7 Best Homeowners Insurance Companies in Illinois of 2023
In Illinois, homeowners insurance is crucial for safeguarding your property, whether it's a single-family home, condominium, townhome, duplex, or mobile home. This type of policy not only ensures your home's security but also protects one of your most significant investments.
With numerous homeowners insurance companies operating in Illinois, it can be challenging to identify the ideal provider offering the best coverage for your needs. Our Illinois homeowners insurance guide is designed to help you navigate this process.
When searching for the perfect home insurance, prioritize providers with competitive pricing and diverse coverage options. Our expert editors at PropertyNest have carefully assessed hundreds of quotes from various insurers to present you with the top picks. Compare the coverage and cost of the best homeowners insurance providers in Illinois to make an informed decision.
Compare Homeowners Insurance Rates in Illinois
The Best Homeowners Insurance in Illinois
- Allstate: Best for Coverage Options
- Lemonade: Best Online Services
- Liberty Mutual: Best Homeowners Insurance for the New Insurance Buyer
- State Farm: Best Homeowners Insurance for Bundling
- Branch Financial: Best for Efficiency
- Farmers: Best for Environmentally-Friendly Homes/Green Upgrades
- USAA: Best for Military
Allstate: Best for Coverage Options
Allstate has its headquarters in northern Illinois and has an excellent brand image across the state.
The company has been in existence since 1931 and is considered a pioneer in the industry. Since then, they have greatly expanded the types of coverages they offer, making it possible for insureds to highly customize their coverages.
Read a full Allstate homeowners insurance review.
| J.D. Power (out of 1,000) | 815 |
|---|---|
| A.M. Best - Financial Strength Rating | A+ |
| NAIC Complaint Index | 2.05 |
| BBB | A- |
Lemonade: Best Online Services
Lemonade offers homeowners many of the features they like best in insurance companies.
Lemonade’s platform is almost entirely online. Insureds get the utmost convenience with the ability to file claims, make policy changes, or cancel their policies via Lemonade’s website or through their mobile app.
However, those who prefer meeting with an agent in person will not be as excited about getting a homeowners insurance policy through Lemonade.
| J.D. Power (out of 1,000) | 870 |
|---|---|
| BBB | B+ |
| NAIC Complaint Index | 1.94 |
Liberty Mutual: Best Homeowners Insurance for the New Insurance Buyer
Liberty Mutual is one of the largest insurers in the country, and it offers many different insurance and investment products in addition to homeowners insurance.
Liberty Mutual is also strong in charitable giving, as they support many charities for homelessness, the underserved, and those with disabilities.
Liberty Mutual’s rates are highly competitive, and they offer optional water backup coverage for homeowners and flood and earthquake coverage.
Read a full Liberty Mutual home insurance review.
| J.D. Power (out of 1,000) | 805 |
|---|---|
| A.M. Best - Financial Strength Rating | A |
| BBB | A+ |
| NAIC Complaint Index | 2.37 |
State Farm: Best Homeowners Insurance for Bundling
State Farm also has its headquarters in Illinois and is located in the central part of the state.
State Farm is a popular company in Illinois because of its strong branding and solid financial ratings. The company offers a wide variety of insurance products for individuals and businesses.
| J.D. Power (out of 1,000) | 829 |
|---|---|
| A.M. Best - Financial Strength Rating | A++ |
| BBB | A+ |
| NAIC Complaint Index | 1.77 |
Branch Financial: Best for Efficiency
Branch Financial does not have as strong a brand as many other homeowners insurance companies in Illinois, but customers like the company’s community feel.
Branch Financial offers rewards for referrals from family members and friends. Those who get referred receive a discount on their insurance simply for being a referral.
The referral system is a way for Branch Financial to spend less on advertising. They, therefore, pass the savings onto consumers. While the company offers insurance in Illinois, they do not currently offer a community discount in this state.
| A.M. Best - Financial Strength Rating | A+ |
|---|---|
| BBB | A |
Farmers: Best for Environmentally-Friendly Homes/Green Upgrades
Farmers offer different tiers that are designed for new homeowners, established homeowners, and luxury homeowners.
