Homeowners insurance in Illinois

The home insurance market in Illinois

Illinois homeowners paid $6.94 billion in homeowners premiums in 2025, according to NAIC market share data. These are the 10 largest insurance groups by 2025 direct premiums written:

Illinois is State Farm's home state: the Bloomington-based mutual writes about one dollar in three of homeowners premium here, more than Allstate and COUNTRY Financial combined. The top 10 groups wrote about 84% of the market. When one company prices a third of the homes in a state, its rate filings move the market.

According to the Governor's office, State Farm proposed a 27% increase to Illinois homeowners premiums, deductibles and other out-of-pocket costs. Gov. JB Pritzker asked lawmakers for rate oversight, and on Aug. 4, 2026 he signed House Bill 4273 (Public Act 104-0752), effective July 1, 2027. It bars excessive, inadequate or unfairly discriminatory homeowners rates, lets the Department of Insurance object and hold hearings, requires rates to rest on credible Illinois loss experience where it exists, and requires 60 days' notice of any renewal increase over 10%. The Governor's office says Illinois had been the only state without authority to review and challenge homeowners rates.

What drives home insurance costs in Illinois

Illinois's recent federal disaster declarations show where the risk lies: hail, straight-line winds, tornadoes and the flash flooding that comes with them. FEMA declared major disasters in Illinois for severe storms and flooding from June 29 to July 2, 2023, again in September 2023, and for storms, tornadoes, straight-line winds and flooding from July 13 to 16, 2024. In a house with a basement, the gap to check is sewer and drain backup, which a standard homeowners policy pays for only if you add water backup coverage.

Illinois premiums are still below the national average. The NAIC's average HO-3 premium for Illinois was $1,480 in 2023, against $1,737 countrywide.

Deductibles and coverage rules to know

Illinois has no hurricane or named-storm deductible rules. Some policies carry a separate wind/hail deductible, which may be a percentage of Coverage A, so check the declarations page and run the number through the hurricane and percentage deductible calculator. An insurer may not change deductibles or coverage across a whole line of business at renewal without mailing you notice at least 60 days before the renewal date (215 ILCS 5/143.17).

Two Illinois coverages are unusual. Mine subsidence: by statute, insurers in the 34 counties where most underground mining took place must include mine subsidence coverage in homeowners policies unless you reject it in writing, and anyone elsewhere can add it. The Illinois Mine Subsidence Insurance Fund reinsures up to $750,000 per structure, or $15,000 for a condo or co-op unit. Earthquake is a separate purchase. The Fund notes that two to five earthquakes are detected in Illinois each year and that quakes on the New Madrid Seismic Zone can and have affected the state, and the Insurance Code excludes earthquake damage from mine subsidence coverage.

Flood and other gaps

FEMA counted 30,048 NFIP policies in force in Illinois as of Sept. 30, 2026. Cook County held 11,648 of them, including 2,671 in Chicago, 1,627 in Des Plaines and 1,015 in Prospect Heights. Standard homeowners policies exclude flood, and from Jan. 1, 2027, Public Act 104-0534 requires insurers to give a plain-language notice that the policy does not cover flood, explain where to get NFIP coverage, and get your signature if you decline flood coverage they offer. See NFIP flood insurance explained.

If you can't find coverage

The Illinois FAIR Plan Association is the insurer of last resort, funded by the companies that write property insurance in the state. Its producer summary lists homeowners forms on 1- to 4-family owner-occupied homes (HO-2, HO-3 and a modified HO-8, plus HO-4 and HO-6) with a $750,000 maximum on the dwelling, and a dwelling fire (DP-1) program for rentals and other properties. Apply through a licensed Illinois agent; the Plan surveys the home, and an HO-3 must insure 100% of replacement cost. The Plan is small: 1,806 policies in fiscal 2023, according to Property Insurance Plans Service Office data published by III. The Department approved an 11.6% average homeowners rate increase effective April 1, 2026. Call 800-972-4480. See FAIR plans explained: the insurer of last resort for homes.

Public Act 104-0645, effective Jan. 1, 2027, rewrites the FAIR Plan law. The statute's eligibility language shifts from designated "urban areas" to 1- to 4-family homes anywhere in Illinois, for owners who have made at least three unsuccessful attempts to buy coverage or have been nonrenewed. Applications must come through a registered Illinois-licensed agent, four consumer representatives join the governing committee, and the Plan must run a program to move policies back to the regular market. Insurers that cancel or nonrenew for reasons other than nonpayment or arson already must tell you about FAIR Plan eligibility (215 ILCS 5/143.22); the new law adds the Plan's address, website and phone number to that notice.

Today an insurer must give at least 30 days' mailed notice of nonrenewal with a specific reason (215 ILCS 5/143.17); the Department says it is 60 days for a policy in force five years or more, except for limited reasons. From Jan. 1, 2027, Public Act 104-0534 raises the statutory minimum to 60 days and requires 60 days' notice of cancellation once coverage has been in force 61 days (10 days for nonpayment). After 60 days, an insurer may cancel only for nonpayment, fraud or misrepresentation, or an act that measurably increases the risk (§143.21), and it may not nonrenew because of the property's age or location (§143.21a). You can ask the Director for a hearing if your request arrives at least 20 days before the termination date. Start with your home insurance was nonrenewed: what to do now.

Claims rules and deadlines

The Department's claims rule (50 Ill. Adm. Code 919) sets the clock. An insurer must answer your communications within 15 working days and make a bona fide effort to communicate within 21 working days after notice of a loss once liability is reasonably clear. It must offer payment within 30 days after it accepts liability and the amount is undisputed, and explain a denial or reduced offer in writing within 30 days of its decision. On a fire and extended coverage claim still unresolved 75 days after you reported it, or 25 days after proof of loss if that comes first, the insurer must explain the delay in writing.

If a policy limits the time to sue, that clock stops from the date you file proof of loss until the claim is denied, and the denial letter must tell you how many days remain (215 ILCS 5/143.1). If a court finds the insurer's delay or denial "vexatious and unreasonable," it can award attorney fees plus up to 60% of the amount owed, $60,000, or the amount by which the judgment exceeds the insurer's pre-suit settlement offer (215 ILCS 5/155). Illinois has no state claim mediation program. See how long insurers have to pay a home claim.

Discounts and mitigation programs

Illinois has no statewide mitigation grant program and is not among the nine states IBHS listed in July 2025 as offering statewide FORTIFIED grants. Discounts for impact-resistant roofs, protective devices and bundling are set company by company, so ask each insurer which credits it files in Illinois and get them in writing before you re-roof.

Where to get help

The Illinois Department of Insurance, led by Director Ann Gillespie, handles complaints about claims, premiums, cancellations and nonrenewals. Call the Consumer Assistance line at 866-445-5364. Complaints must be in writing: file online at the IDOI Help Center, email [email protected], fax 217-558-2083, or mail to 4800 Wabash Avenue, Springfield, IL 62711. The Chicago office is at 115 S. LaSalle Street, 13th Floor (312-814-2420). Investigations take four to six weeks. See how to file a complaint with your state insurance department.

Neighboring state guides: Indiana, Iowa, Wisconsin, Missouri and Kentucky.