Three inspections that get confused
The word "inspection" covers three very different jobs, and picking the wrong one wastes money and time. Knowing which one your carrier is asking for is most of the battle.
| Inspection | What it is for |
|---|---|
| General condition report | A roofer looks the roof over, flags damage, and estimates remaining life. Often offered at no charge by a contractor before a bid. |
| Four-point or insurance inspection | A carrier-facing report covering roof, electrical, plumbing, and HVAC, sometimes required to write or renew a policy on an older home. |
| FORTIFIED evaluation | A separate paid inspection by an independent IBHS-certified evaluator that produces the FORTIFIED designation. Not the same as a condition report. |
The first two report on the roof you already have. The third certifies a roof to a standard, and it is the only one that unlocks the Alabama insurance discount. That evaluation runs roughly $300 to $600 per project and is performed by an independent evaluator, not the roofer and not this site. The role is described at fortifiedhome.org.
Why Alabama carriers press on roof age
Many Alabama carriers treat an older roof as a higher risk and will ask for an inspection before they renew, or decline to write a new policy until the roof is addressed. The exact age thresholds and requirements vary by company, so the only reliable move is to get your carrier's request in writing: which inspection, what it must show, and by when. That turns a vague warning into a checklist a roofer can actually work from.
What an inspection can do is document condition, remaining life, and any repairs that would bring the roof back into good standing. What it cannot do is add years to a roof that is genuinely worn out. If the report confirms the roof is near the end, no amount of paperwork changes that, and the honest next step is a repair or a replacement.