Should You Make That Homeowner's Insurance Claim? Maybe Not, Especially if You Live in Certain States

SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 2, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- In some states, making a single homeowner's insurance claim raises the annual premium cost over 20%, according to a new InsuranceQuotes.com report. The state with the highest increase is Minnesota (+21.2%), followed by Connecticut (+20.6%) and Maryland (+19.3%).

Texas has the lowest post-claim increase; in the Lone Star State, insurers are not allowed to increase premiums after the first claim. New York (+1.1%) and Florida (+1.8%) have the second- and third-lowest increases, respectively. Nationally, making a homeowner's insurance claim leads to an average annual premium increase of 9%.

"Homeowners should think very carefully about whether or not to make a claim," said Laura Adams, senior insurance analyst, InsuranceQuotes.com. "Let's say you have a $1,000 deductible and the claim is going to lead to a 20% rate hike; it's probably not worth making a modest-sized claim."

More information, including a state-by-state chart and map, is available here:

http://www.insurancequotes.com/home/home-insurance-claim

InsuranceQuotes.com commissioned Quadrant Information Services to examine the average economic impacts of homeowner's insurance claims. Quadrant calculated rates using data for six large carriers in all 50 states. The policies were derived from a sample two-story, 1,800-square-foot, single-family home covered for $144,000.

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For More Information:

Ted Rossman
Public Relations Manager
ted.rossman@bankrate.com
917-368-8635

SOURCE InsuranceQuotes.com

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