How does a hurricane deductible work in Florida?

It's a separate deductible for damage from a hurricane, usually a percentage of your dwelling coverage (Coverage A), not of the damage. It applies once per calendar year with the same insurer (Fla. Stat. 627.701).

When does the hurricane deductible apply?

From the time the National Hurricane Center issues a hurricane warning for any part of Florida until 72 hours after the last hurricane watch or warning for the state ends (Fla. Stat. 627.4025).

If two hurricanes hit in the same year, do I pay two hurricane deductibles?

No. With the same insurer or insurer group, the hurricane deductible applies once per calendar year. For a later hurricane, the insurer can apply whatever is left of it, or your regular deductible if that's higher.

Where do I find my hurricane deductible?

On your declarations page. Florida law requires insurers to show it as a dollar amount there, not just a percentage.

Hurricane deductibles, explained — From Elona’s desk

In Florida, hurricane damage to your home comes with its own deductible. It’s usually a percentage of your dwelling coverage, not a flat amount, and it applies once per calendar year, not once per storm.

That one line on your policy can make a bigger difference after a storm than anything else on it. So let’s walk through how it actually works.

It’s a percentage of your dwelling limit, not of the damage

This is the part that surprises people. If your hurricane deductible is a percentage, it’s a percentage of your dwelling coverage, the Coverage A amount on your declarations page. It isn’t a percentage of the repair bill.

So the higher your dwelling coverage, the higher the dollar amount you’d pay out of pocket before the policy pays for hurricane damage.

You don’t have to do the math yourself. Florida law requires insurers to show the actual dollar value of your hurricane deductible on your declarations page, at issue and at renewal (Fla. Stat. 627.701). Policies with a separate hurricane deductible also have to say so in bold, large type.

What options you’re offered

Before a Florida insurer issues a home policy, it has to offer hurricane deductibles of $500, 2%, 5% and 10% of the dwelling limit, with some exceptions for higher-value homes (Fla. Stat. 627.701). It also has to remind you of the options at every renewal.

Choosing a hurricane deductible above 10% on a home valued under $500,000 takes a signed, handwritten or typed statement from every named insured, and your lender’s written OK if there’s a mortgage.

Which one is right for you depends on what you could pay tomorrow without borrowing, and that’s a conversation, not a rule of thumb.

When it applies

The hurricane deductible isn’t for any windy day. Florida law defines the window (Fla. Stat. 627.4025):

It starts when the National Hurricane Center issues a hurricane warning for any part of Florida.
It ends 72 hours after the last hurricane watch or warning for any part of the state is lifted.

Damage from a covered storm in that window falls under the hurricane deductible. Damage outside it, like a summer thunderstorm or a tropical storm that never brought a hurricane warning, is handled under your policy’s other deductible terms. Some policies have a separate wind deductible too, so read yours.

Once per calendar year

This part works in your favour. Florida applies the hurricane deductible annually, to all hurricane losses in a calendar year with the same insurer or insurer group (Fla. Stat. 627.701).

If a second hurricane hits later in the same year, the insurer can apply whichever is greater: what’s left of your hurricane deductible, or your regular deductible. You don’t start over.

Keep records of every hurricane loss during the year, including the ones that didn’t reach your deductible. They can count toward it, and your insurer may ask you to report them or keep receipts to apply them.

Good to know

Changing it after a loss. If you’ve had a hurricane loss and switch to a lower hurricane deductible, the lower one doesn’t apply until January 1 of the next year.
A roof deductible isn’t a hurricane deductible. Some Florida policies now carry a separate roof deductible, but the law says it can’t apply to a roof loss from a hurricane.
Flood is separate. Your hurricane deductible covers wind damage under your home policy. Storm surge and rising water need flood insurance. (Is flood covered by home insurance?)
Inflation guard can move it. If your dwelling limit rises at renewal, a percentage deductible rises with it. Check the dollar amount every year.
Know it before June. Hurricane season starts June 1. That’s the time to look, not when a storm is on the map. (My hurricane-season checklist.)

Want me to check yours?

Upload your declarations page at /quote/ or send it to me, and I’ll show you your hurricane deductible in dollars, what your other options would look like, and how they’d play out after a storm. No pressure to change anything.

Talk to Elona