Alabama’s wind mitigation program celebrates 50,000 fortified homes in the state

Alabama’s wind mitigation grant program has resulted in 50,000 homes being fortified over the past decade, outpacing most other coastal states that offer similar programs.

The Alabama Department of Insurance announced the milestone this week, offering more kudos to a program that has won praise from insurance officials across the state. The program offers grants of up to $10,000 to retrofit homes for better wind resistance, allowing homeowners to qualify for premium discounts on their home insurance.

“The Fortified Standard has changed the landscape of coastal Alabama,” Alabama Insurance Commissioner Mark Fowler said in a statement, referring to the Fortified Construction Guidelines developed by the Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety (IBHS). to which the program adheres. “The Fortified Program meant fewer blue tarps on houses after storms. This has meant that communities can get back to life faster instead of spending time rebuilding their neighborhoods and businesses.”

The program was initiated by Hurricane Ivan, which made landfall in 2004, causing considerable damage in Alabama and northwest Florida. By 2011, Alabama lawmakers authorized Strengthen Alabama Homes. In 2016, the state provided more than $70 million in roofing projects for more than 7,000 homes, according to news reports.

Other states have developed their own grant programs, and IBHS said Alabama, North Carolina and Louisiana have led the way in fortifying homes. Florida’s My Safe Florida Home program also offers grants of up to $10,000 and has proven extremely popular in that state, which has seen insurance premiums skyrocket in recent years.

Florida’s program began in the early 2000s, but was shut down for nearly two decades. The Florida Legislature earlier this year provided an additional $200 million, and the funds were exhausted within weeks. As of this week, the program has obligated grant financing for 57,976 homeowners, said Steven Fielder, chief business officer for the Florida Department of Financial Services, which oversees the program. Of this total, 24,749 have completed mitigation work and the rest are in various stages of completing work or submitting reimbursement claims.

Some experts, including a professor of insurance and risk management at Florida State University, said wind mitigation programs are the best defense against insurance losses during hurricanes and should receive much more funding. Others, including a former state senator, argued that My Safe Florida Home is only scratching the surface and not enough to make a difference in the hurricane-prone Sunshine State.

Alabama officials said the state program has made a difference for those homeowners who have retrofitted their homes with stronger roofs, windows, doors and roof-to-wall connections. Of the 17,000 fortified homes and 19 commercial structures in coastal areas, more than 95 percent experienced little or no damage during Hurricane Sally, a Category 2 storm that hit the state in 2020, the DOI said in a statement.

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