Homeowner Insurance Doubled?!!

[JoeWras]

Keep in mind that most states have insurance commissions that review such increases. Some such commissions have quite stringent oversight. I'm not saying "they've got your back" but at least most insurance companies can't just double rates without some explanation. I'd call 'em up and ask "what the hey?"

And this is why I dropped State Farm a few years ago.

They sent me a letter a few months before renewal that made me sign away my rights to state maximum rates in order to continue coverage. I did so, and then the renewal rate was over the state maximum. I called my agent and her answer was: "Everyone is doing it."

No they are not.

I made a few calls and went with Amica and called back my agent and canceled right then an there, even though I had paid the full year, and I was only a few weeks into the term.

At least they sent the refund check quickly.

 

[VanWinkle]

And this is why I dropped State Farm a few years ago.

They sent me a letter a few months before renewal that made me sign away my rights to state maximum rates. I did so, and then the renewal was over the state maximum. I called my agent and her answer was: "Everyone is doing it."

No they are not.

I made a few calls and went with Amica and called back my agent and canceled right then an there, even though I had paid the full year, and I was only a few weeks into the term.

At least they sent the refund check quickly.

+1 Way to go Joe!!!

 

[COcheesehead]

Did you mean $300 to $535/year? $30/year seems way too low.

No I mean it went up $30 over last year to $535 total for the 2023. I posted my payment receipt up thread.
I also have two autos with Progressive, they come in at about $1300 for the year and a few million dollar umbrella that runs about $500.
So all in I pay Progressive just over $2300 a year.

 

[JoeWras]

No I mean it went up $30 over last year to $535 total for the 2023. I posted my payment receipt up thread.
I also have two autos with Progressive, they come in at about $1300 for the year and a few million dollar umbrella that runs about $500.
So all in I pay Progressive just over $2300 a year.

What kind of deductibles do you have?

 

[COcheesehead]

What kind of deductibles do you have?

$1000, $100 for glass on the autos.
$1000 on the home with an additional 50% replacement cost kicker. So the policy will actually cover $1.5m if needed.

 

[pb4uski]

No I mean it went up $30 over last year to $535 total for the 2023. I posted my payment receipt up thread.
I also have two autos with Progressive, they come in at about $1300 for the year and a few million dollar umbrella that runs about $500.
So all in I pay Progressive just over $2300 a year.

Got it, I misread it.

 

[JoeWras]

$1000, $100 for glass on the autos.
$1000 on the home with an additional 50% replacement cost kicker. So the policy will actually cover $1.5m if needed.

Not bad.

 

[gayl]

$3985 (1k deductible, full replacement coverage) which includes $2929 for earthquake insurance (5% deductible). I live in earthquake country. My monthly bill for home, auto, umbrella is currently $436.40 a month.

 

[trumpeting_angel]

I previously had insurance with Travelers, home & car & umbrella. I bought a new house and made the mistake of disclosing that there was a woodstove in the basement (incorrectly installed) but that I had no intention of using it. They wouldn't insure it, and the agent began shopping around but told me to try on my own because the purchase was imminent. I found Hippo, a startup with a few years' (can't recall, over 5) experience. Not only was it startlingly cheap (again, can't recall the $ but I was astonished and made the rep go over the coverage with me a second time), but they also sign you up for SimpliSafe and send you the materials without charge.

This surprised me, too, but I realize that they are insuring me for fire, theft, and other hazards, and that this system will prevent most thefts (especially in my quiet town) and reduce damage from fires by rapid notification of the fire department. Not bad.

 

[VanWinkle]

$3985 (1k deductible, full replacement coverage) which includes $2929 for earthquake insurance (5% deductible). I live in earthquake country. My monthly bill for home, auto, umbrella is currently $436.40 a month.

That's why they call it a HCOL area I'm guessing.

VW

 

[brett]

It may depend on where you live...right down to the postal code.

The best way of checking is to get competitive quotes. That is really the only way you will know what the market is.

We do this whenever we feel that any of our insurance product renewals have a large increase that is difficult to justify.

Other than that is comes down to specific coverages and policy deductibles.

 

[2retireearly]

Mine has gone up some, but of course this is because the assessed value of my house has gone up...so real estate taxes and insurance go up to reflect this.

 

[zippy2020]

Like gayl, I live in the San Francisco Bay Area. After ignoring our insurance for a decade I realized that we must be wildly underinsured, as the value of our home had risen substantially.

Where we live the value of the land is 80% of its worth. The house itself is literally a throwaway. They just don't seem to be cultivating big crops of hillside view lots in centrally-located quiet old neighborhoods, LOL.

I asked my agent what the current building cost was (this was about 18 months past). She said in our zip it was $425/sq. ft. I pointed out that in a quake or wildfire, building costs go through the roof (the classic 'supply-and-demand problem'). I set the policy's replacement costs at $450/sq. ft., but I'll probably call her back and bump it up again to $500/sq. ft.

Since we had pushed up all our limits on auto, home and umbrella, the new tab was double the old premium. We did get a modest price increase upon annual renewal this past June, but it was only about $50/mo.

We have a separate earthquake policy, since we live less than 2 miles from the Hayward Fault.

 

[kgtest]

I've always lived in hail prone areas. This year we had some hail and before the last piece fell the roofing companies were knocking on doors asking if they could inspect. I saw about 5 or 6 homes in my neighborhood get new roofs. In the 8 yrs I lived here 2 of my 3 closest neighbors had roofs replaced due to hail damage. Unfortunately my rates went up even though I've never had a claim.