The company gets an A rating from AM Best which is strong, but not as strong as other companies.
A nice benefit to Farmers homeowners policies is they offer replacement cost coverage on personal property. Farmers is also a company that rewards customers who are environmentally friendly. They offer extra coverage for rebuilding with green materials and discounts for building upgrades.
Read a full Farmers homeowners insurance review.
| J.D. Power (out of 1,000) | 792 |
|---|---|
| A.M. Best - Financial Strength Rating | A |
| BBB | A- |
| NAIC Complaint Index | 0.56 |
USAA: Best for Military
USAA serves military personnel and people serving in the reserves. It has a strong financial rating.
In addition to being the company of choice for armed forces, USAA has a stellar reputation for good customer service.
While USAA offers fewer discounts than its competitors, the good rates make up for the lack of discounts.
| J.D. Power (out of 1,000) | 882 |
|---|---|
| A.M. Best - Financial Strength Rating | A++ |
| BBB | A+ |
| NAIC Complaint Index | 0.88 |
Why Trust Us When Shopping for Homeowners Insurance?
Our Methodology
We thoroughly researched 18 of the state's top homeowners’ insurance companies and narrowed the list down to those that operated in Illinois.
We rated them on criteria that included ease of use, ratings, financial strength, customer, and affordability.
We surveyed insurance coverage prices in Chicago, Aurora, Naperville, Joliet, and Rockford.
How We Picked and Ranked the Best Illinois Homeowners Insurance Companies
The PropertyNest team researched Illinois's best-known homeowners insurance companies to recommend the top company candidates.
We read customer reviews and testimonials, acquired quotes, and perused company websites to gather data. We also compared pricing and coverages and consulted insurance experts to affirm our recommendations.
The following are some of the factors we considered when gathering data:
Customer Satisfaction
Today’s customers make their voices and opinions known by writing online reviews. We reviewed them to get a first-hand account of how customers really feel about their experiences.
Also, we researched ratings from JD Power, BBB, and AM Best to gather professional evaluations of each Illinois homeowners insurance provider.
The homeowners insurance companies with the highest marks made our list of recommendations.
Technology
Since customers are largely doing business online, we also researched each company’s website for navigability and the ease of online quoting.
The ability to file claims online and make online policy changes was also a factor we considered.
We gave extra marks to companies with mobile apps, those that allowed online policy changes, and those that stood out with technological features such as chat and smart assistants.
Discounts/Coverages
Illinois homeowners insurance companies vary significantly in the types of coverages they offer and the discounts they provide. We considered these issues in detail in making our final choices.
We favored companies that offered lots of extra coverage or unique coverage, as well as those that offered an attractive array of discounts.
Price
Understanding the importance of price to our customers, we took the competitiveness of each company’s rating structure into account and made comparisons.
We aimed to compare companies that offered similar types of discounts to achieve fair comparisons.
Companies that offer good coverage combined with multiple discount opportunities provide customers with a good value, and we factored this into our results. The companies that scored high in this area became top contenders.
View Best Homeowners Insurance Companies in U.S.
Locations
We surveyed insurance coverage prices in Chicago, Aurora, Naperville, Joliet, and Rockford.
What Does Illinois Homeowners Insurance Cover?
In Illinois and in other states, the limits and coverages homeowners insurance companies offer to vary depending on the type of policy.
In general, there are five components to a traditional homeowners insurance policy in Illinois, including the following:
Structure
This component pays for damage to repair or replace a home’s structure due to a covered loss. Common losses are fire, hurricane, hail, and lightning. Depending on the type of policy, a homeowners policy may also cover structures that are not attached to a house.
Other structures
This coverage pays for repairing or replacing structures other than a home, such as a detached garage, shed, or fence.
Personal property
Personal property pays for losses to an insured’s personal belongings such as furniture, furnishings, clothing, and other personal effects. This portion of the policy typically also provides limited coverage for items stored off-premises.
Liability
Liability covers losses for bodily injury or property damage that policyholders or their family members cause to others. This component also pays for legal fees and court costs up to the policy limit. It covers the insured person when anywhere in the world.
