What’s a Four Point Inspection Anyway?
Four Point Inspection: A 4-pont inspection is requested by your insurance company based on the age of the home. Typically homes 25 years or older will require a 4-point inspection. The purpose of the inspection is to determine if your home has any problematic building materials / systems.
As the name implies, the inspection is of the 4 major systems of the home. These systems include the plumbing, electrical, roof and HVAC (Heating & Cooling System). Here’s a breakdown of the items the insurance company wants to identify. These problematic materials can be things like single strand aluminum wiring, cast iron drain lines, polybutylene supply lines, roof coverings with less than 5 years remaining life expectancy, electrical systems that are only 100-amps or less, Federal Pacific Electric (FPE) electrical panels and obsolete systems life fuses and not breakers. Below we’ll review what features the insurance company is looking for with each of the 4 points of the home
Electrical System – Your home if built in the early 1970’s may have single strand aluminum wiring which has been identified as a fire hazard. Also there are electrical panels that have breakers with a higher than average failure rate. These include FPE, Sylvania and Bulldog electrical panels. These components are potential fire hazards and put you and your insurance company at a higher risk.
Plumbing System – With the plumbing system homes built in the early 1990’s may have polybutylene supply lines. These supply lines have been known to fail and cause catastrophic water damage. Also older homes built prior to 1970 may have cast iron drain-lines. These cast iron pipes are aging and can deteriorate causing leaking and back-ups. The age of the water heater is also documented.
Roofing – The roofing assessment is to identify active roof leaks, damaged shingles and roof coverings that are nearing the end of their useful life expectancy. Typically the insurance companies want to see 3 – 5 years of remaining useful life expectancy.
HVAC – This part of the inspection is to identify the age of your heating and cooling system and ensure they are in working condition.
If you are scheduling a four point inspection, create a list of any upgrades you have done on any of the above systems. Also, get you permit information together for any of the upgrades that required permits. The insurance companies want the permit number documented. This will help the inspector put together an accurate report in a timely manner.
At Priority Home Inspections, we provide four point, roof surveys and wind mitigation inspections. Call 321-368-9921 to schedule your insurance inspections.
Matt Hawley / Inspector / Owner
