Homeowners Insurance in Mobile, Alabama (2024)

Mobile, Alabama, rich in culture and history, is the state’s third most populous city. Excellent access to the Gulf is crucial to its economy, while residents enjoy just a short drive to the surrounding beaches and favorable weather year-round. 

If you own or wish to own a home in Mobile, you’ll need homeowners insurance. Mortgage lenders require it. Even if you’re buying property in cash, getting a home insurance policy is the best way to protect your investment from unexpected damage.

Keep reading to learn about home insurance in Mobile, from average rates from top carriers to common cost factors and more.

The average cost of home insurance in Mobile is $2,176. This is higher than other notable cities in the state, such as Huntsville, Montgomery, and Birmingham. The Gulf Coast has been significant in Mobile’s history, and it likely plays a part in its relatively high insurance rates today.

Mobile’s coastal location means it’s at a greater risk of hurricane damage come storm season. The possibility of natural disasters like hurricanes usually raises insurance rates. However, new changes to Alabama’s state laws may protect Alabamans from being dropped off their policies.

Many more variables affect premiums, though. Below, we’ll go over several crucial ones to consider in Mobile. Before we get to that, let’s go over some insurance companies in Mobile and their average rates.

The rates in this article are sourced from the Alabama Department of Insurance, which provides real premiums from several companies in the state. These are average annual premiums for an HO-3 policy, which is the most common type of homeowners insurance plan.

Safeco had the lowest average premiums on our list in Mobile, and they were over $800 below the city average. Alfa and Nationwide had the highest listed premiums, coming in at about 77% higher than the city average.

But, the averages alone don’t paint an accurate picture of insurance rates. The threat of hurricane damage is so great in Mobile that insurance companies reward policyholders who reinforce their homes with wind-protective measures with lower premiums. This process of bolstering your home is called wind mitigation, and it involves installing hurricane-resistive shingles, roof straps, impact-resistant doors, windows, and shutters, among other measures.

Another crucial factor in determining rates is home value. How much your home costs, typically obtained from its replacement cost, influences how much coverage you need. Usually, the bigger and more expensive your house is, the more it’ll cost to insure.

Check out home insurance rates in Mobile on $150,000 below to observe the effects of these two variables:

As you can see, premiums from all carriers (except Safeco) were much higher on houses without wind mitigation. Nationwide premiums decreased by over $4,000, although they were still the most costly carrier on average. 

Insurance rates for $300,000 houses will be higher than rates on $150,000 homes because it takes more insurance to cover the more expensive home. Yet, some policies are still very affordable with wind mitigation. 

Allstate and Farmers, for example, increased by 55% and 66%, respectively, on $150,000 homes with wind mitigation versus $300,000 homes with wind mitigation. This sounds like a lot, but both policies are still well under $1,000 per year, which you’ll see on the list below.

Meanwhile, policies from those providers on similar homes without wind mitigation cost thousands of dollars more, with Alfa reaching nearly $5,000 per year – the highest in that category on our list.

For $150,000 houses, Nationwide had the highest average premiums on our list, followed by Alfa Insurance. On $300,000 homes, Alfa became the most costly, with Nationwide and Farmers behind. 

Also, despite average premiums in the city always being over $1,000, many carriers on the list at both price points had average premiums below $1,000 with wind mitigation. In some cases, coverage was available for less than half that price.

We listed seven insurers in the Mobile area, but over 20 companies that offer coverage in the city filed premiums with the state government. An independent insurance agent can help you find the best coverage from the available options by comparing quotes and finding plans that match your needs. 

Clovered is an independent insurance agency that does business in several countries throughout the southeast, including Alabama. We can help you with all your insurance needs in Mobile. We partner with several of the nation’s top insurance companies, and we can help you find the coverage you need at the price you want. 

To get started, you can use our proprietary online quoting tool, or you can call one of our licensed agents.

Homeowners insurance policies protect more than just your house. The sections of coverage and what they do are:

We’ve already gone over some significant factors that affect rates in Mobile, but there are even more we’d like to mention. For example, the construction style of your home has an effect. Frame homes, built with wood, often have higher premiums than masonry homes, made with bricks or concrete, of similar value. This is because masonry homes are sturdier and better stand up to many harsh weather elements.

Another notable factor is home age. Older homes tend to have higher premiums than newer homes. This occurs for a few reasons. Older houses aren’t built to the latest safety and building codes, making them inherently more dangerous and less prepared for potential severe weather. Also, older homes have a greater possibility of having outdated or discontinued components, such as siding, that can be particularly difficult to replace.

Policyholder claims history also plays a role in how much you pay for insurance. Someone who has filed many insurance claims in the recent past is likely to pay more for coverage than someone who is claims-free. This is because paying out claims costs providers money, and if an insurance company believes you’re more likely to cost them money, then they’ll charge you higher premiums to offset this potential risk.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) maintains flood zone maps that indicate your property’s risk of flooding. These maps are used for construction methods and recommended elevations to keep your property safe. They’re also used to recommend flood insurance.

Mortgage lenders make policyholders with properties in FEMA-designated high-risk flood zones get flood insurance policies. These properties have about a 25% chance of flooding during the term of a 30-year mortgage.

For example, Some areas in eastern Mobile north of I-10 around the Chickasaw Creek and Spanish River are in SFHA flood zones. There are also some high-risk zones around the Dog River. In fact, the Washington Post has dubbed southern Alabama the “new face of flooding.”

Flooding damage is excluded from homeowners insurance. You’d need a dedicated flood insurance policy to sufficiently protect your property and belongings from floods.

Despite all the information we’ve presented to you, getting a home insurance quote in Mobile doesn’t have to be complicated. You can use our online quoting tool, which only requires answering a few questions about yourself and your property.

Clovered was built to simplify insurance. We want to help you find coverage. If you’d like to speak to an agent instead of looking for coverage on your own, feel free to call at 833-255-4117 Monday through Friday during business hours. You can also email us at [email protected].