Carrollwood Insurance

Insurance in Carrollwood, Florida

Carrollwood and the surrounding northwest Hillsborough neighborhoods are inland, established, and largely built out. Mature trees, a housing stock that has been in the ground for decades, and a very different risk profile from the coast. The two questions that come up here more than anywhere else in our service area are sinkhole coverage and tree damage.

Sinkhole coverage is not what is already in your policy

Every property insurer authorized in Florida must include coverage for catastrophic ground cover collapse. Almost nobody realizes how narrow that is. Under section 627.706(2)(a) of the Florida Statutes, a loss only qualifies if all four of the following are true:

1. The ground cover collapses abruptly
2. A depression in the ground cover is clearly visible to the naked eye
3. There is structural damage to the building, including the foundation
4. The structure is condemned and ordered vacated by a government agency

Settling or cracking of the foundation does not qualify. In practice, that means the coverage you automatically have pays when your house is condemned, and not before.

Broader sinkhole loss coverage is separate. If your policy excludes sinkhole loss, Florida law requires the insurer to tell you so in bold 14-point type — which is why that paragraph is in your declarations, and why it is worth reading.

Whether it is worth buying in Carrollwood depends on your specific parcel and what the carrier’s geology tells them. In practice it is also hard to place, so we will tell you what is actually available for your address rather than what should be.

Trees, and what your policy actually does

Mature oaks are why people move to Carrollwood and why the claims look the way they do. Broadly: if a tree hits an insured structure, the resulting damage is generally covered and debris removal is usually limited. If a tree falls and hits nothing, removal is often not covered at all, or is capped at a few hundred dollars. And if your neighbor’s obviously dead tree hits your house, the claim still typically starts with your carrier, not theirs. Limits and exclusions vary by form — we will show you yours.

What we write here

Home, auto, umbrella, flood and business. Call (813) 499-9347.