Will my insurance rates go up after a mold claim?

How claims history affects what you pay

The National Association of Insurance Commissioners lists claims history twice among the factors insurers use to price a homeowners policy: the claims history of the home, and your own claims history. A mold claim is a claim like any other in that sense. It becomes part of the record insurers look at when they renew your policy or when you shop for a new one.

Whether your premium actually rises, and by how much, depends on your insurer, your policy, the size and cause of the claim and what else is on your record. We can’t predict that for a specific policy, and nobody else can either without seeing it. Your agent is the right person to ask.

The CLUE report

Most insurers report homeowners claims to shared databases. The best known is LexisNexis C.L.U.E., which, according to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, collects seven years of home insurance and personal property claims. A few things worth knowing:

• You can request one free copy of your report every 12 months.
• If something on it is wrong or incomplete, you can dispute it with the reporting company and with the insurer that supplied it.
• Claims follow the property as well as the person, so a buyer’s insurer may see a past mold claim on a home you sell.

What Florida law says about storm claims

Southwest Florida mold often starts with a hurricane. Florida Statute 627.4133(3) says claims on property policies that result from an act of God may not be used as a cause for cancellation or nonrenewal, unless the insurer can show, by claims frequency or otherwise, that you failed to take reasonably necessary action the insurer asked for to prevent the damage from happening again.

Two limits to keep in mind. First, that section is about cancellation and nonrenewal, not about premium levels. Second, whether a particular mold claim counts as an act of God claim depends on its cause. Mold from storm surge is a different story from mold caused by a leak that went unrepaired for months. Talk to your agent or a Florida insurance attorney about your situation. This page isn’t legal advice.

Should you file?

That’s your decision to make with your agent, but a few questions help frame it:

1. Is it covered? Many policies limit or exclude mold. Read the mold or fungi section, and check what caused the water. Sudden, accidental water damage is often treated differently from long-term leaks, humidity or maintenance problems.
2. How does the likely cost compare with your deductible? A small job that lands near your deductible may not be worth a claim on your record.
3. Is there a larger water loss behind it? A burst supply line or a hurricane may be covered as water damage even if the mold coverage is limited.
4. Is a disaster declared? After a declared disaster, FEMA assistance may help with losses insurance doesn’t cover.

One more thing: don’t let a decision about filing delay drying and stopping the water. Most policies expect you to protect the property from further damage, and mold gets bigger and more expensive every week it’s left.

If you do file

A well-documented claim is easier to evaluate and harder to dispute. Photograph the damage before anything is moved, keep every receipt, and write down dates: when you found the water, when you stopped it and when drying started. Ask your adjuster what they need from the assessor and the remediator before work begins, so nothing has to be reconstructed later. Keep copies of every letter and estimate, and request your CLUE report afterward to check that the claim was recorded accurately.

Getting the facts before you decide

It’s hard to weigh a claim when you don’t know how big the problem is. An assessment gives you a written scope, and remediation estimates are based on it. In Florida, an independent licensed mold assessor inspects and samples the home, writes the scope and performs clearance testing. We do the remediation to that protocol, and we keep the photos, moisture logs and lab reports an adjuster will ask for. For the general coverage rules, see our national page on whether homeowners insurance covers mold remediation, and for Florida specifics, Florida homeowners insurance and mold.