Homeowners Insurance Ratings – Best Companies, Best Rates

Want to know where to find the best homeowners insurance companies with the best rates? Here’s where to find them.

Homeowners Insurance Company Ratings
There are a number of sources for homeowners insurance company ratings. Here are three of the best …
Your State’s Department of Insurance
All states maintain a department of insurance website, and most compile a yearly list of complaints that have been made against insurance companies. These complaints are a good way to judge a company’s reliability. Most companies have complaints filed against them, but if a company has a large number of complaints as opposed to other companies, you should avoid doing business with them.
If your state doesn’t list complaints, you can go to the California Department of Insurance website (insurance.ca.gov), or the New York State Insurance Department website (ins.state.ny.us) to get this information.
In addition to listing consumer complaints, these sites also list other information such as consumer information guides, insurance FAQs (frequently asked questions), and insurance updates.
J.D. Power & Associates (jdpower.com)
J.D. Power & Associates rates insurance companies based on the opinions of its customers. They rate companies according to coverage options, price, claims handling, satisfaction with company representatives, and overall experience.
These ratings give you a good idea of how a company treats its customers and how reliable it is in paying its claims. Ratings go from “Among the best” (highest) to “The rest” (lowest). Choose companies that are rated “About average” or higher.
A.M. Best (ambest.com)
A.M. Best rates insurance companies based on their financial strength. This measures an insurance company’s ability to pay its insurance claims. A high rating means a company has plenty of assets to pay it’s claims.
A.M. Best rates companies from A++ (the highest) to D (the lowest). When you buy insurance you should pick a company that has a B+ rating or higher.

Best Homeowners Insurance Rates
Because homeowners insurance rates can vary as much as $1,000 or more between insurance companies, the best way to get the best homeowners insurance rate is to compare rates at an insurance comparison website.