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- Commissioner Mike Chaney says the information he gathered to establish the Strengthen Mississippi Homes program contradicts the report being promoted by Zebra.
A website that touts itself as “a trusted partner for American insurance customers” promoted a report this week claiming Mississippi has one of the highest home insurance rates in the nation, a claim the state’s Insurance Commissioner sees as misleading.
According to the 2026 State of Insurance report released this week by TheZebra.com, Mississippi’s home insurance rates rank in the nation’s top five most expensive, alongside Florida, Oklahoma, Louisiana and Texas. The report states that the average rate nationwide is $2,966, well below Mississippi’s alleged average rate of $5,514 cited in the site’s report.
Mississippi Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney disputes the data in the report.
“I’m not even sure the data’s correct because when we look at the comparisons, and we got a lot of data in fighting the battle for the Strengthen Mississippi Homes program, and the data that we got back just doesn’t compare to what Zebra’s reporting,” Chaney contends.
The Strengthen Mississippi Homes program is projected to provide the state’s homeowners with up to $10,000 to perform wind and hail upgrades to their roofs. It was established as part of the passage of SB 2409 during the 2026 legislative session. Chaney said the program could potentially start accepting applications in September.
While trying to identify Zebra’s methodology used in creating their report, Commissioner Chaney said the group could be using data from the U.S. Census, which is comprised of raw and unconfirmed information. The difference in rates could also be due to the utilization of some other methodology, such as a focus on particular home construction types, or the company could be using first-time homebuyer rates provided by lenders, which can be higher.
“Which is usually 20% higher than going out and buying from an agent,” Chaney said. “That may be part of the problem, but I can’t answer it until we finish the methodology.”
It is important to note the age of the home, age of the roof and the type of construction when comparing insurance rates as those factors affect the overall rate.
“You’ve got so many variables and factors that you got to really look at the methodology that they’ve used,” Chaney explained.
He added that another variable in why his data conflicts with the report could be due to a home’s location.
“Because the Gulf Coast will be totally different from what you might have in DeSoto County or Alcorn County or Lee County, which is in the northern part of the state,” Chaney described.
While rates directly along the Coast may be higher due to the increased hurricane risk, Chaney said most rates for homes located north of Interstate 10 are comparable to the rest of the state. Additionally, according to the Insurance Department’s data, rates across the state are, on average, lower than neighboring states.
For instance, rates for homes in the Diamondhead area, an affluent but small city located in Hancock County north of Interstate 10, are less than the averages reported by Zebra and are lower than those Chaney found in Alabama and Louisiana near their coasts. The rates the commissioner provided are for comparable homes with similar construction types and roof ages.
Chaney cited rates for a 1,822 square foot home in Diamondhead ranging from $2,728 for admitted insurance companies to $3,787 for non-admitted companies. Admitted companies are licensed by the state.
Rates in Gulfport for a similar home from an admitted company start at $2,986, the commissioner’s data shows. For comparison, Chaney said rates in Gulf Shores, Alabama for a 1,400 square foot home with similar specifications and roof age are about $6,499. Rates in St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana for a 1,594 square foot home with a similar roof age and construction type received a quote from an admitted company of $4,327.
“That’s almost $2,000 more than the Diamondhead [home],” Chaney noted.
While rising rates have been a major driver of complaints at his office, it appears as though Mississippi is seeing a growing number of first-time homebuyers. Chaney said information presented by the Insurance Information Institute during a recent conference demonstrates Mississippi ranks high in the Southeast region for the number of new starts for policies. He added the information was presented this week, so the specifics of that report are unavailable.
“Most states are down in the number of new starts [new homeowners] that are going in,” Chaney said. “What I’m saying is Mississippi has a lot of first-time homebuyers.”
He added that newer policies are more affordable because the longer a person has owned a house, companies will make policyholders buy replacement cost value, which is the cost estimated to replace the home if a total loss occurs.
“If it’s in a coastal area, they may put on an extra 25% in case it’s destroyed in a hurricane,” Chaney added about replacement cost value.
In short, the numbers cited by Zebra’s report do not reflect the numbers Mississippi’s Insurance Commissioner has on hand.
“I would dispute what Zebra put out, and I was tempted to call the people at Zebra but I just don’t have the time to argue with them,” Chaney said.
