In This Review: Our Take | Pros and Cons | Cost and Discounts | Coverage | State Availability | Customer Reviews | Conclusion | Comparison | Company Information | FAQ | Methodology
There are many factors to consider when you’re purchasing a home insurance policy. You’ll want to work with a reputable company with a proven track record that offers all the coverage you need—and some endorsements you didn’t even know you needed—at an affordable price.
Not all homeowners insurance providers are the same. To ensure you make the best decision for you, the This Old House Reviews Team has created this in-depth Esurance home insurance review to give you more information.
Our Take on Esurance Homeowners Insurance
Esurance, owned by Allstate, offers comprehensive home insurance coverage with several attractive endorsements. Its online quote tool is fast and efficient, able to yield a personalized quote for three tiers of coverage in less than 10 minutes.
However, as of 2021, coverage is only available in eight states. In addition, Esurance is relatively expensive compared to the national average and only underwrites its own policies in certain states. Working with third-party underwriters can add a layer of complexity to customer service and the claims process. We give Esurance home insurance an overall score of 88.12 out of 100.
On Esurance’s Better Business Bureau profile, complaints note billing issues. Reviews range from praising fast claims processing to noting concerns with increasing premiums.
Pros and Cons
Compare the advantages and disadvantages of Esurance home insurance.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Quick, easy online quote tool | Expensive |
| 24/7 customer service | Only available in eight states |
| Doesn’t underwrite its own policies in every state |
How Much Does Esurance Home Insurance Cost?
The exact amount you pay for Esurance homeowners insurance depends on a variety of factors, including your property value, size, the materials it was constructed with, where you live, the coverage limits you select, the insurance deductible you choose, and more.
We requested a quote for a two-story, single-family, 2,000-square-foot home in Houston, Texas. The quoted monthly cost of $306 is significantly higher than the national monthly average, which the Insurance Information Institute has determined as $101.
Esurance Cost
| Type of Coverage | Amount of Coverage |
|---|---|
| Dwelling | $261,640 |
| Other structures | $26,000 |
| Personal property | $157,000 |
| Loss of use | $26,000 |
| Liability | $100,000 per occurrence |
| Medical payments to others | $1,000 per person |
| Monthly Cost | $306 |
Discounts
Esurance offers several discounts.
Esurance Discounts
| Type | Description |
|---|---|
| Multi-policy | Discount for bundling home and auto insurance coverage |
| Protective devices | Discount for installed protective devices like burglar alarms and fire alarms |
| Responsible payment | Discount for responsible payment history, as decided by Esurance |
| Welcome | Discount for submitting a video through the DIY Home Inspection App within the first 20 days after the policy takes effect |
| Claims-free | Discount for being claims-free for a year or more |
| Non-smoking | Discount for homeowners that do not smoke |
| Roof materials | Discount for hail-resistant roof |
Coverage
Esurance offers all forms of standard home insurance coverage under its basic policy.
Ensurance Coverage
| Type | Description |
|---|---|
| Dwelling + other structures | Covers costs to repair or rebuild your dwelling and detached structures (like a garage or shed) in the event of a covered loss |
| Personal property | Covers costs of replacing personal property in case of a covered loss, including clothes, furniture, electronics, and appliances |
| Liability | Covers costs of legal fees if you are sued by a guest for injury or personal property damage |
| Loss of use/additional living expenses | Covers the cost of living outside your home (including accommodations) when it is temporarily uninhabitable due to a covered loss |
| Medical payments to others | Covers the cost of medical expenses associated with a guest getting injured on your property |
Esurance also offers some endorsements to help you customize your home insurance coverage.
Esurance Endorsements
| Type | Coverage |
|---|---|
| Roof surfaces | Covers repair or replacement of roof after damage from wind or hail |
| Water backup | Covers water damage from drain backup and sump pump failure |
| Green improvement | Helps pay for additional expense of replacing damaged items with energy-efficient items |
| Extended coverage | Extends coverage for valuable items like jewelry, watches, and furs |
| Identity theft expense | Covers legal fees associated with identity theft |
| Home daycare | Covers costs associated with accidents that occur in your home if you are running a daycare from the property |
Reviews of Esurance
Esurance is not accredited by the Better Business Bureau and holds an A- rating from the organization. See what some customers had to say about their experience with Esurance.
