Founders Insurance Company
Carrier website links, underwriting access points, mapped product lines, and appetite notes in one place.
This appetite summary is only a guide. Confirm eligibility, submission requirements, restrictions, and binding authority directly with the carrier or underwriter before relying on it.
Carrier appetite summary
Founders homeowners products are written through independent agents and intended primarily for owner‑occupied residential risks in Illinois, with broader appetite than standard markets, including many risks with prior issues. PREFERRED / TARGET RISKS - Owner‑occupied 1–2 family homes (standard and special HO‑3) up to approximately $500,000 Coverage A and $500,000 personal liability, generally up to 100 years old. - Insureds with prior continuous coverage and no losses (Standard HO‑3) or only limited loss activity (Special HO‑3, Condo/HO‑6, HO‑8). - Owner‑occupied condos/townhomes needing HO‑6 coverage with moderate dwelling and contents values. - Dwellings that may not qualify for preferred carriers due to credit, age of home, space heaters, fuses, or prior claims, but otherwise meet basic underwriting and habitability standards. PROGRAM STRUCTURE / RISK APPETITE - Standard HO‑3 (Illinois): - Owner‑occupied 1–2 family homes, up to $500,000 dwelling and $500,000 personal liability. - Homes up to 100 years old; space heaters acceptable. - Generally clean loss history: no prior claims allowed. - Prior insurance required, except for first‑time homebuyers. - Discounts for prior coverage, loss‑free renewal (up to 10%), and auto/home package with Founders (up to 20%). - Optional endorsements available: replacement cost on contents, equipment breakdown, water backup, identity fraud expense. - Special HO‑3 (Illinois): - Similar dwelling and liability limits as Standard HO‑3 (up to $500,000 Coverage A and $500,000 liability) for 1–2 family owner‑occupied dwellings up to 100 years old. - Broader loss tolerance: up to 2 losses in past 3 years, with no more than 1 fire loss. - No prior insurance required (useful for lapse or previously uninsured risks). - Same key discounts as Standard HO‑3 (prior coverage, loss‑free renewal up to 10%, auto package up to 20%) and similar optional endorsements (contents replacement cost, equipment breakdown, water backup, identity fraud). - Condo/Townhome HO‑6 (Illinois): - Targeted to owner‑occupied condo and townhome units. - Up to $100,000 building (dwelling) and up to $150,000 personal property coverage, with up to $500,000 personal liability. - Accepts up to 2 losses within the past 3 years (only 1 fire loss allowed). - No prior insurance required. - Must be submitted to underwriting to rate; pricing and acceptance are underwriter‑driven rather than fully automated. - Discounts similar to HO‑3: prior coverage, loss‑free renewal up to 10%, and a smaller auto package discount (up to 5%). - Optional endorsements: replacement cost on contents, loss assessment, equipment breakdown, water backup (townhomes only), identity fraud expense, incidental office. - Actual Cash Value HO‑8 (Illinois): - Designed for older or harder‑to‑place homes, including multi‑family up to 3 units. - Named‑peril, actual cash value settlement; up to $300,000 dwelling coverage. - Homes of any age acceptable; space heaters and fuse boxes allowed. - Accepts up to 3 losses in past 3 years (only 1 fire loss allowed). - No prior insurance requirement, making it suitable for previously uninsured or lapsed risks. - Discounts for prior coverage, loss‑free renewal up to 10%, and a smaller auto package discount (up to 5%). - Optional endorsements: equipment breakdown, water backup, identity fraud expense. CREDIT / RISK TOLERANCE - Homeowners programs are explicitly not credit‑scored, making them suitable for insureds with poor or limited credit history. - Appetite includes risks that many standard markets restrict: space heaters, fuses, prior claims, and older dwellings, subject to program‑specific loss count and fire‑loss limits and basic underwriting judgment. GEOGRAPHIC NOTES - The public homeowners page describes programs "offered in Illinois" and does not detail availability in other states; agents should confirm state availability and any state‑specific variations with Founders or via the agent portal before quoting outside IL. RESTRICTED / DECLINED CHARACTERISTICS (INFERRED FROM PROGRAM DESIGN) - Standard HO‑3: any prior claim history is outside guidelines; use Special HO‑3 or HO‑8/HO‑6 where appropriate. - All programs: more losses than specified counts (e.g., >2 losses in 3 years on Special HO‑3 or HO‑6; >3 on HO‑8; more than 1 fire loss) are likely to be declined or require special underwriting approval. - Non‑owner‑occupied risks are generally not contemplated under the "owner‑occupied" framing for HO‑3 and HO‑6; non‑owner‑occupied or tenant‑occupied exposures should be placed in other Founders lines if available. - Extremely high values above stated maximums (e.g., >$500,000 Coverage A for HO‑3 or >$300,000 for HO‑8) fall outside standard program parameters and would require alternative placement. SUBMISSION & UNDERWRITING NOTES - Business is written through independent agents; quoting and binding are handled via the Founders agent portal. The public page is a summary only, with actual eligibility and coverage determined by policy forms and internal underwriting rules. - HO‑6 business must be submitted to underwriting to obtain a rate; agents should expect underwriter review of building details, association coverage, and loss history prior to firm pricing. - For first‑time buyers under Standard HO‑3, prior insurance is not required, but agents should supply full occupancy, mortgagee, and closing details. - Founders provides underwriting support by phone (per contact page) and uses discounts to encourage prior coverage and packaging with Founders auto. BROKER / PRODUCER INSTRUCTIONS (PUBLICLY AVAILABLE) - Use the Founders agent portal (accessed via "Agent Login") for quoting, binding, and accessing full manuals and forms. - Treat the public homeowners description as a marketing and appetite overview; final underwriting decisions, inspection requirements, and specific forms/endorsements are governed by internal manuals available once logged in. - For borderline risks (older homes, multiple prior losses, non‑standard heating/electrical), consult underwriting in advance, particularly when approaching the maximum allowed loss counts or fire‑loss limits. Overall, Founders’ homeowners appetite in Illinois focuses on owner‑occupied homes and condos across a broad credit and loss spectrum, with separate programs to segment clean versus challenged risks and clear maximum limits for losses, age, and amount of insurance.