Homeowners insurance in Rhode Island

The home insurance market in Rhode Island

Rhode Islanders paid $778.0 million in homeowners premiums in 2025, according to NAIC market share data. These are the 10 largest insurance groups by 2025 direct premiums written:

Rhode Island and Massachusetts are the only states where State Farm is not among the 10 largest groups. Allstate leads, and Amica, a mutual based in Lincoln, Rhode Island, is a close second. Andover is a Massachusetts mutual group, and Heritage writes here through Narragansett Bay Insurance. The 10 largest groups write only about 67% of premiums, so there are many other companies to try.

What drives home insurance costs in Rhode Island

Rhode Island has the highest average HO-3 premium in the Northeast. The NAIC put its average HO-3 premium at $2,396 for 2023, sixth-highest in the country by our ranking of NAIC data and well above the countrywide $1,737. Coastal hurricane risk is priced in: a DBR rule requires insurers that use hurricane models in a rate filing to name the model and explain its effect, and to justify any increase blamed on reinsurance.

FEMA declared major disasters for severe storms, flooding and tornadoes in September 2023, and for storms and flooding in December 2023 and January 2024. Availability has tightened too. A December 2024 U.S. Senate Budget Committee staff report found Rhode Island's 2023 nonrenewal rate was 1.37%, eighth-highest among the states, double its 2018 rate. In June 2026 the General Assembly's sponsors said insurers were declining homes in coastal areas or with older roofs or water heaters, that some had stopped writing home insurance in the state, and that some homeowners had been dropped with as little as two weeks' notice.

Deductibles and coverage rules to know

Rhode Island regulates hurricane deductibles closely (R.I. Gen. Laws §27-76-2; 230-RICR-20-05-13):

• Cap: no more than 5% of Coverage A, whether flat-dollar, percentage or both, and no optional deductibles above 5%. Every deductible must carry an actuarially supported premium credit.
• Trigger: the hurricane deductible applies only from the time the National Weather Service issues a hurricane warning for the state until 24 hours after the last warning ends, and only if the storm produces hurricane-force sustained winds in the state. Block Island is measured separately.
• Once a year: it applies once per calendar year, even if you change policies.
• No windstorm deductible: insurers may not put a separate windstorm deductible on a residential policy.
• Disclosure: the notice must give at least two worked examples, and a percentage deductible's dollar amount must appear on the declarations page.

Say your Coverage A is $400,000 with a 5% hurricane deductible: you pay the first $20,000. Mitigation can erase that. In building code Zones 2 and 3, insurers may require pre-cut plywood shutters with pre-installed anchors, plus roof tie-downs in Zone 3, and must waive the hurricane deductible once you install them; permanent shutters or hurricane glass also qualify. In Zone 1 no mitigation can be required, but voluntary measures still earn the waiver. Try the hurricane and percentage deductible calculator and see hurricane and named-storm deductibles explained.

Any coverage reduction or higher deductible at renewal that you did not ask for needs 30 days' written notice captioned "NOTICE OF REDUCTION IN COVERAGE"; if the insurer skips it, your old coverage continues (230-RICR-20-05-14).

Flood and other gaps

Flood is excluded from homeowners policies, and insurers must remind you of that in writing at every issuance and renewal (R.I. Gen. Laws §27-5-3.6). FEMA counted 11,329 NFIP policies in force in Rhode Island as of September 30, 2026, down 2.1% in a year. NFIP policies usually take 30 days to start. See NFIP flood insurance explained.

If you can't find coverage

The Rhode Island Joint Reinsurance Association, the RI FAIR Plan, insures eligible property for owners who cannot get coverage in the voluntary market. Unlike many FAIR plans, it writes full homeowners forms, and it does so "without consideration of environmental conditions associated with the property's location," which matters on the coast. Per its producer quick reference:

• Forms: homeowners HO 00 02, 03, 05 and 08, renters HO 00 04, condo HO 00 06, and dwelling fire DP 00 01 with optional dwelling liability.
• Limits: up to $1 million Coverage A on homeowners forms, $750,000 on dwelling fire, $50,000 contents for renters and condo owners, and up to $500,000 liability. Coverage A must be at least 80% of estimated replacement cost.
• Storm freeze: when a tropical storm or hurricane watch or warning is posted north of the North Carolina-Virginia line, RIJRA limits wind and hail coverage on new applications with no prior insurance and on limit increases. It does not apply to a home purchase closing during the watch or to applicants coming from a canceled or nonrenewed policy without a lapse.
• Contact: 800-851-8978, the number DBR lists for the plan.

Surplus lines insurers are the other route, but note that Rhode Island's hurricane deductible rules do not apply to surplus lines policies. See FAIR plans explained: the insurer of last resort for homes and insuring a coastal home: wind, flood and where to find coverage.

Claims rules and deadlines

Under DBR's unfair claims rule (230-RICR-20-40-2, current version effective March 3, 2026), an insurer must acknowledge your claim in writing within 15 days and accept or deny it within 21 days of receiving a properly executed proof of loss. If it needs more time, it must say why within those 21 days and write again every 45 days. Undisputed amounts must be paid within 30 days after the insurer accepts liability, and an insurer negotiating with you must warn you in writing at least 30 days before a statute of limitations runs out.

That limit is 24 months after the loss under the standard fire policy (R.I. Gen. Laws §27-5-3). After a hurricane, DBR can open a nonbinding mediation program by bulletin, at least 90 days after the storm; licensed insurers and RIJRA must take part, insurers pay the mediator, and NFIP claims are excluded. After an ISO-declared catastrophe, DBR can also order premium grace periods and pause cancellations and nonrenewals for up to 90 days. See state mediation programs for homeowners claims.

Cancellation and nonrenewal rules:

• Cancellation: 30 days' written notice, or 10 days for nonpayment, under the standard fire policy.
• Nonrenewal: from July 1, 2027, at least 60 days' written notice (2026-S 2011A, signed by the governor on June 19, 2026, and companion H 7066A).
• Claims you cannot be dropped for: an insurer may not cancel, nonrenew or raise your premium solely for a catastrophe loss, an inquiry, or a claim that paid nothing or less than $500, unless you had more than one paid non-catastrophe claim in three years (R.I. Gen. Laws §§27-76-4, 27-76-8).
• Mitigation: an insurer may not later nonrenew you over catastrophe exposure after you complete mitigation it requested.
• Mass nonrenewals: insurers must file a plan with DBR 90 days ahead before nonrenewing more than 25% of their state or zone homeowners book, and give 90 days' notice before stopping new residential business.

Discounts and mitigation programs

We found no Rhode Island state grant program for home hardening. The hurricane deductible waiver is the main reward: in Zones 2 and 3 it is mandatory once approved shutters (and tie-downs in Zone 3) are in place, and the insurer may inspect or ask for proof. You may decline the waiver in writing in exchange for a lower premium. Ask your agent which building code zone your home is in.

Where to get help

DBR's Insurance Division takes questions and complaints at 401-462-9520 (8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays), by email at [email protected], or through the online complaint form linked from its consumer page. The department is at 1511 Pontiac Avenue, Cranston, RI 02920. See how to file a complaint with your state insurance department and the nonrenewal action plan. Neighbors Massachusetts and Connecticut face the same storms.