Homeowners insurance in Pennsylvania

The home insurance market in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvanians paid $5.70 billion in homeowners premiums in 2025, according to NAIC market share data. These are the 10 largest insurance groups by 2025 direct premiums written:

State Farm leads, but Erie Insurance, based in Erie, Pennsylvania, is a close second with 16.7%, far above its 10th-place national rank. Chubb, which concentrates on high-value homes, holds 2.6%. The 10 largest groups write about 80% of premiums; the rest is spread among many smaller carriers.

What drives home insurance costs in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania is a moderately priced state. The NAIC put its average HO-3 premium at $1,217 for 2023, well below the countrywide $1,737. Its two most recent major disaster declarations were both for tropical systems: the remnants of Hurricane Ida (August 31 to September 5, 2021) and Tropical Storm Debby (August 9-10, 2024). Much of the damage from storms like these is flooding, which a homeowners policy does not cover.

Rate filings must be made with PID before they take effect, and the department does push back. PID said its 2025 reviews kept $227.9 million in proposed property and casualty increases from taking effect, including $16 million in homeowners and dwelling fire premiums.

Deductibles and coverage rules to know

We found no Pennsylvania statute or regulation on hurricane deductibles; the Insurance Information Institute lists Pennsylvania among states where some policies carry hurricane, tropical storm or named-storm deductibles. Some policies instead carry a percentage wind and hail deductible. PID's own example: a home insured for $200,000 with a 2% wind/hail deductible leaves you paying the first $4,000 of a wind or hail claim. Check the hurricane and percentage deductible calculator.

Two earth-movement gaps matter here. Homeowners policies usually exclude sinkholes, which form in the state's limestone and dolomite regions, and mine subsidence, the collapse of old underground coal and clay mines. The Department of Environmental Protection sells Mine Subsidence Insurance: $150,000 of residential coverage costs $41.25 a year, coverage runs from $5,000 to $1 million, and the fund has paid more than $47 million in homeowner claims since 1961. It does not cover limestone sinkholes. DEP offers a site-specific check of mining under your address. See the earth movement exclusion explained.

Pennsylvania law does not require insurers to give a grace period on premium payments, so a missed payment can lead to cancellation.

Flood and other gaps

Flood is excluded from homeowners policies. FEMA counted 41,274 NFIP policies in force in Pennsylvania as of September 30, 2026, down 4.4% in a year. PID notes that flood insurance can be bought almost anywhere, not just in a FEMA special flood hazard area, and that surplus lines flood policies may save money for homes newly mapped into, or only partly inside, a special flood hazard area. New NFIP policies generally take 30 days to start. See NFIP flood insurance explained and the flood insurance coverage gap calculator.

If you can't find coverage

The Insurance Placement Facility of Pennsylvania, the PA FAIR Plan, has operated since October 28, 1968, under Act 233 of 1968. It is an association of the property insurers doing business in the state and receives no public funds. It writes basic property coverage for owners who cannot get it in the voluntary market:

• Forms: ISO DP 00 01 (fire and lightning, with optional windstorm, hail, smoke, vandalism and other extended perils) or DP 00 02 broad form for qualifying homes, on an actual cash value basis.
• Limits: up to $500,000 combined building and contents on an occupied one- to four-family dwelling ($335,000 if vacant), and $1.75 million per location overall.
• No liability: the dwelling fire forms it uses do not include personal liability coverage.
• Contact: 215-629-8800 or 800-462-4972; any licensed agent can submit an application, or you can apply directly.

The plan is small and concentrated in Philadelphia, though it has policies in every county. After nearly a decade of decline, new business applications rose 59% in 2024 and premiums written rose 13.5%, according to its April 2025 annual report. Surplus lines insurers are the other option. See FAIR plans explained: the insurer of last resort for homes and surplus lines home insurance when standard carriers say no.

Claims rules and deadlines

PID's unfair claims rules (31 Pa. Code §§146.5-146.7) require an insurer to acknowledge your claim and send forms within 10 working days, and to finish investigating within 30 days of notice unless that cannot reasonably be done, explaining delays in writing every 45 days. Within 15 working days of receiving a properly executed proof of loss, it must accept or deny the claim; a denial must be in writing and cite the policy provision. If it needs more time, it must say why within those 15 working days, again 30 days later and every 45 days after that. If you are handling a claim without a lawyer, the insurer must warn you in writing at least 30 days before a policy time limit expires.

That warning matters. The standard fire policy prescribed by Section 506 of the Insurance Company Law (40 P.S. §636) bars a suit not "commenced within twelve months next after inception of the loss" (Insurance Company Law of 1921). Section 506 says the standard form does not apply to all-risk policies, so for an open-perils homeowners policy the deadline is whatever the policy's suit clause says, commonly the same 12 months. Read the "Suit Against Us" condition in your own policy. Pennsylvania's bad faith statute (42 Pa.C.S. §8371) lets a court award interest at prime plus 3%, punitive damages and attorney fees if an insurer acted in bad faith. We found no state-run claim mediation program. See deadlines to sue over a home insurance claim and bad faith claim handling: what it means and what it doesn't.

Pennsylvania limits why an insurer can drop you. Under the Unfair Insurance Practices Act (40 P.S. §1171.5(a)(9)), once a homeowners policy has been in force 60 days the insurer may cancel or nonrenew it only for:

• Material misrepresentation or fraud in getting the policy
• A substantial change or increase in the hazard after the policy was issued, or one caused by your willful or negligent acts
• Nonpayment of premium
• Other reasons the commissioner approves by regulation

The notice must give at least 30 days, state the specific reasons and tell you that you can ask PID to review the decision. Your written request must reach PID within 10 days of receiving the notice. PID's homeowners guide adds that claims or loss history alone is not a lawful reason to terminate a homeowners policy. In a May 2024 notice prompted by complaints, PID told insurers that aerial images showing only discoloration or streaking on a roof should not be the sole basis for dropping a policy, that insurers must prove a substantial increase in risk, and that you should get notice and a chance to fix a hazard first. See aerial imagery: how insurers inspect roofs from the sky and your home insurance was nonrenewed: what to do now.

Discounts and mitigation programs

We found no Pennsylvania state grant program for home hardening. For flood-prone homes, PID points to hazard mitigation grants through FEMA, the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency and the Department of Community and Economic Development. Ask insurers about discounts for newer roofs, protective devices, water leak sensors and bundling, and compare quotes from regional carriers as well as the national names.

Where to get help

PID's Consumer Services Bureau takes questions and complaints at 877-881-6388 and through the online Consumer Services portal on its complaints and help page. The department is at 1326 Strawberry Square, Harrisburg, PA 17120. If you receive a cancellation or nonrenewal notice, act within the 10-day window to request PID review. See how to file a complaint with your state insurance department and the nonrenewal action plan. See also neighbors New Jersey, New York, Ohio and Maryland.