Americans filing home insurance claims face a “near flip-of-the-coin chance” of receiving payment, according to a new analysis by the Wall Street Journal. The five largest home insurers in the US collectively declined more than 44 percent of claims resolved in 2025.
The insurers—Allstate, State Farm, Liberty Mutual, United Services Automobile Association (USAA), and Farmers Insurance—have increased their denial rates from 36 percent a decade ago. The rise is partly attributed to insurers compensating for losses from catastrophic weather events such as wildfires, hail, and hurricanes.
Insurers have raised deductibles, sometimes calculated as a percentage of a home's value rather than a fixed dollar amount, and offered lower premiums in exchange for higher deductibles. This shift means homeowners pay more out-of-pocket when disaster strikes.
Smaller insurers like Erie Insurance have improved their payout rates over the same period. USAA and State Farm disputed the analysis, with USAA claiming fewer than 6 percent of its claims were denied when context is considered, and State Farm calling the interpretation “selective.”
Location plays a significant role: Florida had the highest nonpayment rate, with over two in five homeowners’ claims unpaid in 2024, partly due to flood damage exclusions after Hurricanes Helene and Milton. Texas and California also reported high denial rates linked to hail, flooding, wildfires, and mudslides.
