Nationwide Home Insurance Review

Company Overview

In 1955, Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Co. (which itself had been operating since 1926) renamed itself Nationwide Mutual Insurance and began its expansion out of Ohio where the Ohio Farm Bureau founded it. And though its headquarters remains in Columbus, its offerings have branched out to include auto insurance, life insurance, pet insurance, and of course, home insurance.

That Nationwide is one of the largest insurance companies in the United States (at about $295 in assets) is also worth noting. However, despite its growth, it still does business in only 43 states out of 50 total, in addition to Washington D.C.

Pros Explained

• Plenty of discounts available: Besides the standard discounts, such as for bundling policies and having home security devices and systems, you can also get a discount on your policy if you live in a gated community or have recently bought a home.
• Major insurance provider of longstanding: Nationwide’s track record means that you are in experienced hands.
• Flexible, tailored policies: Nationwide seems to understand that there’s no one-size-fits-all when it comes to homeowners insurance. The company will work with you to come up with a policy that includes ample coverage for your needs. 

Cons Explained

• Overall customer satisfaction below industry average: If you’re looking at just claims for its homeowners insurance division, then Nationwide’s customer service ratings are above average. However, its customer service ratings as a whole are below average for the industry. Its overall complaint index is also worse than average, compared to lower than average complaint trends among its home insurance customers. This might be important should you want to venture into Nationwide’s other insurance policies.

Nationwide Standard Home Insurance Coverage Plan

Though the details of the policy (such as what exactly it covers and coverage amounts) can vary depending on a handful of factors. When you purchase a home insurance plan through Nationwide, you can expect it to include the following:

• Dwelling Insurance: This form of insurance protects the actual structure of your home and anything that’s attached to it. For instance, an attached deck, built-in appliances, a garage, or a fireplace.
• Contents Insurance: This pays for the cost to repair or replace damaged or stolen personal belongings in your home. These are items that either aren’t part of the structure of your home or aren’t attached to it. For instance, clothing, furniture, or a stand-alone fireplace. It can also cover items kept in a storage unit, toolshed, or car trunk.

• Personal Liability Insurance: In the unfortunate event that someone suffers an injury or damages property while in your home, personal liability insurance can cover the cost of medical bills, replacing or repairing items, and legal fees. Depending on the policy, personal liability insurance could be no-fault insurance. In other words, coverage would kick in no matter whose fault it was.
• Law Insurance: Also known as ordinance insurance, this could help pay to build your home back up to code should it become damaged under a covered peril.
• Other Structures Insurance: This would cover anything that isn’t attached to your home or protected under “dwellings” coverage, such as a barn, shed, mailbox, or gazebo.
• Loss-of-Use Insurance: Should your home or parts of your home become uninhabitable due to a covered loss, loss-of-use insurance, also called additional living expenses (ALE) insurance, could foot the bill for the costs of staying in a hotel or rental. It could also pay for additional food expenses.
• Credit Card Protection: Should there be suspicious activity on your accounts, Nationwide will cover a selected number of transactions on your debit or credit cards. This isn’t typically part of a standard homeowner insurance policy.

Factors That Affect Your Cost

Though each insurance company may use slightly different criteria, these are typically the factors an insurance provider considers when determining your rates: 

• Property Location: For the most part, homes near a body of water, such as along the coast, cost more to insure. And if you live in an area that’s prone to wildfires, your insurance might be higher.
• Roof Condition: The newer your roof and the better its condition, the lower your premium will be. 
• Home Characteristics: This runs the gamut from the size of your home to the materials it’s made of to whether you have a trampoline in the yard to the presence of a wood-burning stove.
• Claims History: Statistically, if you’ve filed claims before, there’s a greater likelihood that you’ll file a claim in the future. If you’ve filed claims in the past, it could bump up the cost of your insurance.
• Home Security Systems: The greater your investment in protecting your home and your belongings, the less expensive your policy. We’re talking about installing a home alarm, indoor fire sprinklers, deadbolts, or a security camera.
• Dog Bites: If there’s a history of reported dog bites on your property, your policy will probably come at a higher cost.
• Credit History: Besides affecting your ability to get financing, your credit history also comes into play with insurance. The stronger your credit score, the lower your premium. On the flip side, if your credit score is less than stellar, you can expect to pay a little more on your policy.
• Home-Based Business: Because clients and customers visiting you in your home increases the likelihood of an accident happening, it could potentially increase the cost of your policy. Some of the equipment and supplies for your home-based business might be included in a standard homeowners insurance policy, but not everything will be.

Nationwide Home Insurance Discounts

Nationwide’s array of discounts includes the following: 

• Bundling Discount: Combine your auto and home insurance policy and you’ll receive a discount on your homeowners insurance. 
• Home Safety and Security Discount: Bolster your home security by installing qualifying devices, such as a fire alarm, deadbolts, or smoke detectors.
• No Claims Discount: Keep a clean record of not filing any claims for a set period of time and you can receive a bump down on your homeowners insurance policy.
• Home Renovation Discount: Renovate your home’s plumbing, heating, cooling, or electrical systems and you could see a reduced rate in your policy.
• Roof Discount: Not all roofs are created equal in the eyes of home insurance policies. The material and age matter. Typically, the newer the roof, the less expensive the policy. Roofs made of impact-resistant materials that can weather the elements can also reduce your rate.
• New Home Discount: If you bought a home in the past 12 months, you’re eligible to snag a discount.
• Prior Insurance Discount: If you are a new Nationwide customer and were on a previous home insurance policy from a different insurance company, you can get a bit of a discount on your rate.
• Gated Community Discount: Nationwide offers a discount for property in a gated community.