Cat said:
“The Esurance website is relatively easy to use, and by switching, I’m saving over $200. I liked the simplistic explanation of the coverages.”
Jacob O. said:
“Customer service is poor. They claim that they offer a hassle-free process. I spent 45 minutes on the phone to get something taken care of that I should have been able to handle online. They ‘reward’ customers by removing discounts and increasing their rates.”
Our Conclusion
Although Esurance offers comprehensive home insurance coverage and gives online quotes almost instantly, the company’s prices are much higher than the industry average. In addition, coverage is only available in eight states, making it an option for a small fraction of homeowners. Esurance also only underwrites its own policies in certain states, and it may frustrate some homeowners to work with a third-party when handling claims and customer service issues. We give Esurance home insurance a score of 88.12 out of 100.
Esurance vs. The Competition
See how Esurance stacks up against some of its top competitors on key metrics.
Comparison
| Provider | Esurance | Lemonade | Amica® |
|---|---|---|---|
| Get a Free Quote | Not available through This Old House | Lemonade.com | Not available through This Old House |
| Our Score | 88.12 | 83.50 | 96.60 |
| State Availability | 8 | 23* | 48 (not available in AK and HI) |
| BBB Rating | A- | B+ | A+ |
| Years in Business | 22 | 6 | 114 |
| 24/7 Claims Service | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Protective Devices/Safety Features Discount | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Bundling Discount | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Mobile App | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
*Lemonade home insurance is available in AZ, CA, CO, CT, GA, IL, IN, IA, MD, MA, MI, MO, NV, NJ, NY, OH, OK, OR, PA, TN, TX, VA, WI
Company Information
- Company name: Esurance
- Company type: Public
- CEO: Jonathan Adkisson
- Year founded: 1999
- Headquarters: 650 Davis St., San Francisco, CA 94111
- State availability: 8
- BBB rating: A-
Other Homeowners Insurance Resources
Frequently Asked Questions about Esurance Home Insurance
Our Methodology
The This Old HouseReviews team is committed to providing comprehensive and unbiased reviews to our readers. This means earning your trust through transparency and having the data to back up our ratings and recommendations.
With that in mind, we created an objective rating system to score each home insurance company. Here’s what that review process looked like:
- We analyze the information on each company’s website. This allows us to determine what products and services are offered by each home insurance provider.
- We get a sample quote from the companies by either talking to a sales representative or by using the online quote tool. This tells us what a policy looks like and costs.
- We test customer service by talking to a company representative, finding out their hours of operation, and determining what technological features are available for customers.
- We update all of this information on a continuous basis, storing it in a proprietary database that allows us to compare dozens of home insurance companies against each other.
With this data, we created a rating methodology to score each home insurance company. Our rating system is a weighted, 100-point scale based on the following factors:
- Coverage (30): We rated home insurance companies higher if they offered the six main types of homeowner protection—dwelling, other structures, personal property, loss of use, liability, and medical payments to others coverage.
- State availability (7.5): Companies scored higher if they covered more states than their competitors.
- Customer service (15): This factor is based on our communications with the company representatives, as well as the companies’ claims and quotes processes, availability throughout the week, and customer service information found on their websites.
- Technology (12.5): Technology can increase the efficiency of filing and tracking home insurance claims. Companies scored higher if they had technology options like mobile apps and online chat functions.
- Reputation (20): We gauged trustworthiness based on years of experience and Better Business Bureau (BBB) ratings.
- Additional benefits (15): Companies that offered optional features, like discounts and endorsements, scored higher than competitors that didn’t.
Our Reviews team has a full-time researcher who collects and regularly updates data points from every company to help us compare them on key factors such as coverage, service, and dependability.
To share feedback or ask a question about this article, send a note to our Reviews Team at reviews@thisoldhousereviews.com.