UPC insurance review 2024
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Bankrate's take
United Property & Casualty Insurance Company, better known as UPC Insurance, may have been a good option for homeowners in some risk-prone areas who also preferred working with in-person agents. However, the company has been declared insolvent and new policies are no longer available.
- Declared insolvent February 2023 and no longer writing new policies
- Previously offered home insurance in high-risk coastal areas
- High NAIC complaint index
New
- Effective March 29, 2023, UPC Insurance home policies are no longer active.
- On Feb. 16, 2023, the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR) initiated insolvency proceedings against UPC.
- On Feb. 10, 2023, United Insurance Holdings Corp. — the parent company of UPC — filed a notice with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that UPC, due to its incurred losses from Hurricane Ian, was expected to be declared insolvent.
- On Feb. 1, 2023, UPC announced that it had sold some of its home insurance policies in Florida to Slide. Other policies were sold to the State of Florida.
- In December 2022, Florida state regulators placed UPC under administrative supervision. The company is still solvent but its policies, at least in Florida, will all be canceled by May 31, 2023.
- In August 2022, UPC announced plans to withdraw its personal lines business in Florida, Louisiana, New York and Texas. The company previously also sold coverage in Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina, but quotes are currently unavailable in those states and UPC has sold its renewal rights to those policies. This effectively means that UPC will soon no longer write personal home insurance policies in any state.
UPC home insurance review
UPC home insurance is no longer available. The company was declared insolvent on Feb. 16, 2023 by the Florida OIR. In Florida, some policies were transferred to the state while others were transferred to Slide Insurance. Louisiana UPC policyholders were transferred to Louisiana Citizens. If you had a UPC policy, be on the lookout for communications from the company about how to handle your policy going forward. It may be transferred to another company or you may need to seek new coverage yourself.
UPC previously helped to provide coverage availability for homes in high-risk, coastal areas where home insurance options were harder to find. While UPC's policies were fairly basic, you may have been able to add a few optional coverage types to bolster your policy, like service line coverage and home systems protection.
Pros and cons of UPC home insurance
Pros
- Offered home insurance in some risk-prone states
- Products were offered through local independent agents
- Offered a few optional coverage types
Cons
- Company is insolvent and policies may no longer be available
- Had limited state availability
- Had an above-average NAIC Complaint Index
UPC customer satisfaction
When shopping for the best home insurance company, it may be helpful to look at more than just quoted premiums. Analyzing customer service and financial strength ratings could help you discern how satisfied you might be with your interactions with the company.
Bankrate analyzed financial strength ratings from companies like AM Best and Demotech, as these evaluate a company's historical ability to pay claims. While UPC is unrated by AM Best, it used to be rated as A (Exceptional) by Demotech. In August 2022, however, Demotech downgraded UPC to an M (Moderate) rating and has since withdrawn its rating altogether. This was likely an early sign of the financial instability within UPC, which has now erupted into full-blown insolvency.
To review customer satisfaction from a historical perspective — remember that UPC is now insolvent, so it will no longer have any policies or customers once the process has been completed — Bankrate looked at third-party data from companies like J.D. Power and the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) Complaint Index.
UPC was not included in the 2023 J.D. Power Home Insurance or the 2024 Property Claims Satisfaction Study. That said, it was ranked second-lowest out of 23 providers in the 2020 Home Insurance Study.
UPC customer complaints
The NAIC records complaints about insurance companies and assigns a complaint index to each carrier. A baseline index is 1.00. Scores above 1.00 indicate more complaints than average for a company of that size and vice versa.
UPC home insurance customer complaints
NAIC data was not favorable regarding UPC's customer satisfaction; its score from 2021 indicates that over three times more complaints were filed with the NAIC about UPC than expected for a company of its size. The carrier no longer receives a complaint index as it is insolvent.
UPC home insurance cost
The national average cost of home insurance for $250,000 in dwelling coverage is $2,304 per year. UPC home insurance rates are not available due to the company’s discontinuation of personal home insurance policies.
UPC home insurance discounts
If you are shopping for the cheapest home insurance, most insurance professionals recommend shopping around to compare home insurance quotes from several companies. Discounts may help you save on home insurance, so choosing a company that offers several discounts you are eligible for might help you find a more affordable policy.
UPC home insurance discounts likely varied by state when the company was still solvent, and its advertised discounts were not very extensive or unique. If you’re looking for a new home insurance policy due to UPC’s insolvency, you may want to consider bundling your auto and home insurance, updating your home’s roof or installing a home security device, as these measures are among the most common ways to get a home insurance discount.
