- Our thoughts on American Family
- Where can you buy American Family homeowners insurance?
- What does American Family homeowners insurance cover?
- How much is American Family home insurance?
- American Family home insurance discounts
- What makes American Family home insurance rates go up?
- American Family vs. competitors: How does American Family stack up?
- What do people ask about American Family?
- Is American Family a good homeowners insurance company?
Our thoughts on American Family
American Family home insurance rates are not the lowest but are below average. Cheap rates aren’t always the mark of good insurance.
“A lower rate might compromise service quality, both in general support and during claim settlements. A company's history in claim handling and overall customer interactions should not be overlooked,” says Siwei Gao, professor of insurance studies at Eastern Kentucky University.
American Family home insurance reviews are generally positive, and the company was the most trusted in the 2024 survey.
American Family has an extensive list of coverage endorsements, some of which are uncommon, like the inland flood endorsement. Its strong showing for renewals and recommendations in our survey landed it in the eighth spot on our best insurance companies list for 2023, but it didn’t score at the top for customer service. It scores reasonably well with J.D. Power.
Home insurance policies from American Family are not available in all states; currently, the company only offers coverage in 19 states.
Overall: American Family home insurance is a solid choice if you’re in their coverage area; rates are reasonable and the company scores well in most areas.
Where can you buy American Family homeowners insurance?
American Family offers homeowners insurance in 19 states and doesn’t currently offer home insurance in either California or Florida. See if it’s available in your area on the map below.
| State |
|---|
| Arizona |
| Colorado |
| Georgia |
| Idaho |
| Illinois |
| Indiana |
| Iowa |
| Kansas |
| Minnesota |
| Missouri |
| Nebraska |
| Nevada |
| North Dakota |
| Ohio |
| Oregon |
| South Dakota |
| Utah |
| Washington |
| Wisconsin |
*Some state rates will vary based on the addition of a hurricane deductible and may be much higher when included.
What does American Family homeowners insurance cover?
American Family home insurance coverage provides everything included in a standard home policy. It covers:
- Your house (dwelling coverage)
- Any detached structures on your property (other structures)
- All of the contents of your house (personal property)
- Extra bills incurred when you can’t live at home due to a covered loss (loss of use/additional living expenses)
- Damages or injuries to others caused by you or occurring on your property (personal liability and medical payments)
American Family offers a lot of optional coverage options to provide extra coverage for your home, your belongings and you.
- Equipment breakdown for major systems and appliances in your home
- Inland flood for flash floods from inland sources
- Hidden water coverage for slow leaks you can’t see
- Home renovation coverage
- Matching siding coverage to replace all siding when a match can’t be found
- Roof damage coverage to provided extended roof coverage
- Service line coverage
- Sewer back, septic backup and sump overflow
- Home business coverage
- Short-term rental coverage
- Vacant home coverage
- Vacation home coverage
- Credit monitoring
- Identity protection
- Itemized personal property for high-value items
- Senior living coverage, which protects the property of a loved one in an assisted living facility
An American Family homeowners policy has the same exclusions as all standard home insurance policies, although some can be covered via one of the endorsements above.
- No coverage for floods and earthquakes (earthquake coverage can be endorsed).
- Coverage limits on certain types of personal property, like jewelry, fine art, musical instruments and sports equipment.
- No coverage for excluded perils like war and terrorism, nuclear hazards, animal and pest damage and water and sewer backup (unless endorsed).
How much is American Family home insurance?
American Family homeowners insurance rates aren’t the cheapest, but they’re below average and stack up well against competitors. The average rate at the $300,000 dwelling coverage level is $2,504, but rates vary by coverage level. Get an American Family home insurance quote directly to find out how much it will cost for your home.
| Coverage level | Average annual rate |
|---|---|
| $200,000 dwelling, $100,000 liability | $1,697 |
| $200,000 dwelling, $300,000 liability | $1,709 |
| $300,000 dwelling, $100,000 liability | $2,126 |
| $300,000 dwelling, $300,000 liability | $2,504 |
| $400,000 dwelling, $100,000 liability | $2,561 |
| $400,000 dwelling, $300,000 liability | $2,576 |
| $500,000 dwelling, $100,000 liability | $2,983 |
| $500,000 dwelling, $300,000 liability | $2,999 |
| $600,000 dwelling, $100,000 liability | $3,375 |
| $600,000 dwelling, $300,000 liability | $3,393 |
American Family home insurance discounts
Like most home insurance companies, the new home discount is the biggest discount from American Family. However, there’s a long list of available discounts that can bring already affordable rates down even more.