Other Nationwide Home Insurance Policies

Beyond its standard home insurance coverage, you can add the following types of coverage to your plan: 

• Identity Theft Insurance: This add-on helps keep your personal information secure. 
• High-Value Item Insurance: Nationwide’s Valuables Plus can cover high-value items such as jewelry, antiques, collector’s items, that coveted golf club set, and fine art. 
• Additional Replacement Cost Insurance: In the case that your home needs rebuilding after a covered peril, this insurance rider can pay up to an additional 20% of your property coverage limit. 
• Water and Sewer Backup Insurance: Though a standard homeowners insurance policy might cover a burst pipe, it may not help with other forms of water damage. For instance, should water back up into your home by way of drains or a sewer, or your pump overflows and damages your home, you’ll probably need additional insurance. Water and sewer backup insurance could pay for any damages. 
• Earthquake Insurance: Earthquake-induced damage isn’t covered under a standard policy, so you’ll need to add earthquake insurance. You’ll have to pay a separate deductible. 
• Flood Insurance: Should your house and personal belongings suffer from flood damages, flood insurance could cover the bill. Like earthquake insurance, it’s considered its own policy with its own deductible.  

Nationwide Home Insurance Availability

Nationwide home insurance is available in 43 states and the District of Columbia. It’s not offered in Alaska, Florida, Hawaii, Louisiana, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New Mexico.

Other Insurance Provided by Nationwide

As one of the largest insurers in the U.S., Nationwide offers a slew of insurance policies, including:

• Auto insurance
• Renter’s insurance
• Condo insurance
• Umbrella insurance
• Wedding insurance
• Flood insurance
• Motorcycle insurance
• ATV insurance
• RV insurance
• Classic car insurance
• Boat insurance
• Life insurance
• Specialty liability insurance
• Pet insurance
• Dental insurance

Nationwide Customer Service

There are a number of ways you can get in touch with a member of Nationwide’s customer care team. You can phone 877-669-6877 (reps are available seven days a week from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. CT). You can email Nationwide using a form on its website, and you can use the website’s online tool for locating an agent. You can, of course, create an online account and use it to get ID cards and policy documents, change your coverages, make payments, or manage a claim. You can also download Nationwide’s mobile app.

According to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), in 2020 there were just 12 complaints filed on homeowners insurance policies, with a complaint index of 0.86. Nationwide as a whole, however, had 62 complaints and a complaint index of 2.08, which is more than twice the industry average of 1.0.

As for financial health, Nationwide has received an A+ (Superior) financial strength rating from AM Best.

How to Make a Home Insurance Claim With Nationwide

Nationwide policyholders can file a home insurance claim in two ways:

• Starting a claim online
• Calling 800-421-3535

Make sure to have your name, address, telephone number, and policy number handy. You’ll want to explain the type of property damage claim—wind, water, fire, or theft—and a description of the damage. Be as vivid as possible and provide plenty of details.

Nationwide Home Insurance Cancellation Policy

Nationwide allows you to cancel your policy at any time. To do so, you’ll need to locate your agent. As you may or may not be connected to an agent when you create a policy with Nationwide, it could benefit you to establish a relationship with one should you need to file a claim or cancel your policy.

Get a Nationwide Homeowners Insurance Quote

There are actually two ways you can go about getting a homeowners insurance quote online from Nationwide: a standard route and a “quick route.” To go the standard route, you’ll need to include your personal information and provide details on the structure of your home, its size, type of roof, location, and other pertinent info. Nationwide Express is for those who want to get a bundled quote or a quote for more than one type of insurance policy.

If you prefer to talk to someone, you can locate a nearby agent to get a quote. This might be the better route if you have questions or would like to learn more about putting together a policy that’s specific to your needs.

Final Verdict

Nationwide is a strong choice if you are looking for an insurer with a sturdy reputation for homeowners insurance, with wide-ranging and flexible policies. However, depending on where you live, its homeowners insurance policies might not be available.

Frequently Asked Questions

How Long Does It Take for Nationwide to Pay a Claim?

It depends first and foremost on the nature of the claim. For example, the process of settling an accident claim can take several months to even begin. And then in cases of personal injury, the process can easily extend to two years. Meanwhile, for something like pet insurance, Nationwide processes claims in as little as 30 days.

Is Nationwide Good at Paying Claims?

Most reporting and research suggests that Nationwide is about average among insurance companies in terms of its ability to pay out claims. For example, J.D. Power's 2022 customer satisfaction survey gave Nationwide a score of 876 out of 1,000 (the average was 880). This ultimately indicates that Nationwide is a reliable payer of claims.

What Is Nationwide Insurance Ranked?

That depends on who's ranking it. The Better Business Bureau, for example, rates it an A+. It also has an A+ rating from AM Best. However, the NAIC currently rates it 1.07, which means it receives more customer complaints than most insurers.

Who Underwrites Nationwide Home Insurance?

Royal & Sun Alliance Insurance Ltd. underwrites all Nationwide Home Insurance policies.

Compare Other Home Insurance Reviews

To find an insurance company that’s best for you, do your homework. Compare different insurers that are available where you live and weigh their advantages and downsides. 

Methodology

Investopedia is dedicated to furnishing consumers with unbiased, comprehensive reviews of homeowners insurance providers. We reviewed each insurance provider’s coverage options, available discounts, customer services, and satisfaction ratings to ensure that our content helps users make the right insurance decision for their needs.