Amica Homeowners Insurance Review

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Amica

OVERALL

4.2

THE GOOD

Best-in-class claims handling

Outstanding perks, including a dividend program and network of contractors

THE BAD

Some additional coverage perks aren’t available in some states

Limited coverage endorsement offerings

THE BOTTOM LINE

Amica may be the standard-bearer in property insurance, with a wide range of products at affordable rates with top-notch customer service. Amica’s exceptional work hasn’t gone unnoticed either, as they took the top spot in J.D. Power’s property claims satisfaction survey in 2020. Amica also sits high on J.D. Power’s latest home insurance study. Basically, when it comes to best-in-class claims filing and customer service, you can’t beat Amica.

Cost

7.8

Confidence

9.5

Customer satisfac...

8.4

Policy options

7.3

Customer experience

9.3

AMICA COMPANY SPOTLIGHT

5 out of 5

J.D. Power Rating

A trusted customer satisfaction and product quality research agency

A+

BBB Rating

A nonprofit organization focusing on marketplace trust and product quality

A+

A.M. Best Rating

100-year-old U.S. credit rating agency focused on the insurance industry

The Bottom Line

Whether you want a lean policy with minimal coverage amounts, or something more robust with a number of coverages baked into it, Amica is able to accommodate your needs. You can also rest easy knowing that, when it comes time to file a claim, Amica will do their part to make the process as painless and transparent as possible. If you get insured through Amica, you can expect the very best in coverage, rates, and customer service.

The Details

The Good

Best-in-class claims handling. Amica is one of the most decorated homeowners insurance carriers because of their impeccable reputation when it comes to handling claims. Amica policies may be a little more expensive than other major companies, but you’re paying for a level of service and expertise that’s unmatched in the industry.

Outstanding perks, including a dividend program and network of contractors. Amica offers several perks, like their contractor referral service and multiple discount opportunities. Another perk is Amica’s dividend program — something that's offered by very few, if any, other insurance companies — which refunds some of your policy payments at the end of your term.

The Bad

Some additional coverage perks aren’t available in some states. If you live in California, Florida, Missouri, or North Carolina, you can't take advantage of Amica's dividend program. Certain coverage endorsements are also limited depending on the state your home is in. In New York, for example, Amica won't give you the option (at least in the online application) to add valuable items coverage, loss assessment coverage, or business property coverage. That said, we must stress that it's pretty common in the home insurance industry for companies to be choosy about where they offer specific types of coverage.

Limited coverage endorsement offerings. As good and reliable as Amica's coverage is, they don't offer some of the more popular coverage endorsements, like equipment breakdown coverage, service line coverage, and guaranteed replacement cost dwelling coverage.

The Breakdown

Cost

8.0

While the price of homeowners insurance with Amica will depend on factors like where you live, your home's construction type, and the age of your home, you can expect to pay in the ballpark of $1,939 annually for coverage with Amica — according to an analysis of quotes submitted with Policygenius. That means Amica home insurance rates are about 17 percent higher than the average quoted policy.

Average annual rates are based on a single-family home with around $300,000 in coverage.

It’s worth noting that Amica has a dividend program, a perk that's offered by very few other homeowners insurance companies. By signing up for the dividend plan, you’ll pay more for your policy up front, but since the payment is invested as a dividend, a portion (around five to 20 percent of your annual premium) is refunded to you at the end of your policy term. Amica’s dividend policies could be a worthwhile option for shoppers who want to save more money in the long run.

The dividend program is not available in California, Florida, Missouri, or North Carolina.

Discounts

A great way to keep your homeowners insurance costs down is to take advantage of discount opportunities. Amica has a fairly dependable selection of discounts available.

Common discounts you’ll find with most insurance carriers include protective devices discounts, claims-free discounts, and new home-buyer discounts. Amica offers all of those, plus a multi-policy, or “bundling” discount if you get more than just one type of insurance with Amica and a detection devices discount if your home is fitted with gas or water leak sensors or similar loss prevention technologies.

• Multi-policy discount. Save up to 15 percent when you bundle together home and auto policies with Amica

• Claim-free discount. You’re eligible for a claim-free discount if you’re able to go more than three years without filing a claim

• Loyalty discount. Receive this discount when you’ve been with Amica for at least two years

• E-discount. You’ll get this discount when you opt to receive policy information and billing electronically

• Auto-pay discount. Save on your premium when you set your payments on auto-pay

• Alarm system discount. Receive a discount when your home is fitted with burglar alarms, sprinklers, or fire alarms, and save even more if they alert police or fire departments

• Automatic detection devices discount. Get some savings if you modernize your home with water and gas leak sensors

• New/remodeled home discount. If your home is new or remodeled, you’ll get another nifty discount

Confidence

9.5

Homeowners insurance protects your most important financial assets, so you'll want to be sure you're insuring your home, your personal possessions, and other assets with a company that will be able to pay out your claim in the event of a disaster.

Amica has been around for over 100 years and has well-established financial strength with A.M. Best, the leading insurance company credit rating agency. With Amica, you can insure your home with confidence that they'll be able to cover your assets.

• Year founded: 1907

• Standard & Poor's rating: N/A

• Moody's rating: N/A

• A.M. Best rating: A+

A.M. Best is the most reliable credit-rating tool policyholders can use to gauge the financial health of a company. Unlike S&P and Moody's, A.M. Best is focused exclusively on the insurance marketplace. A good score with A.M. Best means a company will be able to fulfill their financial obligation to you when it comes time to file a claim. With a score of A+, Amica has the second highest rating a company can receive with A.M. Best.

Both Standard & Poor's and Moody’s measure the creditworthiness of companies and long-term financial stability of insurance companies. Neither firm has a rating for Amica at this time.

