6 Best Homeowners Insurance Companies in Louisiana of 2023

Of all 50 states, the need to know the best homeowners insurance is the greatest for Louisiana residents. The Pelican State has been hit hard for decades by tropical storms and hurricanes barreling off the Gulf of Mexico. For example, when the historic Hurricane Katrina hit Louisiana, it caused $186.3 billion worth of damage, much of it suffered by homeowners.

When people think of hurricane damage in Louisiana and the need for high-quality homeowners insurance, they almost always think of the city of New Orleans. But other cities and non-coastal towns such as Lafayette, Baton Rouge, Shreveport, and Alexandria also suffer damage from high winds and storm flooding.

At PropertyNest, we want residents of large cities and small towns to have the best homeowners insurance in Louisiana they can find. To do that, we’ve compared insurers using parameters like coverage, affordability, service, and discounts.

Allstate: Most Comprehensive Coverage

Allstate isn’t Louisiana's least expensive homeowners insurer, but it just may offer the most comprehensive coverage. Coverage can be made more robust by adding additional coverage for things like water backup, yard and garden coverage, and electronic data recovery.

Allstate also offers Claim Rateguard, a feature that may prevent your homeowners premium from increasing after a claim. And when it comes to claims, Allstate also helps homeowners with claims related to flood insurance through the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP).

Savings of up to 25% are available for combing homeowners and car insurance with Allstate. There is an estimate of over 12,000 Allstate agents in the U.S., with no shortage throughout Louisiana.

Read a full review of Allstate homeowners insurance.

Progressive: Best for Discounts and Ways to Save

Progressive is widely known for its “Bundle Discount,” given to homeowners with other coverage with Progressive. Discounts are also available for new home construction, obtaining advance quotes before coverage goes into effect, and going paperless.

Progressive not only offers ample discounts but provides two other ways customers can save. Bundlers can save with Progressive's single deductible savings. If a policyholder needs to file claims affecting their home and auto policies, Progressive reimburses them for one of their deductibles, so the claimant only needs to pay one deductible rather than two.

Progressive also allows homeowners to save on repair or remodeling work if their home is damaged. You can get a list of recommended contracting companies from Progressive that can save you money.

A Progressive homeowners policy includes coverage for personal property, dwelling, loss of use, and liability. Expensive items and collections, like jewelry or art, may not be adequately covered by their basic policy. Add-ons may be necessary for those items.

State Farm: Best Hurricane Coverage

Because there is no coverage specifically for hurricanes, combining State Farm policies provides comprehensive coverage caused by hurricanes, tornadoes, or hail storms. State Farm also makes it easy for homeowners to file a claim online if they have suffered a covered loss from a hurricane.

State Farm has what is known as a “hurricane deductible,” which is applicable for any damage caused by a hurricane. The hurricane deductible is typically higher and separate from the standard homeowners insurance policy. This is a common practice for many insurers doing business in hurricane-prone states like Louisiana.

Read a full State Farm homeowners insurance review.

Louisiana Farm Bureau: Best Customer Service

Louisiana Farm Bureau Insurance, which provides insurance to Farm Bureau members, has served Louisiana residents for over 70 years. In addition to homeowners insurance, they offer auto, life, and farm insurance. With over 30,000 farms operating in Louisiana, Louisiana Farm Bureau’s farm insurance is well-received.

The company is also a favorite because of its customer service, mainly because of its MOBILE agent app. It allows policyholders to report a claim through their phone, which could prove indispensable if a home was heavily damaged and laptops or pads couldn’t be utilized.

Homeowners insurance through Farm Bureau can be purchased by contacting a local agent.

One important caveat is that to access insurance, homeowners should be a member of a local Parish Farm Bureau agricultural organization, which requires an annual membership fee. That being said, anyone can join, and membership is not restricted to farmers.

Chubb Homeowners Insurance: Fastest Claims Payment

Louisiana residents have had to repair or rebuild their homes many times because of storms, and fast claims payment is needed and appreciated. Chubb provides a response to claims within 24 hours of submission, and once approved, payments for damage can be made within 24 hours.

Chubb’s homeowners policies also include several features not typically included in other insurers' standard policies, such as extended replacement costs, tree removal after a storm, data restoration if a policyholder’s computer gets a virus, and lock replacement if keys to the home are lost or stolen.

The Hanover Homeowners Insurance: Best Coverage for High-Value Homes

The Hanover homeowners insurance in Louisiana comes in three tiers: Connections, Prestige, and Platinum. Each package can be customized to best meet the needs of individual homeowners.

The Platinum plan is intended for high-value homes or those wanting more robust coverage. It offers extra policy features, such as law or ordinance coverage, water backup coverage starting at $25,000 up to the full replacement value of the home, and unlimited loss of use coverage if the home is temporarily uninhabitable due to a damage claim.

It's important to note that specific coverage and limits can vary depending on the individual policy and location.

What Does Homeowners Insurance in Louisiana Cover?

The average homeowners insurance policy in Louisiana covers your home for any issue not excluded in the policy. Standard exclusions include neglect, power failure, war, nuclear hazard, sinkholes, earthquakes, vermin and insect infestations, and normal wear and tear.

Your belongings (personal property) are protected from specific “perils” in your standard homeowners insurance policy. Fire, tornadoes, lightning, riots, explosions, and theft and vandalism are some events covered by a homeowners policy

A standard home insurance policy includes these main coverage types:

Dwelling: pays to repair or rebuild your home if it’s damaged. It also covers attached structures, like a garage, porch, or deck.

Other structures: pays to repair or replace structures not attached to your home, like an in-ground swimming pool, fence, or shed.

