Insurance Curator Before anyone can answer that, there is a question underneath it. There are two completely different companies called Citizens, and which one you are dealing with changes the answer entirely.
One is Citizens Property Insurance Corporation, a state-created not-for-profit in Florida. The other is Citizens Insurance Company of America, a private carrier owned by The Hanover Insurance Group and sold mostly across the Midwest.
They share a name and almost nothing else.
The two Citizens, side by side
| Citizens Property Insurance Corp. | Citizens Insurance Co. of America | |
|---|---|---|
| Where | Florida only | Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Wisconsin and nearby |
| Owner | Created by the Florida Legislature | The Hanover Insurance Group |
| Type | Not-for-profit, government-created | Private, for-profit stock insurer |
| Sold by | Appointed Florida agents | Independent agents |
| Purpose | Insurer of last resort | Ordinary competitive carrier |
| Financial strength | Backed by statute and assessments, not an AM Best rating | Rated A (Excellent) by AM Best as a Hanover subsidiary |
If you want the longer version of this distinction, it is worth reading Is Citizens the same as Hanover insurance? and What kind of insurance is citizens insurance? before you shop.
Citizens in Florida: the insurer of last resort
Citizens Property Insurance Corporation exists because private carriers pulled back from parts of Florida. It is not owned by the state in the way people usually mean, but it was created by the Legislature and it is governed by statute, which is close enough that the question Is citizens insurance owned by the state of Florida? keeps getting asked.
The key rule: you are only eligible for Citizens if you cannot get comparable private coverage, or if the private quote you can get is more than 20% above the Citizens premium.
That single sentence explains most of what people find frustrating about it.
What Citizens does well
- It writes policies nobody else will. For a lot of coastal and older homes, it is the only option that exists.
- Rates are regulated, not market-driven. Increases are capped by statute rather than set by an underwriter’s appetite.
- It has been getting cheaper, not dearer. Citizens recommended rate cuts for most policyholders in December 2025, and its 2026 multiperil rates are dropping statewide.
- It is not going to disappear. Several private Florida carriers have failed since 2021. Citizens cannot.
Where it falls short
- Coverage is thinner. Sub-limits, restricted water damage cover and mandatory flood requirements in some areas are all normal.
- Assessments are a real risk. After a catastrophic season, Citizens can levy assessments on policyholders and, in some circumstances, on Florida policyholders at other carriers too.
- Depopulation moves you around. Private carriers can take your policy out of Citizens, and if their offer is within 20% of your Citizens premium, keeping Citizens may not be your choice.
- Service is stretched. Claim volume after a major storm is enormous, and adjuster availability shows it.
Citizens’ policy count fell below one million in late 2024 as depopulation accelerated, which is exactly what it was designed to do. It is meant to shrink.
Citizens Insurance Company of America: the Hanover side
This is a conventional carrier, and it should be judged on conventional terms.
Hanover’s insurance subsidiaries, including Citizens Insurance Company of America, carry an A (Excellent) financial strength rating from AM Best. It sells home, auto and umbrella cover through independent agents rather than direct, which matters more than most people expect.
Independent-agent distribution has trade-offs. You get someone who can shop several carriers for you and who tends to help when a claim goes sideways. You also cannot buy a policy at midnight on your phone, and pricing is rarely the cheapest on a comparison site.
Customer satisfaction sits around the middle of the pack. Not a standout, not a problem carrier.
So is it a good company?
For Florida homeowners: Citizens is a good backstop and a poor first choice. If a private carrier will write your home at a sensible price, take it. If none will, Citizens is doing precisely the job it was built for, and being annoyed at its coverage limits is a bit like being annoyed that a spare tyre is not a real tyre.
For Midwest homeowners: Citizens Insurance Company of America is a solid, unremarkable carrier with strong financials and agent-based service. Worth a quote. Not obviously better or worse than the big national names.
How it compares with the big carriers
Most people asking about Citizens are also weighing up the majors, and the comparison is genuinely close on price for standard homes.
| Question worth asking | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| What does the policy actually exclude? | Water damage sub-limits vary wildly between carriers |
| Is the replacement cost figure realistic? | Underinsuring triggers the coinsurance penalty |
| How does the carrier handle a total loss? | This is where reputations are made and lost |
| What happens at renewal after a claim? | Non-renewal patterns differ enormously |
State Farm is the usual comparison point, and its reputation is mixed enough that both Why does State Farm have such a bad reputation? and How much does State Farm charge for home insurance? are worth reading before you commit. Allstate is the other, and its position in high-risk states has shifted, which is covered in Is Allstate dropping homeowners insurance? and How good is Allstate insurance for homeowners?.
If you are eligible for it, USAA consistently rates well on claims handling, though the picture is not uniformly positive: see Is USAA good insurance for homeowners? and Why does USAA have an F rating? for both sides of that.
What you should actually be comparing
Price alone is the wrong test. Two policies at the same premium can behave completely differently after a hurricane.
- Dwelling coverage against real rebuild cost. Not market value. Rebuild cost. Getting this wrong is what triggers What is the 80% rule in homeowners insurance?.
- Hurricane and wind deductibles. Usually a percentage, not a flat figure. On a $400,000 home a 5% wind deductible is $20,000 out of pocket.
- Water damage limits. The most common claim type and the most commonly restricted.
- Ordinance or law coverage. Rebuilding to current code costs more than rebuilding what was there.
- Claims reputation, not marketing. Which home insurance company denies the most claims? is a more useful question than which one has the best advert.
For a sense of whether a quote is even in the right range, How much is homeowners insurance on a $400,000 house? and What is a normal amount to pay for homeowners insurance? give you the benchmarks. In Florida specifically, What is a good price for homeowners insurance in Florida? is the closer comparison.
The short answer
Citizens Insurance Company of America is a good, ordinary insurer. A rated, agent-sold, middle-of-the-road on service, worth including in your quotes if you are in its footprint.
Citizens Property Insurance Corporation is a good safety net and nothing more. If you have a private alternative at a fair price, take it. If you do not, Citizens will cover your home when nobody else will, and that is worth a great deal, thinner policy and assessment risk included.
Whichever one you are looking at, get the full policy wording before you sign. The declarations page tells you the price. The exclusions tell you what you actually bought.