Deductibles apply when there is damage to insured structures or personal items. Your deductible is the amount you must pay to make repairs to your home before your insurance company begins to pay. If you have a covered claim that requires a deductible, Citizens will pay for losses that exceed your deductible, up to the limits of your coverage.
When shopping for coverage, ask your agent to review deductible amounts as part of your policy comparison. Companies can offer a wide range of deductibles. In most cases, selecting higher deductibles will decrease your premium while lower deductibles will cost more.
Types of Deductibles
Deductibles can vary, depending on the type of policy you have and the type of claim you are making. They either can be a fixed dollar amount or based on a percentage of your home’s insured value:
Fixed Dollar Deductibles
Set at a fixed dollar amount ($500; $1,000; $2,500; etc.) and generally will not change unless you purchase a lower or higher deductible amount.
Percentage Deductibles
These deductibles may apply only to the perils of hurricane or sinkhole, and are determined based on a percentage of your home’s insured value. For example, a 2 percent deductible on a home insured for $200,000 in Coverage A would be $4,000.
Percentage deductibles can change if the insured value of your home changes. If you make an addition to your home that increases its total insured value, your deductible also will increase.
All Other Perils (AOP)
Applies for damage caused by covered perils other than named hurricanes
- Fixed dollar amount
- Increased and decreased deductible options may be available.
Other Windstorm (Wind-Only policies)
Applies for damage caused by a windstorm (tropical storm, tornado or hail) that is not a named hurricane
- Generally a fixed dollar amount. May be percentage-based for commercial policies.
- Increased and decreased deductible options may be available. Deductibles cannot be changed for a claim after the loss occurs.
- Multiperil policies cover Other Windstorm damage under the AOP deductible.
Hurricane
Applies for damages caused by a named hurricane.
- Generally based on a percentage of the home’s total insured value. For certain policies, this may be a fixed dollar amount. For example, a $500 deductible is available for homes with a total insured value of less than $100,000.
- Increased and decreased deductible options may be available.
Sinkhole
Applies for covered damage caused by sinkholes
- Typically 10 percent of the insured structure's total insured value (Coverage A). May vary by contract.
- Policies with Sinkhole Loss coverage only
Consult your policy or agent to confirm your policy’s specific coverages and deductibles.