Unlocking America’s Future Research Across Five States Documents How Insurers Maximize Profits While Leaving Homeowners Behind
WASHINGTON, DC – A new analysis from the Wall Street Journal shines a spotlight on the home insurance premium crisis gripping American families, one of the top affordability issues affecting families across the nation. Unlocking America’s Future (UAF) series of state-level reports documents how insurance companies are systematically extracting record profits while denying claims, abandoning policyholders, and flooding the zone with campaign cash to block accountability. From Florida to California, the same pattern repeats: premiums skyrocketing by more than 30% since 2019, dropping coverage in high-risk areas, claims denials surge at alarming rates, and insurance executives raking in investment income and paying themselves millions while homeowners lose their coverage.
“This confirms what millions of American families already know: home insurance has become unaffordable, and the companies collecting those premiums are not playing by the rules,” said Kyle Herrig, spokesperson for Unlocking America’s Future. “Our research across five states shows this is not just a weather problem — it’s an accountability problem. Insurers are maximizing profits, gaming regulations, and using political spending to make sure no one stops them.”
Florida
UAF’s report on Florida found that premiums have skyrocketed 54% since 2019, making Florida the most expensive state in the nation for homeowners insurance, with average yearly rates reaching $14,140 in 2024. Twenty percent of Florida homeowners now go uninsured entirely. In 2024, fourteen Florida property insurers closed more than half of all claims filed without paying a single dollar — with whistleblowers alleging that after Hurricane Ian, insurance companies altered adjuster reports to systematically reduce payouts to devastated homeowners. [FULL REPORT]
California
In California, premiums rose 55% from 2019 to 2024, while major insurers — including State Farm and Allstate — stopped writing new policies and canceled hundreds of thousands of existing ones. More than 250,000 policies were non-renewed between 2020 and 2023 alone. When the Los Angeles fires struck in 2025, insurers denied smoke damage claims that state regulators had explicitly said they had a duty to investigate. Throughout it all, the property and casualty insurance industry earned $164 billion from investments in one year — refuting their claims of financial distress. [FULL REPORT]
Texas
Texas home insurance premiums have surged 55% since 2019, pushing the state to the third most expensive in the nation — with costs nearly double the national average for a $300,000 property. Roughly one-third of low-income Texas homeowners now go without coverage. The Texas FAIR Plan, the state’s insurer of last resort, doubled in size between 2022 and 2024 to over 120,000 policies — evidence of a private market that has systematically abandoned working families. Texas is also the only Gulf Coast state that does not offer mandatory insurance discounts for resilient construction. [FULL REPORT]
Louisiana
Louisiana homeowners have seen an effective 34.6% premium increase since 2019, and the state now holds the second-highest home insurance costs in the nation. In the New Orleans metro area, homeowners spend nearly 17.5% of median annual income on home coverage. Insurers closed 44.6% of claims with no payment in 2024 — above the national average — while earning $88.3 billion in investment income since 2004. Twelve Louisiana home insurers failed after Hurricane Ida, with eleven operating an “affiliate model” that siphoned funds to related companies rather than building reserves to pay claims. [FULL REPORT]
North Carolina
North Carolina home insurance premiums have skyrocketed over 38% in recent years. Making matters worse, a deceptive state law allows insurers to charge premiums at 250% of regulatory maximums by obtaining homeowner “consent” through payment alone – no explicit approval required. After Hurricane Helene, thousands of homeowners saw claims denied or delayed, including disaster survivor Bob Tatum, who said despite independent experts confirming wind and hail damage: “My claim was still denied. That’s a license to steal.” Upwards of 10,000 North Carolinians were rejected by Nationwide alone, including seniors on fixed incomes with no explanation. [FULL REPORT]
