Hippo Insurance Review
- With 1.0/5 stars in 2024, Hippo is a poor insurance company.
- Read Hippo reviews, complaints and prices before you buy.
Hippo insurance: Ratings and reviews
Founded in 2015, Hippo's philosophy on home insurance is to be proactive through smart home technology and regular maintenance while offering plenty of coverage options to protect one of your biggest investments. While they do not offer other common insurance products (like auto coverage) they put all their dedication and effort into homeowners insurance. The company works with outside insurance partners to offer higher-than-usual limits for things like home office equipment, computers and electronics, and service line connections to your home. If you're looking for a one-stop-shop to bundle various policy types, Hippo likely won't meet your needs, but if a modern approach to home insurance is your only focus then it may be worth getting a quote.
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Fast online quotes
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Offers smart home technology systems
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Higher home coverage limits
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Does not offer other insurance products
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Not available in all states
Is Hippo a good insurance company?
The majority of The Zebra's review incorporates how well Hippo scores in terms of customer service. In order to determine that we looked at the following third-party ratings.Â
Trustpilot: 3.2/5
- Hippo earned a rating of 3.2/5 from Trustpilot's users[1]
Better Business Bureau: 2.66/5
Financial Strength: A-
- Although Hippo does not have its own independent score, its reinsurers and insurance partners were given an A- rating by A.M. Best, indicating a strong financial ability to pay out claims[3]
Complaint Index (NAIC): Not rated
The Zebra Customer Satisfaction Survey
In addition to third-party ratings, we like to incorporate the results from our own consumer survey where we ranked which home insurance companies are the best based on feedback from real customers. However, we did not collect a sufficient amount of data on Hippo for it to be included.
How much does Hippo insurance cost?
As Hippo is a relatively new insurance company, pricing data is not widely available, which is a key component of our review process. Although Hippo's average figures aren't readily available, you can begin to gauge where your home might fall (cheaper vs. more expensive) based on commonly analyzed factors.
You can also learn more about how homeowners insurance rates are calculated and see current average prices here. Typically, the factors that will go into determining homeowners insurance rates are:
- Location (ZIP code)
- The home's age
- The home's condition
- Age of the roof
- Cost to rebuild
- Your deductible amount
- Previous homeowners' claims
- Credit score (in some locations)
- Additional risk factors (such as certain animals or a pool)
Rates will vary from person to person and place to place, but Hippo makes it easy to get a personalized quote for you to compare with those of other cheap home insurance companies.Â
Discounts offered
Auto insurance discounts are dependent on certain qualifications and availability, so it's important to ask the company for specific details to be sure you are eligible. Below are some of the ways Hippo offers savings.
- Smart home discount - By taking advantage of the smart home sensors that Hippo offers, you can potentially save between 10% with a home monitoring system or 13% with a professional monitoring system
- Loss-free discount -Â Customers are eligible if they haven't had a claim in 3 or 5 years, depending on the experience period
- Affinity discounts - If you purchase a policy through certain groups, like colleges, employers, or clubs, you may be eligible for a discount
- Hail-resistant roof discount - Added savings if you have impact-resistant shingles that qualify (check with Hippo for qualification details)
View all of Hippo's discounts here.Â
Search, compare and buy all on one site. Start saving today!
What types of coverage does Hippo offer?
Another key component of Hippo's review is the types of coverage options they offer, and because they are solely focused on homeowners insurance, this does bring their overall score down a bit compared to larger companies. Currently, Hippo offers homeowners, condo insurance, landlord policies, as well as new home (under construction) insurance. Some of the more unique coverages and features Hippo offers are:
- Smart home equipment
- Hippo Home Care
- Appliances
- Service lines
- Video alarm system
- Home office/computer equipment
Find more details about Hippo's coverage and endorsement options here.
Hippo Smart Home
Hippo home insurance policies come standard with smart home sensors to help prevent damage and danger from turning into a future claim. Their philosophy on insurance is that being a proactive homeowner is key. They make this easy for homeowners by providing water sensors, smoke detectors, entry sensors, and a security camera when you become a policyholder.
