Insuranceopedia Launches Appeals Assistant as Survey Finds 60% of Homeowners Don't Know They Can Appeal a Claim Closed With No Payment

The $99 tool shows homeowners whether an insurer's decision is worth challenging and prepares the appeal, so they don't absorb a loss their policy may cover

DOVER, Del., Oct. 20, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Insuranceopedia today launched its Appeals Assistant, which helps U.S. homeowners challenge a home insurance claim that was underpaid or closed with no payment for a flat $99, instead of absorbing the loss or giving a public adjuster a share of the payout. The launch comes as a new Insuranceopedia survey of 700 homeowners finds nearly 60% don't know they can ask their insurer to reconsider or appeal a claim closed with no payment.

The findings come as claims that end without payment draw attention in Washington. On October 2, Senators Elizabeth Warren and Josh Hawley wrote to six major insurers about the trend. Their letters cited a Wall Street Journal analysis showing that 44% of claims resolved by the five largest home insurers in 2025 closed without payment, up from 36% a decade earlier.

Why Most Homeowners Never Push Back

Among the 337 respondents who had filed a claim, almost one in three (32%) were paid less than expected or had their latest claim closed with no payment. Of those 109 homeowners, 72% didn't challenge the decision: 30% said they didn't know they could, 31% felt it wasn't worth it and 8% thought it would be too complicated or time-consuming.

"Asking your insurer to reconsider is a normal part of the claims process," said Bob Phillips, a former licensed insurance agent with Insuranceopedia. "Go back with specifics: your policy wording, photos and a contractor's estimate."

What Homeowners Get

Homeowners find out whether a decision is worth challenging before they spend time or money on it. They share the insurer's letter and their policy, and the Appeals Assistant shows where the decision may not match the policy wording and prepares the appeal, with no policy language to decode or letter to write. If a decision looks valid, it says so.

They also keep the whole payout. Public adjusters typically charge a percentage of the settlement, often 10% or more: $2,000 on a $20,000 claim. The Appeals Assistant costs $99 per claim, covering both filing and any appeal, with no subscription. It sits alongside Insuranceopedia's Claims Assistant, which checks damage against the policy before a homeowner files. Homeowners review and send everything themselves. It provides information, not legal advice.

"Most homeowners who get less than they expected just absorb the loss," said Max Coupland, CEO of Insuranceopedia. "Doing it yourself means decoding a policy, and hiring help means giving up part of the payout. We built the Appeals Assistant so challenging a decision costs $99, not a cut of your claim."

Homeowners can check whether their claim decision is worth challenging at insuranceopedia.com/insurance-claim-appeal-help.

Methodology

Insuranceopedia surveyed 700 U.S. homeowners with current homeowners insurance through Pollfish on October 9, 2026. Results are unweighted and self-reported. Margins of error at 95% confidence are ±3.7 percentage points overall, ±5.3 for the 337 claimants and ±9.4 for the subgroup of 109. Smaller-group findings should be treated as directional.

Full results, methodology and charts: insuranceopedia.com/homeowners-insurance/homeowner-claims-survey

About Insuranceopedia

Insuranceopedia helps Americans understand and compare insurance, with more than 5,000 articles and definitions covering auto, home, life, business and other insurance. Its Claims Assistant and Appeals Assistant help homeowners file home insurance claims and appeal claim decisions. Insuranceopedia is owned by WiseCo Ventures Ltd.

Media contact: 
Max Coupland, CEO, Insuranceopedia
[email protected]

SOURCE Insuranceopedia