Two new coverage options give Californians more ways to protect their homes
CHICAGO, July 28, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Kin*, the direct-to-consumer provider of insurance and home finance solutions for homeowners, today announced two new coverage options for California homeowners: condo (HO6) insurance and a flood insurance add-on to Kin home insurance policies. Both add to the diverse coverage options Kin has made available to Californians both before and after the devastating January 2025 wildfires.
A History of Expanding When Others Are Retreating
Major insurers pulled back or exited California following catastrophic wildfire losses. More than 684,000 Californians now rely on the California FAIR Plan — a last-resort option that offers limited coverage at significant cost.
Kin is moving in the other direction. The company expanded to help California homeowners find coverage in the weeks following the January 2025 wildfires. Now, with condo insurance and flood coverage, Kin is deepening that commitment for two groups of California homeowners who lack sufficient options.
“We started helping Californians find coverage before the January 2025 wildfires and never retreated. And, since then, Kin’s commitment has only grown. Offering flood and condo insurance options are two more ways Kin helps homeowners protect their most valuable assets, in a market where it’s harder to do so,” said Kin Founder and CEO Sean Harper.
Condo Insurance Fills a Long-Standing Gap in a Shrinking Market
For California condo owners, finding insurance is increasingly difficult. Several major insurers limited or stopped writing new condo policies in the state. The Kin team sees this firsthand. California condo owners consistently contact Kin to help find coverage.
“Condo owners have been asking us for this coverage for a while,” added Harper. “As we’ve expanded in California, it’s become clear that this is another area where homeowners don’t have enough good options. Offering condo insurance is a straightforward extension of what we’re already doing.”
Kin can help California condo owners find coverage many struggle to find elsewhere. Kin customers benefit from policies that account for wildfire mitigation steps a homeowner has already taken — including defensible-space clearance, and fire and water protective devices — as part of how coverage is evaluated, rather than treating every wildfire-exposed property the same way.
The new coverage options are designed for condo owners the broader market has increasingly turned away: new home buyers, owners in distressed or wildfire-prone areas, and those with less conventional situations, such as short-term rental activity (including Airbnb and VRBO), a lapse in prior coverage, or an older or substandard electrical panel.
Similarly, California flood coverage is much needed yet hard to obtain for California homeowners.
Most Californians Have No Flood Coverage — and Don’t Know They Need It
More than 7 million Californians live in areas with meaningful flood risk, according to the California Department of Water Resources. Yet only about one quarter of those in high risk zones carry insurance.
Standard home insurance policies don’t cover overland flooding, which is defined as water that enters a home from rivers, rain, or storm runoff. Most homeowners assume their policy covers all weather damage. It doesn’t. And while most people associate flood risk with coastal communities, FEMA’s National Risk Index estimates California’s expected annual flood losses at $11.73 billion, with nearly all of that risk driven by inland flooding — including riverine flooding and heavy rainfall — not coastal flooding.
Government flood maps sort homes into risk zones, and homes in lower-risk zones or Zone X aren’t required by lenders to carry flood insurance — so most owners there don’t. But those maps rely on historical data that hasn’t kept pace with California’s changing rainfall patterns, and homes labeled lower-risk have flooded in recent years.
Kin now helps eligible California homeowners add flood coverage to their existing home insurance policy — a simpler path to protection than navigating the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), with no separate policy required.
The coverage, an endorsement on their existing home policy, does not require a 30-day wait before coverage takes effect. For flood-related water damage, the endorsement applies the same dwelling and personal property limits as the underlying home policy, rather than the reduced sublimits many private flood add-ons carry. The National Flood Insurance Program caps Building Coverage at $250,000 nationwide, regardless of a home’s actual value. Instead, Kin’s endorsement is sized to the homeowner’s real policy limits instead.
“Flood is one of the most underinsured risks in California, and most homeowners don’t realize it until it’s too late,” said Kin Chief Insurance Officer Angel Conlin. “Standard home insurance doesn’t cover flood damage, and most Californians don’t have a separate policy. Kin helps homeowners find policies that evaluate flood risk accurately at the individual property level, and we can now offer a private add-on that makes it easier for homeowners to close that gap.”
Serving Homeowners in Underserved Markets with Care
Kin operates in 14 states — Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia — which together represent more than 50% of the total addressable market for U.S. home insurance. Known for its positive customer experience, Kin earns a 4.7 out of 5 rating on Google based on 9,047 customer reviews, an A+ and 4.85 out of 5 rating with the Better Business Bureau based on 1,761 customer reviews, and an “Excellent” rating of 4.9 out of 5 on Trustpilot based on 7,925 customer reviews (as of July 27, 2026).
About Kin
Kin helps homeowners save money, simplify tasks, and protect their most valuable assets. By offering direct-to-consumer digital home and auto insurance alongside home finance services, the company focuses on supporting underserved homeowners in states with high catastrophic risk. Kin provides more convenient and affordable home and auto insurance coverage by eliminating the need for external agents and analyzing thousands of data points to provide transparent, accurate pricing. Kin’s AI-native technology platform delivers a seamless customer experience, customized options, and fast, high-quality service. To learn more, visit www.kin.com.
*Kin Distributor Insurance Services, License number: #6014763
“Kin” refers to Kin Distributor Insurance Services, a California surplus lines broker (license #6014763). Coverage is underwritten by a company that is not licensed or regulated by the California Insurance Commissioner. Policies in California are marketed and sold in coordination with Elite Personal Insurance Agency (CA License #6001284).
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SOURCE Kin Insurance, Inc.
