American Modern Home Insurance Review: Service, Cost & More (2024)

American Modern isn't exactly a household name, primarily because it always has offered niche insurance policies. Founded in Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1938 as an automobile finance business called The Midland Company, it entered the insurance business in 1965 as a mobile home insurer with the establishment of its American Modern division. By the late 1970s, the company began offering specialty policies, and by 2000, it offered watercraft, all-terrain vehicle, motorcycle, and snowmobile coverage. Today, American Modern Insurance Group is owned by Munich Re and continues to offer specialty insurance lines, which now also include pet insurance, as well as residential coverage for unique situations, such as vacation homes or vacant properties.

Effective Date: January 2020

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American Modern home insurance is designed for properties that can't get good rates with standard insurance companies, or perhaps can't get any coverage at all. So it's no surprise that a policy from American Modern is very limited. Its role is not to provide insurance with a lot of extras, but simply to provide insurance for a niche market that might otherwise not be able to find the protection that an insurance policy offers.

The standard coverages on an American Modern insurance policy are about as limited as can be and still offer any protection. You can pay a higher premium and upgrade to enhanced coverage, but the default coverage is pretty bare bones, and you'll need to pay attention to what perils are covered in order to be sure you have the protection you want.

Because the home insurance addresses specialty areas of coverage, there's little competition in the market, so there is little need to offer extras to try to woo consumers to American Modern. Most of the coverage options are presented above, and getting additional coverage involves upgrading to receive the protection usually offered on standard coverages.

Enhanced coverage is available for these additional causes of loss:

• Collapse
• Freezing
• Lockout assistance
• Power surge
• Falling objects
• Water discharge from plumbing, heating or cooling system

American Modern offers discounts on some of their specialty lines, such as snowmobiles, watercraft, and collector cars, but you won't find any listed for homeowner insurance, not even the ubiquitous bundling, or multipolicy, discount.

To file a claim with American Modern, you can call, write, fax, or go online. You can even report a claim through the mobile app. Whichever channel you choose, you'll need to provide all of the pertinent information, such as name, policy number, and details of the incident. You'll be assigned an adjuster, who will follow up with you to collect more details and help you resolve the claim. If it turns out you're entitled to a claim payment, the adjuster might be able to present you with a check right then and there.