Review every insurance policy once a year, ideally 30 to 60 days before it renews. Review again after any change to what you own, owe, or need to protect: a move, a renovation, a marriage or divorce, a new child, a new car or driver, or a new job. A renewal notice is a reminder to check, not proof your coverage still fits.
The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), which coordinates US state insurance regulators, recommends reviewing all your policies annually and points out that insurers can change policy terms at renewal as long as they notify you. Those notices are easy to skim past.
A quick note on scope: insurance rules differ by country and, in the US, by state. The checklist below works almost anywhere, but your state insurance department (or national regulator) is the place to ask about local rights.
When to review your insurance#
| Trigger |
What to look at |
| 30 to 60 days before renewal |
Premium change, limits, deductibles, new exclusions, discounts, listed people and property |
| Move, renovation, or big purchase |
Address, rebuild cost, contents limit, valuables, flood or earthquake cover |
| Marriage, divorce, birth, adoption, or a death |
Beneficiaries, life cover amount, who's on the health plan |
| New job or self-employment |
What your employer covered (life, disability, health) and what you now need on your own |
| New driver, new car, or a change in commute |
Drivers listed, mileage, business use, garaging address |
| Mortgage paid off or a big new debt |
How much life insurance you actually need, lender requirements |
Start with the declarations page#
Every policy has a declarations page (sometimes called the policy schedule): one or two pages that summarize who and what is covered, the policy period, limits, deductibles, add-ons, and the premium. Read it before anything else.
- Check names, addresses, vehicle details, listed drivers, and any lender or mortgage company. A wrong address or a missing driver can cause trouble when you make a claim.
- Compare limits and deductibles with last year's. If the premium dropped, find out why.
- Read the exclusions and any endorsements (riders). The NAIC's explainer on how insurance works puts it plainly: insurance only covers the specific events listed in your policy.
- Write down anything you don't understand and ask the insurer or agent in writing. If there's ever a dispute, the policy wording and written answers count for far more than what someone told you on the phone.
A cheaper renewal is not always good news. The price can fall because a deductible went up, a limit went down, or a coverage you used to have was dropped.
Homeowners and renters insurance: insure the rebuild, not the sale price#
Your dwelling coverage should match what it would cost to rebuild your home. Market value is a different number. As the NAIC explains in its guide to actual cash value vs. replacement cost, market value includes the land and moves with the housing market, while replacement cost is what it takes to repair or rebuild with similar materials.
Rebuild costs climb with construction prices and after any addition, new kitchen, or finished basement. Ask your insurer how they estimated the figure and when it was last updated.
Also check:
- Whether contents are paid at replacement cost or actual cash value. Actual cash value subtracts depreciation, so a 6-year-old sofa pays out a lot less than a new one costs.
- Limits for jewelry, art, bikes, cameras, and collectibles. Standard policies often cap these, and you may need to list them separately.
- Flood and earthquake. FEMA notes that most homeowners insurance does not cover flood damage, so it's a separate policy. Earthquake cover is usually a separate policy or add-on too.
Renters need this review too. Your landlord's policy covers the building, not your belongings or your liability if a guest gets hurt.
The NAIC calls a home inventory the best way to decide how much contents coverage you need. Walk through each room filming slowly, open closets and drawers, and say out loud what anything expensive is. Store a copy somewhere other than the house. Our home security audit is a good companion job, and some insurers discount for alarms or monitored smoke detectors.
Car insurance: compare the whole policy#
Confirm every driver in the household, your annual mileage, where the car is parked overnight, and whether you use it for work or ride-share driving. Then compare liability limits, collision and comprehensive deductibles, and uninsured motorist cover across quotes.
Dropping collision and comprehensive on an older car can make sense once the car's value gets close to the deductible plus a year or two of premiums. Do the math first, and check your loan or lease, because lenders usually require it.
Usage-based or "safe driver" programs track your driving through an app or a plug-in device. Some only offer discounts, others can raise your price. Read what they collect before you sign up.
Life and disability insurance#
Life insurance needs change more than people expect. Increase cover when someone starts depending on your income (a partner, a child, a mortgage). It may be reasonable to reduce it once the mortgage is paid off and children are independent.
Update beneficiaries after every marriage, divorce, birth, or death, and check that they match your will or estate plan. The insurer pays whoever is named on the policy, so an outdated form can send the money somewhere you no longer intend.
Never cancel an old life policy before the new one is issued and in force. The NAIC's life insurance guide is direct about this: don't cancel an existing policy until you have received the new one. A health change in between can make new cover more expensive or impossible to get.
Disability insurance through work usually ends when the job does. If your household depends on your paycheck, check what you'd get, how long you'd wait before benefits start, and how long they'd last.
Health insurance at open enrollment#
In the US, most people can only change health plans during open enrollment or during a special enrollment period after a qualifying life event like a move, marriage, or new baby. Miss open enrollment and you're usually stuck with your plan for another year. Before you re-enroll:
- Check the premium, deductible, and out-of-pocket maximum for next year, not this one.
- Confirm your doctors are still in network by calling the office, since online directories go out of date.
- Look up every regular prescription on the new formulary.
How to compare quotes#
Ask for quotes with identical limits, deductibles, drivers, and property details. Otherwise you're comparing different products. Ask whether a low price depends on a first-year discount that disappears at renewal.
Check that the insurer and agent are licensed with your state insurance department. Never misstate mileage, who lives in the house, or your health to get a lower quote. Wrong information on an application can give the insurer grounds to deny a claim.
When you switch, line up the dates so the new policy starts before the old one ends. Even a one-day gap can matter, and for a car it can be illegal to drive uninsured.
Keep a one-page summary#
For each policy, write down the insurer, the last four digits of the policy number, the renewal date, the main limits and deductibles, and where the full documents are stored. Share the page with whoever would need it in an emergency. Keep full policy numbers and documents in secure storage.
Set a reminder about 45 days before each renewal (ChoreLists.com can repeat it every year) and add any premium change to your household budget when you've made a decision.