Arkansas insurance chief: homeowners market is 'hard' as premiums rise and carriers trim exposure

Arkansas Insurance Commissioner Alan McClain told the Senate Insurance & Commerce Committee that homeowners insurance in the state is in a "hard market," with insurers raising premiums, narrowing coverages and using higher deductibles.

McClain said storm frequency and severity—particularly convective storms in Arkansas—along with inflation and supply-chain costs have driven carriers’ expense and loss ratios, which firms then pass to policyholders through rate filings. "It's a hard market," he said, adding regulators must balance availability of coverage against affordability.

Jimmy Harris, compliance director for the Arkansas Insurance Department, told legislators that some companies are using larger or percentage-based wind/hail deductibles and that a small domestic carrier, Farmers Union Mutual (about 18,000…