How to Pass a 4-Point Inspection in Florida (What Fails One)
How to pass a 4-point inspection in Florida (and what fails one)
If your Florida home is roughly 25 years or older, your insurer almost certainly wants a 4-point inspection before they'll write or renew your policy. It looks at four systems — roof, electrical, plumbing and HVAC — and a "fail" on any one can mean a declined policy or a forced repair. Here's what actually trips these inspections up, so you can fix it before the inspector arrives.
Electrical: the most common failures
The electrical panel is where a lot of older Florida homes fail outright. Insurers routinely reject:
- Federal Pacific Electric (FPE) panels — one of the single most common reasons a home fails. Their breakers have a known history of not tripping.
- Zinsco and Challenger panels, and old fuse boxes.
- Aluminum branch wiring — a fire risk that can require remediation or a rewire.
- Knob-and-tube and cloth-insulated wiring — flagged as unsafe.
- Double-tapped breakers (two wires on a breaker built for one).
If you have one of these panels, replacing it before inspection is often what stands between you and coverage — and it's a licensed-electrician job.
Plumbing: the pipe materials insurers won't accept
- Polybutylene — grey plastic pipe common in homes built roughly 1978–1995. One of the most commonly rejected materials, because of its failure history. Many insurers won't cover a home that still has it.
- Old galvanized steel and aging cast-iron — corrosion and leak risk.
- Water heaters that are rusted, leaking, or simply old.
Roof: age and condition
A 4-point looks hard at the roof (and often it's paired with a separate roof or wind-mit inspection). Common red flags:
- Shingle roofs older than about 15–20 years.
- Missing, curled or cracked shingles, exposed underlayment.
- Active leaks or water stains — a near-automatic problem.
See our roof-age guide for the law that protects older-but-sound roofs.
HVAC: usually about age
The air conditioning rarely fails a 4-point on its own, but a very old system near the end of its life can raise flags. If yours is borderline, see our repair-or-replace guide before you spend.
How to pass: a short checklist
1. Know your panel brand. If it's FPE, Zinsco, Challenger or a fuse box, plan to replace it with a licensed electrician. 2. Find out your pipe material. If it's polybutylene, understand that a repipe may be required for coverage — better to know now. 3. Deal with visible roof wear and any active leaks first. 4. Fix the small stuff — a rusty water heater, an obvious drip, an exposed junction box — these add up. 5. Use a licensed inspector on the current state forms your carrier accepts, and licensed contractors for any fixes. Insurers won't accept unlicensed work.
The theme here is that everything a 4-point flags has to be corrected by a licensed, insured professional for it to count with your insurer — an electrician for the panel, a plumber for a repipe, a roofer for the roof. That's the whole point of BuildMatcher: every contractor is credential-checked before they can bid, so the person fixing your insurance red flags is verified.
When we open in your area, you'll be able to reach vetted local electricians, plumbers, roofers and inspectors directly — join the waitlist and we'll let you know the moment we're live near you.
*General information for Florida in 2026, not insurance advice. Inspection standards and carrier requirements vary — confirm what your insurer needs with your agent, and use a licensed Florida inspector.*
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