How inflation and natural disasters are affecting homeowners insurance costs

You may have heard in the news that several carriers have stopped offering homeowners insurance policies. And most policies are up about 30%. So it’s important to pay attention to your homeowners policy, due to industry changes. Inflation and natural disasters are affecting homeowners insurance costs – find out what you can do about it.

What happens if a carrier drops your homeowners policy?

Due to rising cost of natural disasters, two insurance carriers announced that they will no longer be serving customers in California – Allstate and State Farm. And more companies are due to announce changes. And in Florida, a combination of changes to the ability to sue insurers for coverage coupled with storm damage has caused a number of carriers to halt policies.

If you are affected by your insurance carrier withdrawing from your state, most states have protections on the length of notice they have to give you before they cancel coverage so that you can find a new insurer.

What can you do if your existing policy increases in cost?

Inflation has been a big factor in homeowners insurance increasing about 30% in many areas. As homeowners insurance is one of a homeowners biggest expenses, besides property taxes, many are feeling the pinch.

But, many people don’t know that it’s very easy to swap out one policy for another. You can request a copy of your current coverage, and then hit the phones or the internet and see who can match your existing coverage dollar for dollar but at a lower overall cost.

Here’s a how-to on how to negotiate a better, less expensive homeowners insurance policy for yourself step-by-step.