GroundProof

Homeowners Insurance Non-Renewal in Tennessee: Your Evidence Rights, Step by Step

Last verified against source: October 19, 2026 · Source: Tennessee Department of Commerce & Insurance, Bulletin 25-03 (October 2025) — tn.gov/commerce/insurance

The rule that protects you

In October 2025, the Tennessee Department of Commerce & Insurance issued Bulletin 25-03, addressing how insurers use aerial imagery in claims and renewal decisions. Tennessee's position is direct: a photograph from the sky, by itself, is not a basis for taking your coverage.

What your insurer must do in Tennessee

Imagery alone can't justify a denial or non-renewal. Under Bulletin 25-03, an insurer may not rest a claim denial or a non-renewal solely on aerial imagery. The image can start a question; it cannot be the whole answer.

Blurry or outdated images are a legal problem for the insurer, not just for you. Denying coverage based solely on blurry or outdated imagery is an unfair claims practice under Tennessee law (Tenn. Code §56-8-105). If the photo your non-renewal rests on is old or unclear, the bulletin says the practice itself is unfair — that is the strongest sentence in the document, and it's yours to cite.

You are entitled to the images. Failing to give the policyholder copies of the aerial imagery used is itself an unfair practice. You do not have to guess what the insurer saw, and you do not have to accept "our system flagged your roof" as an explanation. Ask for the image set, in writing.

What to submit (in the order reviewers weight it)

1. A licensed professional's dated documentation — a roofer's report or receipt, an inspector's findings. This is the tier that carries decisions.
2. Dated transactional proof — invoices, permits, repair records, a signed contract for work in progress.
3. Your written request for the images + the insurer's re-inspection where the imagery is the only basis cited.
4. Your own dated photos — supporting material, weakest alone.

If the stated reason is a condition you can fix inside your window (debris, vegetation overhang, minor repairs), fix it first, then document the after state with dated photos behind the professional or transactional proof.

Your clock

Bulletin 25-03 does not create a separate cure-period number — your deadline is the effective date printed on your notice. Work backwards from it: request the images the day the letter arrives (in writing, so the request itself is dated), assemble evidence inside the first two weeks, submit with delivery proof and margin to spare.

If they won't review it

File a complaint with the Tennessee Department of Commerce & Insurance (tn.gov/commerce/insurance). The Department issued Bulletin 25-03 because these cases were reaching it; a complaint that cites the bulletin and attaches your unanswered image request is exactly the file it knows how to act on.

What GroundProof does in Tennessee

The Dispute Sprint ($99 flat): we take your notice, your insurer's stated reason, and your records, and assemble the evidence packet matched to Bulletin 25-03 and your deadline — including drafting the image request for you to send, and organizing the professional report where your case needs one. You submit everything in your own name. We organize documentation; we do not negotiate with your insurer, file on your behalf, or promise an outcome.