Overview of Allstate Home Insurance
Founded as an automobile insurance company in 1931, Allstate quickly established itself as an innovator: It introduced a system to rate driver safety, opened the first drive-in claims office, created a grant program to train educators to teach driver's ed, offered the first discounts to small-car owners and worked to pass landmark auto safety legislation. It has grown to offer insurance for auto, home, renters, motorcycle, business and life to some 16 million households, and it continues to innovate, offering a wide range of unique technological tools to its customers. Today, it's the second largest homeowners insurance company, with a market share above 8 percent (in 2019).
How Does Allstate Home Insurance Rate?
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Consumer Satisfaction Rating
These ratings are from the J.D. Power 2019 U.S. Household Insurance Study - Homeowners Insurance. The highest score for each category is five stars. The Allstate Insurance Company subsidiary rated here may not be the subsidiary that underwrites your insurance policy. Check with your insurance agent for more information. |
Customer Complaint Ratio
The National Association of Insurance Commissioners collects complaint information from state insurance regulators. The national median complaint ratio is 1. A score of less than 1 means a company has a less than average number of complaints, while a score higher than 1 means it has more than average. Find out more from the NAIC website. The Allstate Insurance subsidiary rated here may not be the subsidiary that underwrites your insurance policy. Check with your insurance agent for more information. Last Updated: July 2017 |
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Financial Strength Rating
A.M. Best's Financial Strength Rating opinion addresses the relative ability of an insurer to meet its ongoing insurance obligations. It is not a warranty of a company's financial strength and ability to meet its obligations to policyholders. View our Important Notice: Best's Credit Ratings for a disclaimer notice and complete details at http://www.ambest.com/ratings/notice. Financial Strength is rated on a scale of D (poor) to A+ (superior). A rating notch of either a second "+" or a "-" indicates the gradation of financial strength within the category. We can't guarantee that the subsidiary of Allstate Insurance rated here is the subsidiary that will underwrite your insurance policy. Check with your insurance agent and review A.M. Best's Financial Strength Rating Guide for more information. Best's Credit Ratings™ are under continuous review and subject to change and/or affirmation. For the latest Best's Credit Ratings™ and Best's Credit Reports which include Best's Credit Ratings™), visit the A.M. Best website at http://www.ambest.com. See Guide to Best's Credit Ratings™ for explanation of use and charges. Best's Credit Ratings™ reproduced herein appear under license from A.M. Best and do not constitute, either expressly or impliedly, an endorsement of MoneyGeek.com or its recommendations, formulas, criteria or comparisons to any other ratings, rating scales or rating organizations which are published or referenced herein. A.M. Best is not responsible for transcription errors made in presenting Best's Credit Ratings™. Best's Credit Ratings™ are proprietary and may not be reproduced or distributed without the express written permission of A.M. Best Company.
Source
A.M. Best
Rating
A+
Effective Date: January 2020 |
Website Features
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Pros and Cons of Allstate Home Insurance
Pros
- The optional Rate Guard feature can help you prevent your rate from increasing due to a claim.
- The Claims-Free Rewards program, which is an optional feature, rewards you at your renewal if you've had no claims during that policy period.
- Allstate boasts some the most home and auto policy options of any carrier in the country, so it is easy to bundle policies, including life insurance.
- Allstate offers many discounts that can be applied to your home insurance policy.
Cons
- Overall customer satisfaction for Allstate home insurance policyholders is only "About Average" (a score of 3 out of 5), according to the 2019 J.D. Power U.S. Household Insurance Study - Homeowners Insurance.
- The default coverage for your personal property has been lower than that of many other carriers.
- The Additional Living Expenses, or Loss of Use, coverage is capped at a set percentage of the Dwelling coverage rather than covering the total loss incurred.
- The online quoting system allows you to schedule coverage for special items such as jewelry or furs, but won't allow you to see how much they are covered for if not scheduled.
Allstate Home Insurance Coverage
Allstate Home Insurance is one of the country's largest insurers, but this doesn't translate into anything that really stands out above the crowd in terms of policy features or benefits. In fact, some coverages, such as personal property and loss of use, are lower than average and not up to the level that one would expect from such a leader in the industry. However, Allstate's online quoting system is worth noting. It works to make everything as simple as possible by using graphics and pictures to explain home insurance terms and by offering home policy packages with tiers of coverage based on the price a client is willing to pay. This is in addition to allowing you to customize your quote with a la carte coverage options.
Allstate's home insurance policies include dwelling coverage with adjustable deductibles for all perils and for windstorm or hail; coverage for your other structures, such as detached garage; personal property coverage; an additional living expense or loss-of-use coverage in case you have to move out of your home while it is being repaired; liability protection for you and your family; and guest medical coverage, which is also known as a no-fault coverage.
