What Fails a 4-Point Inspection in Florida: The Form, Line by Line
This guide goes through the Florida insurance 4-point form one section at a time and points to the boxes where older homes in Hernando, Pasco and Citrus counties tend to get stuck. It comes from Jay Sampson of All Corners Home Inspection, FL License #HI8193 and a State-Certified Building Contractor.
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Buying? The 4-point comes FREE with your full inspection.
So does the wind mitigation form. Both are included with a complete home inspection, done in the same visit. Ask about it when you call.
A 4-point is a form, not a grade
People ask what fails a 4-point, and the honest answer starts with the paperwork. The 4-point is an insurance form covering four systems: electrical, plumbing, heating and cooling, and the roof. The inspector writes down what is there, how old it is and what shape it is in, then photographs it. Nobody stamps the house pass or fail.
Trouble comes from a specific answer in a specific box. Citizens publishes a sample of the form, and many carriers (insurance companies) use a similar one, so ask your agent which version yours wants. Citizens tells its agents not to submit applications where the electrical, heating or plumbing is not in good working order or has an existing hazard. The form records the condition. Your agent and the carrier decide what they will write.
Not sure whether your carrier wants one at all? That is the carrier's call, it usually turns on the age of the house, and your agent can tell you. If you already know the carrier wants one, read on. All Corners does 4-point inspections in Hernando County and across Pasco and Citrus.
Around here, a lot of houses are old enough to land in front of this form. Spring Hill was founded in 1967 as a planned community by the Deltona Corporation and the Mackle Brothers, and the same developer opened Citrus Springs in 1970. Many homes in both have stood for decades, which puts them inside the age range where many carriers start asking for a 4-point. The wiring, plumbing and roof on a house that age may be original, partly updated or fully redone, and the form is how the carrier finds out which.
Worth knowing. The form says on its face that it makes no promise about how well or how long any system will hold up. Its only job is to help a carrier decide whether the house is insurable.
Electrical: the page that flags the most houses
The electrical part asks more questions than any other. Here is what it wants and which answers draw a second look.
Panel and amperage
Breaker or fuse, total amps, and one blunt question: is amperage sufficient for current usage? A small fuse panel feeding a kitchen full of modern appliances is the kind of answer that gets noticed.
Wiring type
There are boxes for cloth wiring, active knob and tube, and branch-circuit aluminum, meaning aluminum wire running from the panel to the outlets, switches and lights instead of copper. A check in any of them is something your agent will want to raise with the carrier before the policy starts.
Single-strand aluminum
Aluminum branch wiring is not automatically a dead end. The form asks how it was remediated. COPALUM crimps and AlumiConn connectors are the two repair methods the form names, and a licensed electrician will recognize both. The form also wants separate documentation certified by a licensed electrician. No paperwork, no closed box.
Panel age and brand
The inspector records the age of the panel, the year it was last updated, and its brand and model. Many carriers look hard at certain older panel brands, so ask your agent before assuming yours is fine or doomed.
Below the panel questions sits a hazard checklist. Anything marked present needs a photo. The form lists twelve, and they sort into three groups:
- ✓Overload signs. Blowing fuses, tripping breakers, over fusing (a fuse or breaker bigger than the wire it protects) and improper breaker size.
- ✓Bad connections. Loose wiring, double taps, corrosion and scorching.
- ✓Exposure and safety. Empty sockets, exposed wiring, unsafe wiring and improper grounding.
From the builder's side, these are not equal. A double tap, two wires clamped under one breaker screw, is often a short visit for an electrician. Scorching or corrosion means heat or moisture has been at work for a while, and a carrier will usually want that corrected and documented before it moves forward.
Plumbing: the water heater, the leaks and the pipe list
TPR valve
The form asks if the water heater has a temperature and pressure relief valve, the safety valve that opens when the tank runs too hot or too high in pressure. A missing one is easy to spot and gets marked.
Active or prior leaks
Any leak happening now, and any sign of an old one, goes on the form. The inspector then rates the condition of each fixture and photographs the plumbing and drains under the cabinets.
Original or re-piped
The supply piping is marked original, completely re-piped or partially re-piped. If the house was re-piped, find the plumber's invoice with the year on it.
Pipe type
The choices are copper, PVC/CPVC, galvanized, PEX, polybutylene and other. Polybutylene and galvanized are the two buyers ask about most, and many carriers look closely at both.
A builder's note on galvanized steel: it rusts from the inside out, so the pipe can look fine on the outside while the pressure at the faucets slowly drops. Polybutylene is one of the pipe types the form asks about by name. Either way, the inspector marks what is in the walls and under the house. What happens with that answer is between you and your agent.
Heating and cooling: six things the form checks
- ✓Central system. Is there central air and central heat, and is each in good working order?
- ✓Service history. The form wants the date of last servicing. A receipt from the last tune-up answers it.
- ✓Age. Read off the dated manufacturer's plate on the equipment, and that plate gets photographed.
- ✓Space heater as primary heat. If a portable heater is how the house stays warm in January, the form asks about it directly.
- ✓Wood stove or gas fireplace. The question is whether it was professionally installed.
