Updated: May 22, 2024
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score884/5
satisfaction
5/5
affordability
4/5
stability
MoneyGeek’s research shows that Hippo is one of the best homeowners insurance providers as the company ranks well for user satisfaction and affordability. It also offers many unique coverages and discounts as well as 24/7 customer support. Its claims-filing process is relatively straightforward, making it easy for policyholders to file claims. However, its low to average financial stability rating indicates that the company may not always be able to efficiently file claims.
MoneyGeek analyzed Hippo’s customer satisfaction, financial stability and affordability ratings to generate an overall score of 88 out of 100, making it one of the best companies for homeowners insurance. The company ranks well for user satisfaction and affordability; however, it has average scores for financial stability.
The National Association of Insurance Commission (NAIC) customer complaint index shows how many customers filed complaints against the service quality of the insurance company. Compared to the national median of 1.00, Hippo’s NAIC score is 1.09, which means that the company received slightly more complaints than the average insurer.
It’s essential to consider the financial stability of an insurer, as it can affect the processing of your claims. AM Best, an organization that ranks companies based on their financial strength, gave Hippo an A- rating, meaning that the insurer has an excellent ability to meet its ongoing financial obligations.
Hippo’s homeowners insurance policy might seem confusing to you. MoneyGeek’s explanation of the company’s features and processes below will help you understand how it all works.
Hippo offers instant online quotes for prospective policyholders. You can get a quote on Hippo’s website in 60 seconds by entering your address and other information.
Hippo’s customer service agents are available 24/7 to answer your questions about their policies. You can contact the company’s customer support by emailing support@hippo.com or calling (800) 585-0705.
If you need to file a claim, you can call 1-855-999-9746 to talk to Hippo’s Claims team and let them know the details of your loss. They’ll help you get the claims process started.
Canceling a Hippo homeowners insurance policy requires sending a written notice that includes your name, contact information, policy number, requested cancellation date and other essential details.
Hippo’s claims-filing process is pretty straightforward. If you want to file a claim, you would have to call 1-855-999-9746 and let the claims team know the details of your loss. They’ll help you get started with the claims-filing process.
Hippo’s homeowners insurance is available in all states and Washington, D.C., except Colorado and Utah.
On average, it costs $1,067 per year to buy a Hippo homeowners insurance policy with $250,000 in dwelling coverage. This is less than the national average cost for homeowners insurance of $1,979 for the same amount of dwelling coverage.
However, this average cost will change depending on the amount of dwelling coverage you add to your policy. For instance, a policy with $500,000 in dwelling coverage from Hippo costs $1,367 per year.
Hippo policyholders can also save money on their annual premium if their home is new or has protective devices installed.
Dwelling Coverage | Annual Premium |
|---|---|
$250,000 | $1,067 |
$500,000 | $1,367 |
$1,000,000 | $2,028 |
Factors like your location, deductible amount, replacement cost coverage and personal coverage play a significant role in determining the cost of your home insurance policy.
While a policy with $250,000 in dwelling coverage is pretty reasonable, it’s best to find out how much coverage you need by assessing the value of your home. To help you choose limits for other coverages, MoneyGeek developed this guide.
You can also use MoneyGeek’s home insurance calculator below to estimate how much you’ll have to pay based on your coverage limits.
While it may cost less to buy a policy with a lower coverage limit and a smaller deductible amount, you may have to pay more money out of pocket if your home is damaged or needs to be rebuilt.
Hippo offers eight discounts to the policyholders, more than the industry average. The insurer provides multiple unique discounts, including gated community, affinity, fire extinguisher and homeowners association discounts.
Discount | Description |
|---|---|
Companion Policy | You can save money on Hippo’s homeowners insurance policy by bundling it with an auto insurance policy offered by another company. |
New Home | Hippo offers a discount to policyholders who have recently bought a new home. |
Smart Home | Policyholders can get a discount by installing and activating smart devices in their homes. Hippo also offers some basic smart home devices for free. |
No-Claims | You’ll be eligible for a discount on your policy if you haven’t filed a claim in three to five years. |
Affinity | Hippo will offer you a discount on purchasing a policy through affiliated groups like colleges, businesses, membership clubs, etc. |
Homeowners Association | If your home is located in a homeowners association, you’ll be eligible for a discount. |
Theft Protection | Policyholders can get a discount by installing anti-theft devices and living in a gated community with a 24/7 security presence. |
Roofing | You can get a discount on your policy by installing a hail-resistant roofing product on your home. |
Bundling your Hippo homeowners insurance policy with another Hippo-distributed auto insurance policy can help you save a lot of money, as the company offers a companion policy discount.
