During a recent inspection, I had a conversation with a homeowner about something most people don’t think twice about — the direction their doors swing.
It started with a simple observation: the exterior doors on their home were outswing, not inswing. This turned into a longer discussion about safety, storm resistance, and whether any of this matters when it comes to insurance.
Let’s break it down.
What’s the Difference?
- Inswing doors open into the home. They’re the most common style for front and rear doors in most U.S. homes.
- Outswing doors open outward, away from the home. These are more common in commercial construction and in areas prone to hurricanes and high winds.
Safety Considerations
Inswing doors are generally considered safer in terms of emergency egress — they’re easier to force open from the outside in a fire or flood. However, from a security standpoint, outswing doors can be harder to kick in or force open due to the doorstop placement and hinge design.
That said, hinge pin security is a concern for outswing doors, especially if they’re exposed. That can be mitigated with locking hinge pins or security hinges.
Wind Resistance in Florida
Here’s where it gets interesting:
Outswing doors are often recommended in hurricane-prone areas like Vero Beach and Sebastian because they perform better under pressure. When wind pushes against the outside of an outswing door, it actually presses it more firmly into the frame, which helps resist blow-in failures during storms.
Inswing doors, on the other hand, rely heavily on deadbolts and strike plates to keep the wind out — and those components can fail under extreme pressure if not properly installed.
So What Does Insurance Care About?
Surprisingly… not much, when it comes to door swing.
Most insurance companies in Florida don’t consider inswing vs. outswing doors as part of wind mitigation credits. What they do care about is:
- Impact-rated glass or solid core materials
- Reinforced door frames
- Proper anchoring and installation
The direction of the swing doesn’t appear anywhere on the 4-point or wind mitigation forms.
So while outswing doors might give you better hurricane performance, they won’t earn you a premium discount on their own.
Sean’s Advice
I’m a big believer in balancing safety, performance, and common sense. If you’re replacing doors near the coast, consider going with outswing models — especially for exposed entries. They hold up better in storms, and with the right hinges, they’re secure.
But don’t stress over it for insurance reasons — the underwriters aren’t even asking.
If you want to know what really affects your coverage and costs, schedule a wind mitigation inspection. That’s where the real savings are found.
Serving all of Indian River County — Vero Beach, Sebastian, Fellsmere, and beyond.