If you're concerned about excess monitoring from the company, don't be. The data collected by your smart home devices goes to you, the homeowner, so you can be aware of potential issues. The company monitors that the system is active, and you take it from there! Hippo partners with names such as SimpliSafe, Kangaroo, and Notion to provide the smart devices. You can earn a discount each year simply by keeping the devices activated.
Learn more about Hippo Smart Home.
Hippo insurance review: Summary
Hippo doesn't offer the number of options that most large insurers do, so if you're looking for a new home for multiple policy types, this may not be the best option. However, if you have unique needs for your home, prefer to keep certain insurance types separate, or are a fan of smart home technology then it might be a good match. Their overall rating score is low due to a lack of policy options, but their Better Business Bureau and Trustpilot ratings show that there is a slightly lower-than-average level of satisfaction from their customers and Hippo has well-established partners with strong financial standings.
Methodology — how The Zebra reviews insurance companies
The team of insurance experts at The Zebra considers the company's standing in five main categories to come up with an overall rating. These metrics are weighted according to importance and are detailed below:
- Price (20%): Using the base profile detailed below, we compared the company's average rate with the national average. If it surpassed this average, we gave a lower rating; if it fell below, we awarded a higher rating.
- Coverage (20%): The highest-scoring companies offer a variety of coverage options, including bundling options, roadside assistance, telematics, beyond-basic coverage levels, and a variety of other coverage types.
- Customer service (30%): We averaged ratings from JD Power, the NAIC complaint index to come up with a rating for the company's customer service. In instances when a company is not rated, we may use alternative rating agencies such as the Better Business Bureau and Trust Pilot.
- Financial strength (10%): We use AM Best to determine a company's financial standing. In some cases when a company is not rated by AM Best, we may use an alternative measure such as Demotech.
- The Zebra's Customer Satisfaction Survey (20%): The Zebra conducts an annual survey measuring customer satisfaction for many of the top insurance companies with the goal of ranking both the best auto insurance companies and best home insurance companies. Read more below.
For our auto insurance review, we analyzed more than 83 million insurance rates spanning every U.S. ZIP code using a sample user profile: a 30-year-old single male driver with a Honda Accord, good credit and full coverage at these levels:
- $50,000 per person/$100,000 per incident for bodily injury liability
- $50,000 per incident for property damage liability
- $500 deductibles for collision and comprehensive coverage
For our home insurance review, rates are based on a sample user profile: a 45-year-old married homeowner living in a 2,500-square-foot single-story home built in 2011 with these coverage levels:
- $200,000 for the dwelling
- $20,000 for other structures
- $100,000 for personal property
- $100,000 for personal liability
- $1,000 deductible
These sample premiums are dynamic and automatically refresh whenever the newest data is made available.
To generate pricing for particular rating factors, we adjusted this profile based on common pricing factors used by major car insurance companies. These factors include credit score, coverage level and others.
For The Zebra's Customer Satisfaction Survey, findings are based on an online quantitative survey of 4,134 current U.S. auto and home insurance customers, with Census-balanced sampling by age, gender and region. Categories with n=<20 responses are considered insufficient sample size and are not reported. This survey was developed by The Zebra and executed by independent research firm Maru/Blue in 2023.
Hippo insurance: Frequently asked questions
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About The Zebra
The Zebra is not an insurance company. We publish data-backed, expert-reviewed resources to help consumers make more informed insurance decisions.
- The Zebra’s insurance content is written and reviewed for accuracy by licensed insurance agents.
- The Zebra’s insurance editorial content is not subject to review or alteration by insurance companies or partners.
- The Zebra’s editorial team operates independently of the company’s partnerships and commercialization interests, publishing unbiased information for consumer benefit.
- The auto insurance rates published on The Zebra’s pages are based on a comprehensive analysis of car insurance pricing data, evaluating more than 83 million insurance rates from across the United States.