Hippo offers 13 add-on coverages to the policyholders, significantly more than the industry average of five. These coverages include home systems protection, water backup, service line, enhanced rebuilding, item replacement, local ordinance changes and more.
The company also offers unique coverages, like the house cleaner, babysitter and flood damage coverage.
The insurers calculate your coverage limits by using the home information that you provide to them. For Hippo’s homeowners insurance policy, MoneyGeek collected quotes for the following coverage limits:
Hippo offers many different optional coverages to its policyholders, which you can add to your policy for an additional cost. MoneyGeek explained these coverages below to help you understand how these can help you.
Hippo covers your house's computers and other office equipment with a coverage limit four times higher than other traditional policies.
Hippo provides smart devices with its policies that help you prevent small issues in your house.
With Hippo’s homeowners insurance policy, you can also cover the house cleaners, babysitters or any other individuals that help around in your home.
Hippo provides water backup and coverage in case of water damage and overflow from sewers.
It helps you pay for any damage to the gas, sewer and water connections between your house and the source.
If the labor and material prices increase due to an event, Hippo will increase your rebuilding coverage by 25%.
The company pays for the full replacement cost of any item, not just the depreciated value.
Hippo covers the increase in costs due to any changes in the local laws.
Those living in coastal areas will need this additional coverage to fully protect their homes from damages caused by hurricanes.
Homeowners are covered for damages, repairs and living expenses caused by earthquakes and aftershocks with this additional coverage.
This covers the cost of your valuable personal items, like jewelry, furs or fine art.
Policyholders are protected against damages from windstorms and hail to their homes and personal belongings.
This will cover any damages to your personal belongings or home due to flooding.
Before buying a policy, it's important to know if you're getting all the standard coverages. Flood, earthquake and insect coverage are not usually included in the policy, so if you need these coverages, it's best to check the policy's fine print. Sometimes you might be able to get them as an endorsement.
You can read MoneyGeek's guide to understand how much coverage you may need based on your needs.
The dwelling coverage helps you pay for the repair or replacement of the physical structure of your home if it is damaged due to a covered event.
It covers the replacement cost in case of any damage to the personal items in your house, including furniture, clothing and electronics.
This coverage helps you pay any medical costs, legal fees and other expenses if someone is injured on your property.
It covers any loss or damage to other structures in your home, like fences, utility lines, etc.
If any injury occurs on your property, this coverage will help you pay for it.
This coverage provides you with living expenses if your house is temporarily uninhabitable.
Hippo offers various online tools to its policyholders to make it easy to get quotes, make payments and manage existing policies. MoneyGeek explained how you could benefit from these tools below.
If you’re interested in buying Hippo’s homeowners insurance policies, you can start by getting a personalized quote on their website.
Hippo offers multiple payment options to policyholders. You can make payments monthly, quarterly, twice a year or annually. The company allows you to pay through credit card, escrow or bank transfer.
You can login to your account online to view policy details and manage payments.
Hippo only specializes in homeowners insurance policies. The company does not offer any other insurance product to its customers.
To evaluate Hippo as a homeowners insurance company, MoneyGeek analyzed the Hippo website, manually collected quotes and consulted consumer intelligence organizations such as J.D. Power, the NAIC and AM Best.
About Mark Fitzpatrick
Mark Fitzpatrick has analyzed the property and casualty insurance market for over five years, conducting original research and creating personalized content for every kind of buyer. Currently, he leads P&C insurance content production at MoneyGeek. Fitzpatrick has been quoted in several insurance-related publications, including CNBC, NBC News and Mashable.
Fitzpatrick earned a master’s degree in economics and international relations from Johns Hopkins University and a bachelor’s degree from Boston College. He is passionate about using his knowledge of economics and insurance to bring transparency around financial topics and help others feel confident in their money moves.
