a Florida property policy auto-renew without running through this checklist first.
Communicating Review Findings to Owners
Property managers have a practical obligation to surface coverage gaps and options to the owners they represent. The annual review is the vehicle for this communication. A written summary — even a short email — covering the key findings from the checklist protects you and gives the owner the information they need to make coverage decisions.
At minimum, communicate:
- Whether Coverage A appears adequate or warrants a replacement cost review
- The current hurricane deductible dollar exposure (Coverage A × deductible %)
- Any identified coverage gaps — particularly ACV roof language, missing ordinance or law, or absent flood coverage
- Whether the carrier's financial stability appears sound or warrants consideration of alternatives
- The renewal premium vs. prior year, and whether a competing quote is worth pursuing
Track renewal dates and review status across your portfolio
LossHQ lets you log renewal dates per property, track which properties have had their annual review completed, and flag coverage gaps for owner follow-up — so the review process runs on schedule across your entire portfolio.
Start Free — No Credit Card →The Bottom Line
The annual insurance review is not a nice-to-have in Florida — it's operational infrastructure. The market is too volatile, the coverage terms change too frequently, and the consequences of a coverage gap during a storm are too expensive to leave this to chance. Run the checklist, run it early, communicate the findings, and make the changes before the renewal date locks you in for another year.
For context on specific items from the checklist, see the guides to wind mitigation inspections, hurricane deductibles, and carrier ratings.