The Florida Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR) has approved updates to Citizens’ Commercial Lines rules clarifying wind construction classifications. The changes apply to both new and renewal business Commercial Lines policies with effective dates on or after September 1, 2026.

These updates, which have been applied to the Commercial Lines Underwriting manuals, provide clearer guidance for determining building wind construction, helping improve consistency and accuracy across submissions. The updates focus on how different construction types are defined, especially when it comes to roof materials and support systems.

Amendment to Rules

Commercial Wind-Only Policy Types

Definitions of Semi-Wind Resistive (SWR) and Wind Resistive (WR) construction were updated to better distinguish between buildings with lightweight steel bar joists and those with concrete roof decks composed of cast in place or pre-cast structural concrete not less than 4 inches in thickness designed to be self- supporting and integrally attached to load bearing walls.

Commercial Multiperil Policy Types

Definitions – Construction Enhancements for Basic Group II ‑ Rule 200 was updated to add additional construction enhancement definitions.

New Construction Enhancement Categories

The following categories were added as a new construction enhancement category for construction classified as other than light steel:

• Reinforced Concrete Roof – other than light steel
• Lightweight Concrete Roof Deck – light steel
• Metal Bar Joists – light steel

Resources

For more information, agents and credentialed agency staff can log in to the Agents website to review the Underwriting Guidelines and other resources to help you service your customers:

• Select Commercial > the applicable policy form > Manuals.
• Select Training > Commercial Job Aids to access:
  • Commercial Lines New-Business Submission Guide
  • Commercial Lines Resources
  • Required Document Guides: Select the applicable policy type in the Learn More section