Solar Panels and Home Insurance in 2026: What to Ask

Solar installers are good at selling panels. They are not, on average, good at telling you how rooftop solar and a home battery change your insurance. In 2026, with the homeowners insurance market tightening in wildfire and hurricane states, that gap is more expensive than it used to be.

The short version: if you own your system and you raised your dwelling coverage limit to reflect its replacement cost, your standard homeowners policy almost certainly covers it. If you did not raise the limit, or you leased the system, or you live in a state where carriers are exiting (California, Florida, Louisiana, parts of Texas), there are real gotchas you need to know about before signing an installation contract.

Here is how to think about it.

Does Home Insurance Actually Cover Solar Panels?

For roof-mounted systems that you own, yes — the panels, racking, conduit, inverters, and (usually) the battery are treated as part of the dwelling itself, the same way an attached garage or a central air unit is. A standard HO-3 policy will cover them against the same "named perils" that cover your roof: fire, lightning, hail, wind, vandalism, falling objects, and most weight-of-ice/snow claims.¹

There are three consistent footnotes.

You have to tell your carrier. Many policies require written notice of any material improvement to the dwelling, and solar qualifies. If you do not notify the carrier and a claim happens, they can deny the panel-specific portion of the claim on non-disclosure grounds. A two-minute phone call or email protects the largest single non-vehicle asset you probably own.

The dwelling coverage limit needs to go up. A 9 kW system plus a battery can add $35,000–$45,000 in replacement cost. If your Coverage A dwelling limit does not rise by at least the installed system cost, a total loss claim will be underpaid by that amount. The Insurance Information Institute recommends a top-down review of Coverage A whenever a major system is added.²

Ground mounts and canopies are treated differently. Most policies classify ground-mount arrays and solar carports as "other structures" (Coverage B) rather than "dwelling" (Coverage A). Coverage B is usually only 10% of Coverage A by default, which is rarely enough. If you are installing a ground mount, ask explicitly whether the value is on Coverage A, Coverage B, or a scheduled personal property endorsement — and get the answer in writing.

What About Leased Panels or PPA Systems?

If you are on a lease or Power Purchase Agreement (PPA), the equipment belongs to the lessor (Sunrun, SunPower/Complete Solar, Sunnova, Palmetto), not you. In that case:

The lessor's commercial policy covers the panels themselves against loss. Your homeowners policy covers your roof and the physical dwelling the system is attached to. Most liability is handled by the lease contract, which will name you and the lessor as co-parties.

The gotcha here is roof damage that occurs during or because of installation or future removal. Read the lease's indemnification clauses carefully. Our loan vs. lease vs. PPA breakdown at energyscout.org walks through how this plays out in practice.

The Battery-Specific Questions

Lithium-ion home batteries — Tesla Powerwall, Enphase IQ Battery, Franklin WH, SolarEdge Home Battery, Generac PWRcell — are where 2026 insurance policies are evolving fastest. Most major carriers now include them as covered equipment under the same dwelling terms as the solar array, as long as three things are true:

The battery is UL 9540 certified (all mainstream 2026 brands are). It is installed by a licensed electrician and commissioned per the manufacturer's instructions. Its location complies with your local fire code (many jurisdictions now require 3 ft clearance, no installs inside habitable rooms, and garage-only placements in some counties).

A small number of carriers — especially surplus-lines carriers writing in California after the 2023–2025 market exits — have started to require a battery endorsement or surcharge of $75–$250/year. Ask before buying.³

How Much Will Your Premium Go Up?

The industry-wide answer in early 2026 is $50–$200 per year for a typical 9 kW rooftop system plus an optional 13 kWh battery.⁴ The range is wide because premiums are driven more by your state's overall loss experience than by anything solar-specific. A system in drought-free Ohio may not change your premium at all. The same system on a hillside in Sonoma County could add $150+ to your annual bill.

In three markets, solar is materially harder to insure than it used to be:

California. Several major carriers — State Farm, Allstate, Farmers, USAA — pulled back from new homeowner policies in 2023–2025 due to wildfire losses. Solar is not the problem, but adding a $40,000 system to a property that already triggers a wildfire surcharge can push total premium materially higher. The FAIR Plan is still available as a last resort.⁵

Florida. The post-2022 reinsurance crisis has pushed many carriers out of the state. Citizens Property Insurance (the state-backed insurer of last resort) currently covers rooftop solar but wind/hail deductibles can be 5–10% of dwelling coverage — a painful number if a hurricane takes out your array.

Louisiana and parts of Texas. Similar dynamics. Solar is covered under most policies, but the wind/hail deductible is where the exposure lives.

The Six Questions to Ask Your Carrier

Before you sign an installer's contract, call your insurance carrier (or read your declarations page) and get answers in writing to these six questions:

1. How much do I need to raise my Coverage A limit to include the full replacement cost of the system? Get the dollar figure before install.

2. Are rooftop solar and the attached battery covered as part of Coverage A (dwelling)? If they are on Coverage B (other structures) or Coverage C (personal property), the limits and deductibles differ.

3. What is my wind/hail deductible? In most policies, hail is the most likely source of a solar claim. In hurricane states, wind/hail is often a separate percentage-based deductible, not the flat all-other-perils deductible. Confirm which applies.

4. Do I need a battery endorsement or surcharge? Some carriers require it; most do not.

5. Does my policy include loss-of-use or business-income coverage for exported energy? Usually not by default, and usually not worth adding — but ask if you are on an SREC or Value of Solar program that monetizes exports meaningfully.

6. What documentation do you need to maintain coverage? Typically: installer license info, permit number, manufacturer model numbers, and the commissioning report.

Before You Install

Do this sequence: get your quote; call your insurer to confirm coverage and ask the six questions above; run your own solar savings math at energyscout.org with a $50–$200 annual premium bump factored in; then sign the contract.

If your carrier won't cover the system at reasonable premiums, that is a real data point — not a reason to skip solar, but a reason to shop carriers. An independent insurance agent who writes in your state can usually find at least one carrier who will cover a Tier 1 installed system without a surcharge.

Our incentive search at energyscout.org flags solar-insurance-friendly states and utility territories, and our FAQ has a longer breakdown of what to do if your carrier non-renews after install.

Sources

Footnotes

1. Insurance Information Institute, "Insuring Rooftop Solar Systems." https://www.iii.org/article/insuring-rooftop-solar-systems ↩

2. National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), "Homeowners Insurance Overview." https://content.naic.org/consumer/home-insurance.htm ↩

3. UL Solutions, "UL 9540 Energy Storage Systems and Equipment." https://www.ul.com/services/ul-9540-energy-storage-systems-and-equipment ↩

4. EnergySage, "Does Solar Affect Home Insurance?" https://www.energysage.com/solar/does-solar-affect-home-insurance/ ↩

5. California Department of Insurance, "Residential Insurance Market Actions." https://www.insurance.ca.gov/ ↩