| Discount | Average rate before | Average rate after | % discount |
|---|---|---|---|
| New Home | $2,178 | $1,294 | 41% |
| Age of home | $2,066 | $1,823 | 12% |
| Bundle | $2,276 | $2,062 | 10% |
| Upgrades | $2,235 | $2,013 | 9% |
| Advance Purchase | $1,904 | $1,756 | 8% |
| Separate Wind-Hail Deductible | $2,253 | $2,024 | 8% |
| Loyalty | $2,128 | $2,018 | 6% |
| Construction type | $2,135 | $2,039 | 5% |
| Sprinklers | $2,085 | $1,988 | 5% |
| Paid in Full | $2,322 | $2,212 | 5% |
| Fire Alarm | $1,827 | $1,754 | 4% |
| Water Safety System | $2,110 | $2,048 | 3% |
| Burglar Alarm | $1,898 | $1,848 | 3% |
| Automatic payments | $2,352 | $2,306 | 2% |
| Smoke Detector | $1,776 | $1,732 | 2% |
| Gated Community | $2,130 | $2,115 | 1% |
What makes American Family home insurance rates go up?
Risk makes homeowners insurance rates go up, and American Family is no different. Below, we’ve listed how much of a surcharge you can expect for various risks with American Family.
| Reason | Average rate before | Average rate after | % increase |
|---|---|---|---|
| Age of home | $2,221 | $2,297 | 4% |
| Claims | $2,169 | $2,914 | 37% |
| Construction type | $1,923 | $2,006 | 5% |
| Distance From Coast | $2,693 | $3,016 | 12% |
| Dog | $2,321 | $2,339 | 1% |
| Home-Based Business | $2,231 | $2,645 | 22% |
| Marital Status | $2,322 | $2,337 | 1% |
| Pool | $1,409 | $1,459 | 5% |
| Proximity to fire station | $2,346 | $2,396 | 2% |
| Trampoline | $1,409 | $1,459 | 5% |
| Wood burning stove | $2,135 | $2,208 | 4% |
American Family vs. competitors: How does American Family stack up?
American Family didn’t have the best scores on our survey but did better than some competitors for customer satisfaction and ease of service.
| Company | Average annual rate | Customer satisfaction | Ease of service | Policy offerings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| American Family | $2,126 | 65% | 60% | 48% |
| Auto-Owners | $2,025 | 63% | 67% | 70% |
| Nationwide | $2,639 | 52% | 41% | 50% |
What do people ask about American Family?
Shopping for home insurance brings up a lot of questions. Here are a few of the common ones about American Family.
Is American Family Insurance in Florida?
No, American Family doesn’t currently offer insurance in Florida.
Why is American Family insurance so expensive?
American Family home insurance prices are below average nationally, but rates vary by location and will be higher in some areas. The past two years have seen big increases in homeowners insurance rates across all companies, not just American Family, as S&P Global reported.
What is an American Family Gold Star policy?
Gold Star is a name American Family used in the past for its homeowners insurance policy; however, currently, the Gold Star policy is not found on the company website.
Is American Family a good homeowners insurance company?
What makes a good homeowners company depends on what you want and need from your policy and carrier. There are a few basics, however. You need a company with good customer service, good coverage and great claims service. American Family doesn’t top the list in any of these areas but doesn’t have much in the way of red flags, either. Here’s a look at how current customers felt about the company in our survey.
Do people trust American Family?
Trust is a difficult area for insurance companies- but not for American Family. In our survey, 89% of American Family insurance customers said they trust American Family, the top score.
Do people recommend American Family?
American Family comes highly recommended, with 91% of customers saying they’d recommend the company.
Do people plan to renew with American Family?
In our survey, 89% of American Family home insurance customers said they’d renew their policy. Customer loyalty may say more about a company than most other measures.
Is American Family good at paying claims?
American Family scored 875 out of 1,000 in J.D. Power’s 2023 claims survey. That’s one point above the industry average. Claims are always a difficult area for insurance companies, but American Family has generally held a good reputation in this area.
