North Carolina Farm Bureau Insurance homeowners insurance

Overview

North Carolina Farm Bureau Insurance is the insurance arm of the North Carolina Farm Bureau, and its policies are written by North Carolina Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Company and its affiliate, Farm Bureau Insurance of N.C., Inc. The mutual is based in Raleigh and is owned and controlled by its policyholders through an elected board of directors. It writes only in North Carolina, and you have to be a Farm Bureau member to buy a policy.

The group ranked #36 among U.S. homeowners insurance groups by 2025 direct premiums written, according to NAIC market share data, with $745.9 million in homeowners premiums, or 0.39% of the national market. All of it is in North Carolina, where it was the second-largest home insurer in 2025 with 13.56% of the state's homeowners premiums, behind only State Farm and ahead of USAA, Allstate and Erie Insurance. The company calls itself the largest domestic property and casualty insurer in the state, with more than $2.7 billion in assets and more than $1.8 billion in annual premium across all lines.

It sells through exclusive agents working out of county Farm Bureau offices, and it is known for that local presence: an agent assigned to each member and offices in all 100 counties. It is less known for its digital tools, and its financial strength rating slipped a notch in 2024.

History

The North Carolina Farm Bureau Federation was formed in 1936 as a nonprofit general farm organization. In 1953 Farm Bureau leaders, concerned that farmers and rural communities could not find adequate insurance, formed North Carolina Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Company. The company started with farm coverage and broadened into auto, homeowners, commercial and other lines for members who have never farmed.

Like other state Farm Bureau insurers, it sits inside a wider family of affiliated companies rather than under a national parent. Its product list shows how that works for a homeowner: life insurance and annuities come from Southern Farm Bureau Life Insurance Company, flood insurance from Southern Farm Bureau Casualty Insurance Company (see Farm Bureau Insurance), banking from Farm Bureau Bank, and health plans from Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina, for which the company is an authorized independent agency. The Farm Bureau federation remains a separate nonprofit, and membership in it is the ticket to the insurance. The group has not changed ownership or merged with another Farm Bureau insurer.

Homeowners coverage

The mutual's published product list includes homeowners, mobile homeowners, dwelling property (for rental and other non-owner-occupied homes), farmowners and farm property, and personal umbrella policies; the site also quotes renters coverage. Its product pages give little detail on forms or endorsements, so the agent is where you learn what a quote includes.

Two features of the North Carolina market shape every policy here. First, homeowners rates are set largely through the North Carolina Rate Bureau, which files on behalf of all insurers, and the state's homeowners program is built on ISO-based forms; read your declarations page and endorsements to see how dwelling and roof losses are settled. Second, coastal wind is handled differently. The company's product list includes windstorm and hail-only policies from the NCJUA/NCIUA, the state's Coastal Property Insurance Pool. In the 18 coastal counties a homeowners policy may exclude wind and hail, with that coverage written separately by the Pool. If you live east of I-95, ask the agent who covers wind, and check for a named storm deductible, which in North Carolina can be triggered by a tropical storm, not only a hurricane.

Flood is excluded from the homeowners policy; members buy it as a separate National Flood Insurance Program policy through Southern Farm Bureau Casualty, a FEMA "Write Your Own" flood carrier. Hurricane Helene showed why the line matters in the mountains, not just on the coast (see the Claims section).

Discounts and savings

NC Farm Bureau does not publish a list of homeowners discounts on its site, so ask the agent which credits your quote reflects. Two things are documented. Membership costs $25 a year per household and brings non-insurance discounts on hotels, car rentals, prescriptions and vision plans. And because rates run through the Rate Bureau, the windstorm mitigation credits in the Rate Bureau manual (Rule A9) are available for homes in the coastal territories that hold a FORTIFIED Roof, Silver or Gold designation, qualifying opening protection or a hip roof; those credits do not apply to wind-excluded policies. Combining home and auto with one Farm Bureau agent is the obvious conversation to have, since the company writes both.

Where it sells and recent market moves

The company writes homeowners insurance only in North Carolina, through agents in all 100 counties. It has not announced a statewide pause on new homeowners business through October 2026.

The biggest recent changes for members are price and financial strength. The Rate Bureau asked in 2024 for an average 42.2% statewide homeowners increase. In January 2025 Insurance Commissioner Mike Causey settled for an average 7.5% base-rate increase on June 1, 2025 and another 7.5% on June 1, 2026, with no new Rate Bureau increase before June 1, 2027. Those increases reach NC Farm Bureau members along with everyone else. Separately, AM Best's 2024 downgrade cited "regulatory restrictions on rates" among the pressures on the group's underwriting results.

Claims

You can report a property claim online after logging in, online without an account, or by calling your local agent, who opens the claim. Customer support is at 919-782-1705, Monday through Friday, 8:15 a.m. to 5 p.m. Eastern; the site does not list a separate 24-hour claims number. The NCFBINS app for iPhone and Android gives access to registered policies. An adjuster is assigned to the claim, and the company says to take questions you cannot get answered by the adjuster to your agent.

Hurricane Helene in September 2024 tested the company in western North Carolina. One case reported by WLOS in March 2025 shows how mountain claims could turn on exclusions: the company denied a McDowell County couple's claim under the policy's earth movement exclusion after a structural engineer concluded that debris moving across the land, not wind, destroyed the house. Its statement said the policy does not cover damage from debris movement caused by excessive rainfall, surface water, erosion and landslides, and that it would consider additional information from the couple. If a claim like this is denied, get the denial letter and the engineer's report in writing. North Carolina's disaster mediation program does not cover denials based on policy exclusions, so coverage disputes go to the Department of Insurance's consumer services staff or an attorney.

Ratings and reputation

AM Best downgraded North Carolina Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Company and Farm Bureau Insurance of N.C. in June 2024, to a financial strength rating of A- (Excellent) from A (Excellent), with a stable outlook. AM Best cited declining risk-adjusted capitalization, weaker operating returns, inflation, weather losses, higher reinsurance costs, the end of a quota share reinsurance contract and regulatory restrictions on rates, and noted that management had taken corrective actions. That followed a May 2023 action that kept the A rating but moved the outlook to negative after 2022 underwriting losses that were the group's largest in 10 years. The company's website still showed A- (Excellent) in October 2026. An A- is still in AM Best's "Excellent" band (see AM Best rating), but it sits a notch or more below the ratings of several of its largest North Carolina competitors, and the 2023–2024 actions point to thinner capital than the group carried before 2022.

Who it suits

NC Farm Bureau suits North Carolina homeowners, especially in rural and small-town counties, who want a named agent down the road and one company for home, auto, farm and life coverage. It suits less well someone who wants an agent to compare several carriers, a fully digital experience with detailed coverage information online, or an insurer with an A or higher rating. Coastal buyers should expect to deal with the Coastal Property Insurance Pool for wind in some areas whichever company they choose. Compare it with State Farm, USAA and Erie Insurance, and see how Farm Bureau membership works.

• Strengths: second-largest home insurer in North Carolina; agents and offices in all 100 counties; policyholder-owned mutual; writes farm, mobile home and dwelling policies alongside homeowners.
• Weaknesses: sold only to Farm Bureau members, through its own agents, and only in North Carolina; AM Best rating cut to A- in June 2024; little published detail on endorsements or discounts; no dedicated claims phone line listed on its site.

How to contact North Carolina Farm Bureau Insurance