The online quoting system will attempt to determine a replacement cost based on public information, or you can enter an amount yourself.
Allstate encourages policyholders to carry at least 100 percent of the replacement cost for the dwelling coverage, and steers people toward talking with an agent in order to be sure that this coverage is adequate for the type and style of home being insured.
Allstate's default amount of personal property coverage is usually a smaller percentage of the dwelling coverage than that of other industry leaders. This means that unless you adjust this coverage, your personal property will be covered at a lower level here than with many other carriers.
Liability coverage is set by personal preference or agent recommendation. Since the online quoting system's suggestions typically run to the lower end of the spectrum, you may want to double-check whether this coverage is quoted at an adequate level.
Other structures coverage is typically set at 10 percent of the dwelling coverage, and this is what Allstate offers.
This is not a coverage that is intended to protect against all medical costs you're liable for after an accident. Allstate generally offers it in the amounts ranging from $1,000 to $5,000, all of which are appropriate for this type of insurance. For further protection, ask about an umbrella policy.
There are a number of optional coverages that are offered with most insurance company's home policies, and Allstate does make these available. But this company includes a number of additional, less-common coverages that people can elect to include in the policy as well, such as a protection against rate increases due to claims, or an extended coverage for the roof.
While some companies work the expanded replacement coverage cost into the policy automatically, Allstate's Reimbursement Extended Limits is an optional coverage that you need to purchase in addition to your insurance policy to cover your dwelling and other structures coverage. In most states, this coverage is up to 120 percent.
Allstate offers a wide range of coverage options for damage from a water backup, up to $50,000 in extra protection.
Allstate does not make clear how much coverage for these items is included in the standard home policy, nor which categories of property would need to be scheduled (that is, included in additional insurance coverage), Instead, the company directs consumers to speak with an agent about it.
On certain items that one would normally consider scheduling, such as jewelry, watches and furs, Allstate offers an extended coverage for extra protection.
There is an additional coverage option for certain sports equipment, some of which would normally be scheduled, such as golf gear, and some that would not, such as kayak equipment.
Allstate advises that availability of optional earthquake coverage varies by location, and directs consumers to check with an agent as to whether it is offered in their area.
Allstate does participate with the National Flood Insurance Program to administer flood policies written by the federal government, and provides useful tools and links on the website to help people understand the process.
Identity Theft Restoration coverage is available as an option with your Allstate home insurance.
If you own a business and keep work-related items at your home, this optional coverage protects those items.
If you chose to include this protection on your policy, it can help prevent your insurance rate from increasing if you have a claim.
As a partner component to the Claim RateGuard, you can earn a percentage of your premium to be applied toward your renewal if you don't have any home insurance claims over the course of the annual policy.
Available Discounts on Allstate
Home Insurance Coverage
Allstate offers a number of methods to lower your home insurance premium. Some will remain for the life of the policy, such as the preferred payment method discount, while you can expect others to roll off over the first few years of the policy.
| Type of Discount | Description |
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| Multi-policy discount | Bundle two or more Allstate policies together, such as home and auto or home and life, and you could earn significant savings. |
| Easy pay plan | An auto-pay program to pay your premium directly from your bank account will lead to a discount. |
| Claim-free discount | Claims cost insurance companies money, so when you don't file claims, Allstate will reward you. |
| Early signing discount | Many people only look to change insurance companies when their current policy is up for renewal. But if you plan ahead and switch over to Allstate before your current policy ends, you can receive a discount on your policy. |
| Home buyer discount | If you buy a home that has just been built, you will get a new home discount. This discount can also be applied to other recent home purchases in certain situations. |
| Safe home discount | Safety features such as a security system will qualify the home for an insurance discount. |
| Welcome discount | You may be able to get a discount just for being a new customer at Allstate. |
| 55 and retired discount | Allstate will reward you with a home insurance savings if you are older and spend your days away from a workplace. |
| Additional discounts | You may receive additional savings if you live in a smoke-free home, have storm shutters, have a hail-resistant roof and more. |
How to Make a Home Insurance Claim with Allstate
Allstate utilizes a multi-channel approach for claims, making it as easy as possible to start the process. It suggests that you gather as much information about the incident as you can but to not wait too long: The sooner you file the claim, the sooner Allstate can start work on it, so you don't have to have everything in hand before contacting the company. You can file a claim online, whether or not you have established an Allstate account, or you can use the Allstate Mobile app, call the 24-hour claims line or contact your agent directly.
How to Contact Allstate Home Insurance
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Customer Service Phone Number 800-255-7828
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Claim Phone Number 800-255-7828
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Email Contact form