- ✓Condensate line or drain pan. Blockage or leakage there has its own checkbox. Through a Gulf Coast summer that line drains water all day, and a clogged one shows up as a wet pan or a stain on the ceiling under the air handler.
The roof: age, remaining life and the damage list
The roof part asks for the covering material, its age, an estimate of remaining useful life and the date of the last roofing permit. It also asks whether the last replacement was full or partial, and for a partial job, the share of the roof that was redone.
The damage list
Cracking, cupping or curling, granule loss, exposed asphalt or felt, missing, loose or cracked tabs or tiles, soft decking, and hail damage. Every item checked gets a photo.
Leaks inside
The inspector looks for leak signs in the attic and on the ceilings below. An old stain still gets noted, so if the roof was repaired, keep the roofer's paperwork handy.
Remaining useful life
This is a judgment call, and a building background matters here. Reading shingle wear, decking and flashing is contractor knowledge, and Jay brings 25+ years in insurance restoration to it.
One form, not two
The roof section, with a photo of each slope, can take the place of the separate Roof Inspection Form. Ask your agent if your carrier wants it handled that way.
How to get the house ready for the 4-point
- ✓Make it easy to reach. Clear the way to the electrical panel, the water heater, the plumbing under the sink cabinets, the air handler and its dated plate, and the attic access.
- ✓Re-pipe paperwork. If the house was completely or partially re-piped, have the plumber's invoice with the year on it.
- ✓Roofing paperwork. Keep the roofer's paperwork for the last replacement or repair, including the permit date.
- ✓HVAC service paperwork. The receipt from the last servicing answers the form's date-of-last-service question.
Who is allowed to sign a 4-point
All Corners Home Inspection is Jay Sampson's company, based on the west side of Spring Hill in Hernando County, Florida. Citizens lists who may complete and sign the form, and licensed home inspectors and licensed contractors are both on that list. Jay Sampson is both: FL License #HI8193 and a State-Certified Building Contractor, InterNACHI Certified and inspecting since 2013. Read more about Jay Sampson.
Buying? The 4-point and a wind mitigation inspection both come free with a full home inspection, which looks well past the four systems at the structure, the attic, the exterior and the rest of the house. Selling an older home? A pre-listing inspection turns up the items a buyer's insurer would flag while you still have time to deal with them.
What usually happens next
The form records it
The marked box and its photo go into the 4-point. You'll have the full report the same day, and Jay goes over it with you.
Your agent reads it
The agent decides what the carrier will accept and what it wants corrected first. On a purchase, ask early, while the inspection period is still open.
A licensed trade fixes it
An electrician, plumber, HVAC company or roofer makes the repair and hands you paperwork. For aluminum wiring, that is the licensed-electrician documentation the form calls for.
A new form shows the fix
After repairs, a fresh 4-point records the corrected condition. Your agent can say whether the carrier needs the whole form again or just proof of the repair.
4-point inspections nearby
4-point questions, answered
What will fail a 4-point inspection in Florida?
The form has no pass or fail grade, but certain answers can stop an application: active knob and tube or cloth wiring, single-strand aluminum branch wiring without documented repair, any of the twelve electrical hazards, polybutylene or galvanized supply lines, a missing TPR valve, active leaks, a space heater as the main heat, and roof damage or little remaining life. Which of these a carrier will accept is up to the carrier, so ask your agent.
What happens if my house fails a 4-point inspection?
The form records conditions rather than grading them, and your agent decides what the carrier will accept. Citizens tells agents not to submit applications where the electrical, heating or plumbing is not in good working order or has an existing hazard. The usual path is a repair by a licensed trade, then a new form showing the fix, but check with your agent first.
Will cloth wiring or aluminum wiring stop me from getting insurance?
It can, depending on the carrier. Cloth wiring and active knob and tube each have a box on the form. Single-strand aluminum branch wiring is a different case when it has been remediated with COPALUM crimps or AlumiConn connectors and a licensed electrician has certified the work in writing. Ask your agent what yours accepts.
Are polybutylene or galvanized pipes a problem on a 4-point?
They can be, depending on the carrier. Both are on the form's list of supply pipe types, next to copper, PVC/CPVC and PEX, and many carriers look closely at both. The form also asks whether the house was completely or partially re-piped, so a re-pipe invoice helps.
Does the 4-point cover the roof, or do I need a separate roof form?
The 4-point has its own roof section, and with a photo of each slope it can take the place of the separate Roof Inspection Form. It covers material, age, remaining useful life, the last roofing permit date and visible damage. Ask your agent whether your carrier wants anything beyond that.
Can I fix the problems and have the 4-point redone before closing?
Usually, yes, if the timeline allows. Have a licensed trade make the repair and keep the paperwork, then a new 4-point records the corrected condition. Start early in the inspection period so there is room for both.
How long is a 4-point inspection good for?
Citizens' inspections page does not state a validity period, and it varies by carrier. Ask your agent how recent a 4-point their carrier will take.
Older house, insurance on the line? Know what the form will say.
Set up the 4-point on its own, or get it free with a full inspection. You'll have the full report the same day. Call Jay at 352-293-2165.
