In Florida, the battle for funding for state-provided property insurance has resulted in lobbyists pushing for a 10 percent across-the-board rate increase. The increase requests comes from insistence that Florida insurance regulators are failing in their duties to ensure the proper funds sit in an insurance fund in the event that a major wind storm does more damage to the already vulnerable area.

Citizens Property Insurance Corporation is a state-backed insurance provider, it was created through a 2002 legislation to help Florida homeowners obtain affordable coverage that were not covered by private insurers.

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Allstate is the largest publicly held insurer in the U.S. The company is also the nation’s second-largest home and auto insurer, behind State Farm. Founded in 1931, Allstate began as a division of Sears, Roebuck and Company. In 2007, the corporation reported revenues of $36.8 billion and a net income of $4.6 billion. Allstate sells a variety of insurance lines, including home, auto, life, and commercial insurance. Allstate now also offers investment and retirement products as well as some banking services. In this post, we’ll discuss Allstate’s current status and evaluate their performance as a home insurer.

Financial Performance

Standard & Poor’s recently downgraded Allstate’s financial outlook from stable to negative as of October 2008. S&P attri

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The end of summer often means the end of vacations, a return to school, and a return to the routine. If you have a summer home, it also might mean relocating from your summer home to your winter home. You may assume that your typical homeowner’s insurance will cover your property while you are away; however, this is often not the case. If you have a home that you intend to leave unoccupied for more than a month at a time, you will need to notify your insurance company. In most cases, you will have to purchase vacant home insurance coverage while you are away.

The Risks of a Vacated Home

Your vacant home will probably cost more to insure. The risks to your home are greater when nobody is living in it. I

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For the first time in5 years, customer satisfaction with home insurance increases dramatically. This is according to a recentsurvey from J.D. Powers and Associates.

In the survey, the research firm found that the driving force behind customer satisfaction seemed to be price. This may be a surprise to homeowners living in the Gulf Coast who have suffered astronomical premium hikes after Hurricane Katrina. According to the research firm, however, the Gulf Coast is an exception. Most prices have been reasonable over the past year.

J.D. Powers noted that thesatisfaction associated with home insurance pricesmay have beenperceptual.

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If you own a home in Louisiana, you can take advantage of insurance and tax breaks bytaking on home renovations that comply with statewide building standardsenacted after Hurricane Katrina. Luckily, these renovations can not only help you save money in the long-run, but also protect your home from future wind and water damage.

According to Louisiana’s state insurance commissioner, state lawmakers passed three incentives in 2007 to have more homes meet new building-code standards through “retrofitting” – or making modifications.

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When shopping around for insurance quotes, keep in mind that once you have decided on the policy that’s right for you, you should read the policy. Insurance is one of those things that you buy and hope you’ll never need. But, in the event that you suffer a loss, you will want to make sure you hold up your end of the contract. People oftentimes forget that an insurance policy is a contract. In exchange for certain actions from you (for example, the payment of premium and proper notice of a covered loss), the insurance company will perform certain actions (for example, may defend you in a covered lawsuit, pay a covered loss). Thu

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