Customer ratings

8.4

It's important to know what experts think about homeowners insurance companies. But it's worth knowing what actual customers and consumer sentiment sites are saying, too.

Amica has a perfect 5 out of 5 with leading consumer insights company J.D. Power. It also has stellar ratings with the Better Business Bureau and Consumers Advocate, and so-so ratings with Trustpilot.

• J.D. Power: 5 / 5

• BBB: A+

• Consumer Affairs: N/A

• Consumers Advocate: 4.7 / 5

• Trustpilot: 3.4 / 5

• NAIC complaint index: 0.23

J.D. Power rates insurance companies across policy offerings, price, clarity of billing and policy information, and claims fulfillment. In their 2020 U.S. Property Claims Satisfaction Study, Amica Mutual sits at the very top of the list with 902 out of 1,000 points. That translates roughly to a 5 out of 5 score. Simply put, Amica is the best in the business when it comes to customer satisfaction.

The Better Business Bureau ranks companies across a large swath of criteria. While consumers can submit ratings to the BBB, these scores are not taken into account in their rating, although tangential metrics that take into account customer experience are. They give Amica an A+.

Consumer Affairs is a platform that lets consumers directly rate companies. They have pages for Amica’s other products, auto and life insurance, but no page yet for homeowners insurance.

Consumers Advocate rates companies based on stability, reputation, and policy coverage. They give Amica a 4.7 out of 5.

The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) tracks the number of complaints submitted to state insurance departments with their national complaint index. A score of 1 is the baseline average, and a score of 0 means there weren't enough complaints to count. Amica’s score of 0.23 means there were barely any complaints.

Policy options

6.8

Amica offers two homeowners insurance coverage packages that provide all of the primary coverages: dwelling, other structures, personal property, loss-of-use, personal liability, and medical payments coverage.

Amica's standard policy includes replacement cost for your home, loss-of-use coverage, and other basic features. You can customize your policy by adding optional coverage endorsements like personal computer coverage, identity fraud coverage, enhanced dwelling coverage, enhanced personal property coverage, home business overage, and valuable items coverage for belongings such as jewelry or furs.

Amica’s higher tier of homeowners insurance, Platinum Choice, includes everything in the standard package as well as extended replacement cost dwelling coverage and more.

Here's some of the highlights of each of the two coverage tiers offered by Amica:

Standard coverage

• Replacement cost dwelling coverage

• Other structures coverage

• Replacement cost personal property coverage

• Loss-of-use coverage

• Personal liability coverage

• Medical payments to others coverage

Platinum Choice

• Everything that's included in the standard coverage option

• Enhanced dwelling coverage, extending your coverage up to 30 percent if rebuild costs go up

• Enhanced personal property coverage, with full replacement or repair of items

• Extended valuable items coverage for lost or stolen items like jewelry or furs

• Computer coverage (including phones, laptops, tablets, and smart TVs)

• $300,000-$500,000 in personal liability coverage

• $5,000 in medical payments coverage

• $5,000 in water backup coverage

• $5,000 in credit card coverage

• $5,000 in business property coverage at home

• $2,000 in business property courage away from home

Note: The information above represents potential policy options and may not be available for every applicant. Speak to a licensed expert for a personalized look at your coverage options.

Customer experience

9.3

Amica is available in every state except Hawaii, has exceptional claims handling and numerous digital tools to manage your policy, file claims, and pay your bill.

State availability

Amica homeowners insurance is available in 49 states and the District of Columbia. Hawaii is the only state where Amica doesn’t currently offer policies.

Digital tools

• Amica mobile app

• Online application

• Instant quote

• Online bill pay and policy management

• Online and mobile claims

The application

Amica may not promise you a quote in five seconds, but they still make the process fairly easy. Most of Amica’s application process can be done online.

You simply answer a form that asks basic questions about yourself (such as date of birth, your current homeowners insurance carrier) and your home (such as year built, roof age, and construction style), and if you’d like to bundle home and auto policies. Then you’re led to a page where you input your home’s specs, your proximity to fire stations and hydrants, and other applicable information.

You then select which, if any additional coverages you’d like to add to your policy, such as water backup coverage, computer coverage, or identity theft coverage. Amica then runs your quote, which they provide within seconds, along with instructions to call an agent to discuss your plan further. The entire process takes about five to 10 minutes.

Ease of claims

Amica excels in the claims department, an area that seems to be the Achilles’ heel of so many other home insurance carriers. As mentioned above, Amica received a 5 out of 5 for claims satisfaction with J.D. Power — the highest in the industry.

Amica also has an easy claims filing process. You can submit losses through a mobile app, on the web, or over the phone. You can also check on how Amica is handling your claims through their claims tracker, which you can easily monitor through the app, on the web, or over the phone.

Once your claim is accepted, Amica can put you in touch with a contractor through the company’s network. One perk of going through Amica for repairs is that they’re paired with a warranty.

Toss in a claims service you can contact at any time and a catastrophe claims center that will guide you through any severe weather events and you got yourself a top-of-the-line homeowners insurance carrier.

Additional claims service

• 24/7 claims service

• Catastrophe claims center

• Web and mobile app claims

• Home repair assistance program ensuring you licensed and prequalified contractors in the event of a claim

Payment methods

• Checks

• Money orders

• Electronic funds transfer (EFT) from checking or savings accounts

• Over the phone or by mail

• Visa, MasterCard, Discover and American Express credit and debit cards

• Autopay feature from a checking or savings account or credit card (which also gets you discount with Amica)

Policygenius offers insurance policies from many of the nation's top insurers, who pay us a commission for our services. However, all editorial choices are made independently.