Several Texas news outlets discussed a report from the Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) which stated that homeowners insurance premiums in Texas have gone up 21 percent since 2009. Texas Insurance Commissioner Eleanor Kitzman presented figures to a Senate committee recently showing that the average premium on a homeowners policy in Texas last year was $1,412. The report found that the average loss on an insurance claim in Texas is among the highest in the country, which contributed to high premiums.
The Dallas Morning News reports that there are several reasons behind the increase, including insurance industry models that project greater property losses in Texas from natural disasters including hurricanes, hail storms and wildfires. Another contributing factor is increased insurance company expenses and declines in interest rates that have cut investment returns for insurers.
A twenty-one percent increase means that average premium on a homeowner policy in 2009 was $1,174.38, or a $237.62 difference from 2009. And because these rates are partially based on insurance industry models that project greater property losses in Texas from natural disasters, don’t expect Commissioner Kitzman to stop this rate-increase trend anytime soon.
Oh, and don’t expect your concerns to reach Commissioner Kitzman — emails from homeowners sent to Kitzman complaining about the high cost of homeowner insurance have been blocked and blacklisted by her office.
