What is the most common deductible on homeowners insurance?
Short answer. For the all other perils deductible, $1,000 is one of the most common choices, with $500, $2,500 and higher amounts also widely used. In hail-prone states like Georgia, many policies also carry a separate wind and hail deductible set as a percentage of the dwelling limit, commonly 1 or 2 percent, and that is the one most roof claims run into.
Two deductibles, sometimes three
- All other perils: a flat dollar amount for fire, theft, burst pipes and most losses that are not weather.
- Wind and hail: often a percentage of Coverage A, the dwelling limit. A 1 percent deductible on a $300,000 dwelling limit is $3,000; 2 percent is $6,000. Some policies use a flat amount instead.
- Hurricane or named storm: mostly on coastal policies, and it applies only when a named tropical system causes the loss.
Why "most common" may not be your number
Insurers in hail-prone areas have raised minimum deductibles over the years, and many newer Georgia policies set the wind and hail deductible well above the flat deductible. Because a percentage deductible is tied to your dwelling limit, it also rises quietly at renewal whenever an inflation adjustment raises Coverage A. Homeowners who picked $1,000 years ago are often surprised to find a $5,000 or $8,000 wind and hail figure on today's declarations page.
How to choose yours
- Find every deductible on your declarations page and in the endorsements.
- Convert any percentage into dollars using your current dwelling limit.
- Ask your agent to quote two or three deductible levels and compare the yearly savings with the extra cash you would carry after a storm.
- If you live in a hail corridor, keep the wind and hail deductible amount set aside, because that is the bill a roof claim brings.
A deductible that looks cheap on paper is only a good deal if you can actually pay it when the roof needs replacing.
Related: how percentage deductibles work and whether a roof claim raises premiums in Georgia.