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Coverage.com, LLC is a licensed insurance producer (NPN: 19966249). Coverage.com services are only available in states where it is licensed. Coverage.com may not offer insurance coverage in all states or scenarios. All insurance products are governed by the terms in the applicable insurance policy, and all related decisions (such as approval for coverage, premiums, commissions and fees) and policy obligations are the sole responsibility of the underwriting insurer. The information on this site does not modify any insurance policy terms in any way.
Compare UPC with other insurers
If you were reading UPC Insurance reviews but found it no longer provides homeowners insurance, you may want to consider getting quotes from other home insurance companies. There are several home insurance companies that provide comparable rates and homeowners insurance options to UPC, such as State Farm, USAA, and Lemonade.
UPC vs. State Farm
State Farm offers a full range of product lines and is consistently highly rated by third-party rating services such as AM Best and J.D. Power. If you like that UPC was sold by local agents, State Farm's agency network might appeal to you. State Farm is also available in a broader range of states than UPC was. If you are looking to manage multiple policies in one place, State Farm car insurance may be worth looking into as it regularly makes Bankrate’s list of the best car insurance companies.
Learn more: State Farm Insurance review
UPC vs. USAA
USAA only offers insurance policies to active-duty members of the U.S. Military, veterans and qualifying family members. If you qualify, you may appreciate USAA's highly-rated customer service and policy features that are tailored to the needs of military families. Unlike UPC, USAA is available nationwide. Qualifying applicants might also look into USAA car insurance, which typically offers cheap rates.
Learn more: USAA Insurance review
UPC vs. Lemonade
If you're looking for a highly-rated home insurance company that operates fully online, you may want to research Lemonade. Lemonade also offers car insurance, so it might be a good option if you want to bundle your policies and prefer a digital platform. Lemonade isn’t available nationwide, but it does offer coverage in a wider range of states than UPC did.
Learn more: Lemonade Insurance review
Our insurance editorial team includes licensed agents with decades of combined experience, and we used our intimate knowledge of the industry to conduct this in-depth UPC insurance review.
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Is UPC a good insurance company?
UPC isn’t an option for home insurance. The company isn’t offering quotes online anymore, and it has been declared insolvent in Florida. UPC's high NAIC Complaint Index and the withdrawal of its Demotech financial strength rating may have been indications of the company's service level and financial stability. If you were considering a quote from UPC, you’ll need to research and compare quotes from other companies for more information on relevant rates, coverage offerings, discounts, and third-party scores and ratings.
What are real-life customers saying about UPC?
One of the best ways to gauge the general consensus about a home insurance company is to see what actual customers have to say. To give deeper insight into the company, Bankrate’s insurance editorial team looked for UPC insurance reviews on sites like Reddit.
UPC customers on Reddit primarily asked questions in forums pertaining to insurance and personal finance about what will happen to their UPC policies now that the company is going out of business.
UPC company details
- Claims: 1-888-CLM-DEPT (1-888-256-3378)
- Online claims portal: UPC Insurance claims.
- Proof of coverage: (866) 515-4428
- State-specific questions:
- Florida
- For policies beginning with letters: (800) 295-8016
- For policies beginning with 90: (866) 515-4428
- Georgia: (866) 515-4428
- Louisiana: (866) 515-4428
- North Carolina: (800) 295-8016
- New York: (866) 515-4428 for policies beginning with 32 or 80
- South Carolina:
- For policies beginning with letters: (800) 295-8016
- For policies beginning with 80: (866) 515-4428
- Texas: (866) 515-4428
- Florida
State availability
When UPC Insurance was in business, it wrote policies in Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Rhode Island, South Carolina and Texas. It is no longer issuing new insurance policies.
UPC tools and benefits
Due to its insolvency and subsequent receivership, UPC Insurance's additional tools and benefits are no longer available. Here's a retrospective look at some of the features it once offered:
- Water backup insurance: Previously, UPC provided coverage for damages arising from water backup issues, such as those from bathtubs or sinks.
- Valuable items insurance: This coverage catered to specific valuable items like jewelry and silverware, offering additional protection beyond standard home insurance.
- Golf cart insurance: Reflecting Florida's lifestyle, UPC offered an option for adding golf cart coverage to home insurance policies, covering both physical damage and liability.
- Home self-inspection program: UPC had implemented a Home-Self Inspection program where policyholders could use their smartphones to conduct and submit a home inspection, streamlining the process and reducing the need for in-person inspections.
As UPC Insurance has ceased its operations, these benefits are no longer accessible. Policyholders affected by UPC's insolvency should have received guidance on their policy transitions, as various arrangements were made to handle the existing policies and claims.
Frequently asked questions about UPC