Personal property: pays to repair or replace your personal belongings caused by theft, fire, or smoke damage. Your personal property includes items such as your clothing, furniture, appliances, jewelry, and electronics.

Liability: pays for property damage and mishaps you may accidentally cause that injure others. For example, liability insurance can pay for a settlement if your dog bites someone. If you’re sued, your liability insurance can help pay for a judgment and legal fees.

Medical payments to others: covers more minor medical claims made by people not in your household, such as guests to your home or domestic staff, regardless of fault for the injury. For example, medical payments can cover any minor injuries sustained if a housekeeper or friend cuts their hand in your home. Coverage amounts are small, typically $1,000.

Additional living expenses: If you cannot stay in your home after an event covered by your policy (like a fire, tornado, or hurricane), additional living expenses coverage pays for extra costs like a hotel stay, meals out, and other necessary services.

What Are the Most Common Natural Disasters in Louisiana?

Louisiana residents don’t experience a wide variety of natural disasters like some states. The most common catastrophes in Louisiana are hurricanes, severe storms, and floods. Gulf Coast residents are often the hit hardest by hurricanes and flooding caused by rain and storm surges.

In most recent years, it has not been unheard of for Louisiana to be hit by a few hurricanes in quick succession per season.

Louisiana home insurance policies have special hail, windstorm, and named storm and hurricane deductibles. These deductibles are a percentage of your dwelling coverage and typically range between 2 and 5%. For example, if your home is insured for $300,000 and you have a 3% deductible, your out-of-pocket cost would be $9,000.

Luckily for Louisiana homeowners, state laws mandate that your insurer cannot have you pay more than one special deductible per calendar year. So if your home is subjected to three hurricanes in a row, you would have to only pay one hurricane deductible.

Do you need flood Insurance in Louisiana?

A standard homeowners insurance policy doesn’t cover damage from floodwaters. And with flooding becoming more frequent, you may want to consider flood insurance if your property is at risk.

Financial aid from FEMA after a flood may be and is frequently insufficient for most homeowners. It’s best to have your own flood insurance to rely on. Many people with flood insurance buy it through the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), a federal program. Flood insurance is also available from some private insurance companies.

For those that qualify, FEMA’s Individuals and Households Program (IHP) may provide financial and other assistance after a major disaster or emergency. This program helps people find housing after a problem directly caused by a disaster that insurance or other sources don’t cover.

What’s the Best Way to Buy Homeowners Insurance in Louisiana?

As a Louisiana homeowner, insuring your home against storm damage, flooding, and other events is critical to your financial future.

PropertyNest offers you these tips to be sure you have the best, affordable homeowner’s coverage possible.

Look into Louisiana Citizens Property Insurance – Louisiana's FAIR plan.

The state’s FAIR plan can assist Louisiana residents finding insurance if private insurers have rejected them due to living in high-risk areas.

Strongly consider purchasing flood insurance

While homeowners insurance covers some storm damage to your home, it typically doesn’t cover outside flooding. This makes flood insurance in Louisiana a critical consideration for those in high-risk areas.

Figure out how much deductible you can afford

Given the long hurricane season in Louisiana, residents in coastal communities may not want to choose too high of a deductible.

Compare quotes

You may be able to retrieve different insurance quotes online. However, not all insurance companies offer the option of online quotes.

A licensed, independent insurance broker or agent can walk you through home insurance quotes from multiple insurers to help you determine which companies offer the best coverage at the best price.

Conclusion

Considering how storm-prone Louisiana is and the higher cost of homes, selecting the right homeowners insurance policy is critical to the financial security of Louisiana homeowners.

At PropertyNest, our mission is to provide Louisiana home and farm owners with the information they need to make an informed decision that provides them with the coverage they need at an affordable rate.

When you’re collecting quotes and comparing insurers, ask questions about factors that affect your rates, such as the estimated cost to rebuild your home, the replacement value of your belongings, and the geographic location of your home.

We recommend you get a minimum of three quotes from different insurers. A licensed property and casualty insurance broker can often provide you with multiple quotes.

We also suggest you ask about all the discounts available, but remember it’s not always best to choose a carrier on price alone. If you ever face a large claim, what you paid will be secondary to the quality of your coverage and the service of the insurance company.

Methodology

How We Selected the Best Homeowners Insurance Companies in Louisiana

Finding the right homeowners insurance can be time-consuming and stressful. In addition, many coverages, add-ons, and limits don’t match up from company to company.

For Louisiana, we selected insurers using five essential criteria indicating which companies are the best able to protect homeowners.

Price

The cost of homeowners insurance is affected by many things, but regardless of how much coverage you need, we recognize that keeping costs down is a priority.

For our list, we chose companies that provide good value at an affordable price. Several carriers were higher than the state average, but their coverage and limits were favorable in some respects compared to their competitors.

Discounts

Homeowners insurance discounts are helpful because they can help you reduce your annual premium, particularly if you can bundle other products like car, motorcycle, or boat insurance.

We selected companies that offer multiple homeowners insurance discounts, particularly discounts that apply to most homeowners in Louisiana, such as installing security systems.

Coverage

To be protected adequately, you need to buy enough coverage to rebuild your home and replace your belongings if they’re destroyed.

For our list, we prioritized insurance companies that provide excellent standard coverage, plus a selection of endorsements and add-ons to help you customize your coverage.

Customer Support

Filing an insurance claim can be stressful, and low premiums are no substitute for the lack of customer support.

To make our list, insurance carriers needed strong customer service ratings and reviews, and we selected insurers with multiple support layers, including mobile apps or 24/7 phone support.

Technology

Technology plays a vital role in the process of obtaining quotes for homeowners insurance, as well as for paying monthly premiums and filing claims.

We highlighted companies with up-to-date mobile apps and online support and services.