Most insurance policies, and especially full-coverage home insurance policies, come with a deductible that will be owed by the policyholder when they file a claim. There are different types of deductible waivers available, but in most cases you will have to pay your home insurance deductible any time you file a claim.
What is a deductible? The deductible on your home insurance is the portion of the policy’s payout that you would owe upon filing a claim. After the deductible has been paid, the insurance company will release the remainder of your payout to cover the needed repairs to your home. Deductibles can be calculated as a flat rate amount or as a percentage of the insured property value.
Are there any exceptions to paying a home deductible?
There is almost always a deductible set for any insurance policy, but there are exceptions. Some policies include an option for an endorsement called a ‘waiver of deductible.’ When homeowners insurance is involved, you may find three types of deductible waiver agreements.
What are the reasons to waive a deductible?
-A Large Loss Deductible Waiver is based on a set value that is less than the total value of your home, but generally a significant amount. If the damage from a covered event is greater than the set waiver limit, you would not be required to pay the deductible.
-A Total Loss Deductible Waiver applies when a policyholder’s home has been lost to a covered event. With this type of waiver in place, the insurance company will agree that after suffering a loss of this level, you should not be required to pay the deductible before repairs and recovery can begin.
-A Combined Deductible Waiver is written for homeowners who have their home and auto policies with the same company. In most cases, if a covered event resulted in damage to both the home and a vehicle parked at home, two deductibles would have to be paid. With this type of waiver in place, your insurance company would waive the lower cost of the two deductibles. You would be responsible for the more expensive of the two deductibles, but both claims would be processed and paid out as usual.
Deductible waivers can sometimes be purchased as an optional part of your home insurance coverage. Consider the cost versus the benefit before making a purchase. If the cost of the waiver was higher than the deductible you might owe, this wouldn’t be the best option.
One other option that some insurers offer to clients in good standing is the Disappearing Deductible. This means that your owed deductible will decrease every year that you don’t make a claim. This type of deductible rewards homeowners with a clean insurance loss history and encourages this group to carefully consider if they need to make a claim or not in the case of home damage.
Some insurance types without a deductible
Traditional ‘indemnity’ insurance for a home is always deductible-based. The pricing of each policy’s deductible provides the insurance carrier with an amount of flexibility in setting the premium prices for their policyholders on a case-by-case basis.
Some types of ‘add-on’ insurance, which may sometimes be called endorsements or riders, do not require a deductible. So, while it is possible to add additional coverage to your home insurance portfolio, deductibles are not entirely avoidable.
Supplemental Insurance Types with No Deductible
- Valuables Endorsements: These cover specific high-value possessions including jewelry, furs, and fine art.
- Identity Fraud Expense Endorsements: They provide coverage for costs associated with recovery from having your identity stolen.
- Personal Liability and Medical Payments Coverage: These extend your liability coverage.
What will my home insurance deductible cost?
Here are some examples of what your homeowners deductible could cost in different circumstances.
Flat Rate Deductible - If your home is valued at $400,000 and the wind and hail coverage is priced with a flat rate deductible of $2,500, you would owe only the $2,500 after filing a claim.
Percentage Deductible - If the value of your home is $400,000 and your wind and hail insurance includes a 2% deductible, the amount due if you filed a claim would be $8,000.
You might feel intimidated by the idea of having to pay a deductible that could cost more than you ever budgeted or saved for. If you are a first-time homeowner, the idea of paying a home insurance deductible could be a complete surprise to you. Ask you insurance agent about your home insurance deductible and how it is calculated. Make sure you understand these details now, without waiting for a disaster to strike first.
Why is it worth paying a deductible?
Unless you’re able to find a deductible waiver option that works for you, acceptance of a deductible for each policy you purchase is generally a fact of life. Traditional flat-rate deductibles are still used with many policies, meaning that the risk of filing a claim will remain a set amount that you can include in regular budget planning.
Other policies may include a percentage deductible. While these can still be budgeted for, they tend to cost more, adding significant financial strain for the policyholder who has just made the claim on their damaged property. If the property is their home, you can see how this could quickly become one of the most difficult times in their life.
Use a higher deductible to lower your premium costs
One of the most notoriously high deductibles in home insurance is the one for wind and hail coverage that’s included with most homeowners policies in the U.S. Although the coverage is part of your existing policy and is paid for by your monthly premium, the wind and hail deductible is often priced separately from the other types of coverage contained in the overall policy.
The fact that this deductible sits apart from that of the main policy can be seen as an annoyance, but it also provides an opportunity for the policyholder to negotiate for lower regular premium payments and ease their bills a bit.
Combining a standalone wind and hail deductible assistance product like Sola’s Wind and Hail insurance with your existing home policy means less stress over making a claim. The payout from your Sola policy can be used in several ways, but the use we’re recommending here is to add this extra coverage as a means to lower your home premium overall.
Premiums and deductibles for insurance policies are generally a kind of balancing act. If you’d like to pay a lower monthly premium for home wind and hail coverage, one option is to accept a higher wind and hail deductible for your homeowners policy. With the option to use a Sola policy to cover your wind and hail deductible for any amount up to $25,000, you can take on a higher hail deductible and use that fact to negotiate a lower premium on the primary policy.
This type of additional coverage is sometimes called a ‘deductible buyback.’ The Sola product is less restrictive than a traditional buyback, however. The payout can be used to help cover a wind and hail deductible, but it can also be used as a way to cover the gap in coverage that can be caused by roof depreciation, or to pay for other expenses that usually follow a home damage claim.
Sources:
“What is a Home Insurance Waiver of Deductible?” Weaver & Associates, June 20, 2019, https://www.weaverinsurance.com/what-is-a-home-insurance-waiver-of-deductible/
Rivelli, Elizabeth. “Is it better to have a high or low deductible for home insurance?” Kin Insurance Blog, Mar. 18, 2026, https://www.kin.com/blog/is-it-better-to-have-a-high-or-low-deductible-for-home-insurance/
Gray is the Senior Content Specialist at Sola Insurance, working with the Sales and Marketing teams to provide helpful, valuable content for homeowners and agents. Gray has worked previously in finance, logistics, and advertising.