Medical payments
Medical payments are designed to cover small claims for medical bills for someone who gets hurt on an insured’s property. This coverage is nonetheless limited and pays regardless of fault.
Additional living expenses
This pays additional costs for living expenses if an insured is displaced from their home due to a covered loss. Insureds can get reimbursed for things like meals, hotels or apartment rentals, transportation to work, and similar expenses.
Homeowners insurance policies may also have endorsements added to modify the original coverages on a particular form. Common endorsements cover items such as jewelry, watches, furs, or collectibles. It may also cover additional perils like water backups or earthquakes.
Moreover, homeowners insurance policies cover the perils of hail and the weight of snow or ice, which are very important coverages in Illinois. Winters are extremely cold and snowy in the state, especially in the northern region.
There are different policy forms for various types of dwellings. For example, while renters do not own any part of a dwelling, there is a special form of homeowners insurance that covers their personal property and liability. Tenant policies also generally cover loss of use.
Homeowners of multiple dwelling properties such as condos, townhomes, coops, and duplexes are also written on a special form. This is because they have shared walls with other homeowners. Such policies generally cover the interior of dwellings, along with liability and personal property.
Mobile homeowners also have access to coverage via a homeowners policy. This coverage is more expensive than for other types of dwellings because mobile homes are more susceptible to damage due to common losses like wind, floods, and fires. Mobile homes also tend to have a higher risk of vandalism.
Learn more about the homeowners fire insurance coverage.
Homeowners policies are also available for landlord dwellings. This form of insurance pays for losses to the structure, liability, and loss of rent, but not the tenant’s property.
For all claims except liability claims, insureds have to pay a deductible before the insurance company pays a claim. Furthermore, deductibles have a bearing on rates. The higher the deductible, the lower the rate will be.
What Will Illinois Homeowners Insurance Not Cover?
The most popular homeowners insurance forms cover all risks, which is also called open perils. However, even in an all-risk policy, certain losses are not covered.
Homeowners policies will not cover items such as jewelry, fine arts, or collectibles unless specific coverage has been added by endorsement.
Generally, homeowners insurance policies also contain exclusions for damage caused by termites, birds, rodents, vermin, and inherent vice. Issues such as rust, rot, and mold are also common exclusions for homeowners insurance policies.
Perils such as earthquakes and flooding are typically excluded from homeowners insurance policies. Earthquake coverage can be added by endorsement. It is something Illinois homeowners should consider, as earthquakes occasionally occur in that area.
Flooding is excluded on nearly all homeowners insurance policies, and it cannot typically be added by endorsement. The federal government offers flood insurance through the National Flood Insurance Program. Numerous lakes, rivers, and reservoirs wind their way throughout Illinois, causing the risk of water damage to Illinois homes, so flood insurance is preferable in certain areas.
Homeowners insurance is designed to cover sudden or natural disasters, so it does not cover maintenance issues or normal wear and tear.
How Much Does Homeowners Insurance Cost in Illinois?
Many factors go into calculating the cost of homeowners insurance in Illinois.
Insurance providers account for factors related to the dwelling, such as age, type of construction, type of dwelling, and architectural design. Insurance agents will calculate the actual replacement cost of the dwelling, which is the cost to reconstruct the home on the same or a different piece of property.
Other factors that play a role in the rate are the geographical location, claims experience, and the insured’s credit rating.
How Can I Save Money on My Homeowners Insurance in Illinois?
Fortunately, Illinois has multiple ways to save money on homeowners insurance.
A simple way to save money is by increasing your deductible. Another strategy is to review your replacement cost coverage to ensure it is not higher than the current reconstruction cost.
Notably, adventuresome homeowners who enjoy summer or winter recreation such as boating, motorcycling, or snowmobiling in Illinois can take advantage of a bundling discount with their home and auto insurance.
A good credit rating may also decrease homeowners insurance rates slightly, so it is best for homeowners to maintain a favorable credit rating.
Finally, it is prudent for homeowners to review their policy every year and modify coverages according to their current needs.
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