Universal Risk Advisors
Carrier website links, underwriting access points, mapped product lines, and appetite notes in one place.
This appetite summary is only a guide. Confirm eligibility, submission requirements, restrictions, and binding authority directly with the carrier or underwriter before relying on it.
Carrier appetite summary
Verified official Florida underwriting/binding guide remains posted on Universal Property’s website. Core appetite is personal residential property, with active products shown for homeowners (HO2/HO3/HO5/HO8), condo/unit owners (HO6), renters (HO4), and landlord/dwelling property (DP1/DP2/DP3; landlord noted for Florida and North Carolina only). Florida binding guide shows HO3 in Tri-County (Broward, Miami-Dade, Palm Beach) for homes built 1996+ at $100k-$800k X-wind / $100k-$1.0M all-wind & non-windpool; Tri-County pre-1996 at $200k-$800k / $200k-$1.0M; all other counties HO3 built 1950+ at $100k-$800k / $100k-$1.0M. HO8 is for properties built 1890+; HO4/HO6 for properties built 1900+; new HO6 with Coverage A below $50k requires a replacement cost estimator. Coverage A must generally be written at 100% RCV for HO3/HO6/DP1/DP2/DP3; HO8 may use ACV, and properties over 100 years must be written ACV on HO8 only. Geography/binding notes: carrier directs agents to Atlas Bridge to check closed ZIP codes, includes a published list of open ZIP codes for certain HO3 properties up to 100 years old in non-windpool areas, and states it will not backdate cancellations. Preferred risks are owner/tenant-occupied personal residential properties in acceptable ZIPs, PC 1-9, annual rentals only, and homes with acceptable updates/condition. Property/condition restrictions include no mobile, trailer, manufactured, or modular homes; no dome/unusual construction; no EIFS; no pre-existing damage; no DIY construction; no builder’s risk or extensive renovation while unoccupied; no historic homes; no farming/agricultural exposures; no Chinese drywall; no properties over water; and no open foundations such as stilts/piers/pilings except limited form-specific allowances (HO8/DP1 generally acceptable; certain newer/open-foundation exceptions noted for HO3/DP2/DP3). Age/system requirements: four-point inspection required for properties older than 40 years except HO4/HO6/HO8; confirm roof/heating/electrical updates within 30 years on applicable risks; shingle roofs must be 20 years or newer (except HO8/DP1), wood roofs 15 years or newer, other roof types in good condition; no polybutylene pipes except HO8/DP1; no PEX except if built or updated 2010+; minimum 100 amps; no aluminum branch, cloth, knob-and-tube, double-tap wiring, fuses, or Federal Pacific/Zinsco/Sylvania-Zinsco/Challenger-Zinsco panels; operable A/C required statewide; vented operating heat required statewide except certain listed south/central Florida counties. Background/insured restrictions: prior arson, fraud, or misrepresentation disqualify; no bankruptcies within 60 months; no foreclosure judgments within 60 months; no felony convictions within 10 years; no first-party lawsuit against an auto or homeowners insurer regardless of time frame. Loss history restrictions are tight: prior sinkhole losses are unacceptable on all forms regardless of time frame; for most forms, prior water damage, dog bite, fire, or theft losses are generally unacceptable with limited exceptions, including one prior loss under $10k in the last 60 months with $1,000 AOP deductible excluding those major categories, certain remediated older losses, and a DP1 exception for one prior water loss in the last 60 months; HO8 has separate loss allowances. Liability/occupancy notes: no vacant or unoccupied properties; rentals must be annual 12-month basis and subletting is not acceptable; no condo hotels, nursing/assisted living, or student housing; log homes acceptable only in PC 1-8; handrails required on 3+ steps; pools/trampolines/diving boards/pool slides may be acceptable on HO3/HO8 with liability exclusion language; home day care can be acceptable if licensed and meeting state requirements with exclusion. Animal liability is heavily restricted: liability exclusion applies regardless of breed, and Chow, Staffordshire Terrier, Presa Canario, Akita, Pit Bull, and mixes 50%+ are unacceptable except HO8 exception noted. Submission/broker instructions: all business must originate from persons licensed for the agency by the company; brokered business is not acceptable unless placed under a written Brokerage Agreement. Bound risks require a completed and signed UPCIC application plus required premium; binder ends at earliest of 30 days after binding, policy acceptance/declination, or company notice. For new business payment options, guide shows full pay, 2-pay (55% down / 45% on day 180), and 4-pay (30% down with installments due on the 90th and 180th days per guide text). Risks outside binding guidelines may be submitted unbound only: send completed but unsigned application, expiring dec page (unless new home), and replacement cost worksheet when required; omit effective date, do not take premium, do not issue binder, and do not advise insured they are covered. Special endorsement note: sinkhole coverage cannot be added unless property is first inspected by AmeriPro and approved by underwriting, and request can only be made at inception or within 90 days prior to renewal. Producer support/contact notes: official site provides underwriting department contact numbers and an agent onboarding/become-an-agent pathway; resources page confirms agent-focused materials and product access.