Maybe during the next hail storm I'll tell them to kick a shingle off or something so I can get a new roof. KIDDING....but I hear that it does happen.

They tried to offer me flood coverage. I declined. Second year I was in my house we had water up to our back door. I thought it was going to come inside but stroke of luck that it did not.

I have a sump pump that has never kicked on and I don't know if it even works. The only thing I am concerned about at this point is a total loss due to fire or tornado. I suppose if a tornado came through they could fight me and say it was the rain that destroyed the home and not the wind. I could totally see that BS happening.

Our insurance went up $70 from last year. Our auto insurance went up 17% after I had a no-fault claim when someone clobbered the side of my truck. You know the saying "can't have anything nice". Yeah. My beautiful 1/2 ton truck took a beating in that wreck but she is all fixed up. I only put like 7 or 8,000 miles a year on the truck.

Insurance, Healthcare, and Gubmint are the 3 biggest scams on planet earth.

 

[dianinco]

Had a very similar thing happen in Denver suburb. I Wasn’t happy with current broker for not shopping it around. Called new broker who did just that and got almost the same rate as before the increase WITH THE SAME COMPANY. He entered it as a new policy through his agency. He cancelled the old policy and established the new one. How weird is that?

 

[COcheesehead]

There are always new customer incentives. Shop, shop, shop.

 

[JoeWras]

This hail thing is killing our homeowner's insurance. Look, hail causes damage and can result in a claim. But the way this has changed in the last 10 years or so is out of control.

I guess I was an idiot to pay for my own roof this year.

 

[mrstop]

I made a few calls and went with Amica and called back my agent and canceled right then an there, even though I had paid the full year, and I was only a few weeks into the term.

You'll love Amica. I have been with them for 25 years for home/auto/umbrella. I might be able to find insurance for a bit less, but their service is unbeatable. The few times I have had to make claims, they handle it promptly and without difficulty. They even allow you to choose your body shop and use factory parts if you have an auto claim.


I could probably shop around and find something a little bit lower. However, I want my insurance to be there when I need it. Having and adversarial insurance company is not something I want on top of the stress of dealing with a claim to my home or auto. I have heard and seen too many horror stories with companies like State Farm.

 

[frank]

i've always lived in hail prone areas. This year we had some hail and before the last piece fell the roofing companies were knocking on doors asking if they could inspect. I saw about 5 or 6 homes in my neighborhood get new roofs. In the 8 yrs i lived here 2 of my 3 closest neighbors had roofs replaced due to hail damage. Unfortunately my rates went up even though i've never had a claim.

Maybe during the next hail storm i'll tell them to kick a shingle off or something so i can get a new roof. Kidding....but i hear that it does happen.

They tried to offer me flood coverage. I declined. Second year i was in my house we had water up to our back door. I thought it was going to come inside but stroke of luck that it did not.

I have a sump pump that has never kicked on and i don't know if it even works. The only thing i am concerned about at this point is a total loss due to fire or tornado. I suppose if a tornado came through they could fight me and say it was the rain that destroyed the home and not the wind. I could totally see that bs happening.

Our insurance went up $70 from last year. Our auto insurance went up 17% after i had a no-fault claim when someone clobbered the side of my truck. You know the saying "can't have anything nice". Yeah. My beautiful 1/2 ton truck took a beating in that wreck but she is all fixed up. I only put like 7 or 8,000 miles a year on the truck.

Insurance, healthcare, and gubmint are the 3 biggest scams on planet earth.

+11111

 

[dm]

Mine doubled in the last two years, $2500-$5000. I had my first claim from Ian, $30,000-the $10,000 deductible ended up with $20,000.

I’m not looking forward to renewal time. This does not include flood.

Also my roof is getting older and I’ll probably have to replace in the next 5 years In order to insure. Tile roof will probably cost $75,000 plus. Of coarse there was not much damage to the roof during Ian, I was hoping for a new roof but there was not that much damage to it. Solar panels took a beating though.

 

[PatrickA5]

Been with State Farm for 40 years. About every 3rd year I get with an independent agent and shop around. Never comes close when considering the whole package (2 cars, house, umbrella). Places like Geico and Progressive can beat my auto premiums, but Homeowners is way higher. I'm not married to State Farm, but would need to see a decent savings to change.

Our homeowners went up 6% and cars went up 4% last policy update.

I got a new roof probably 20 years ago on my old house, but since then no claims. The few auto claims we've had over the years have been fine - no problems.

 

[njhowie]

Farmers Insurance pulls out of Florida, affecting 100,000 homeowners
https://news.yahoo.com/farmers-insurance-pulls-florida-angering-170200183.html

State is saying they are going to stop the company from leaving, but I seriously doubt they have the ability to do that.

 

[Stormy Kromer]

You're being Quiet Canceled.

 

[Ian S]

Farmers Insurance pulls out of Florida, affecting 100,000 homeowners
https://news.yahoo.com/farmers-insurance-pulls-florida-angering-170200183.html

State is saying they are going to stop the company from leaving, but I seriously doubt they have the ability to do that.

I'll guess they'll have to change the end of their commercial to "done, done, done, done, done, done, done!"

 

[njhowie]

AAA now following Farmers out of FL.