The Beach Plan now holds 276,275 policies. Here's how North Carolina's NCIUA actually works.
The NCIUA — the North Carolina Insurance Underwriting Association, now branded the Coastal Property Insurance Pool — is the last-resort writer for 18 coastal counties. What it will write depends on whether you're in the Beach Area or the rest of the coastal counties, and it comes with age, roof and pricing rules worth knowing before you apply.
What you can buy depends on where the house sits.
The association's own page says to contact your insurance agent or call the plan directly at 1-800-662-7048, and describes the plan as the market of last resort.
Find your area: Beach Area or the rest of the Coastal Area
The 18 counties are Beaufort, Brunswick, Camden, Carteret, Chowan, Craven, Currituck, Dare, Hyde, Jones, New Hanover, Onslow, Pamlico, Pasquotank, Pender, Perquimans, Tyrrell and Washington. In the Beach Area the NCIUA writes dwelling fire, commercial fire, homeowners and wind-and-hail coverage. In the rest of the Coastal Area it writes homeowners and wind-and-hail only — its manual says dwelling-fire and commercial-fire coverages are not written there.
Choose the form
Full homeowners coverage comes on HO 00 02 (broad), HO 00 03 (special), HO 00 06 (unit-owners) or HO 00 08 (actual-cash-value modified). Coverage A runs from $75,000 to $1,000,000 on HO 2 and HO 3, and from $50,000 to $1,000,000 on HO 8. To qualify, you must meet the underwriting standards and be unable to get homeowners coverage from authorized insurers actually writing it in the state (G.S. 58-45-30(d); Plan of Operation §VIII).
Wind-and-hail-only forms (HW) are companion policies: NCDOI says they require an active primary policy from an admitted North Carolina carrier that has excluded windstorm, and they don't cover fire.
Check the house against the rules
- Age. On HO 2 and HO 3, the dwelling must be 30 years old or newer. If it's older than 30 but 60 or newer, you must verify updates to the electrical, heating, plumbing and roofing within the last 30 years. HO 8 covers dwellings older than 30 and up to 60 years old, with systems in good condition. For 60 years or more, written documentation of the work done is required.
- Roof. Since October 10, 2025 the NCIUA requires roof age and roof type on new business for HO 2, HO 3, HO 8, HW 2, HW 3 and HW 8. No age cutoff was announced.
- Photographs. Required for every structure; the manual says policies will be cancelled if they aren't provided within 30 days of submission.
- Storm freeze. No new or increased coverage is bound after 12:01 AM on the day following any day a named storm's center is within 60°–90° W and 11.5°–37° N.
- Limits. Residential buildings are capped at $1,000,000; contents are limited to 40% of the building limit and written at actual cash value only.
Price it, then look for a roof grant
Residential deductibles start at $500 for all other perils plus a 1% named-storm deductible; wind-only policies are limited to the manual's flat or named-storm percentage options. NCDOI says wind-only deductibles are a percentage of your Coverage A amount, separate from your primary policy's.
In 2025, NCDOI announced a $20 million “Strengthen Your Coastal Roof” program for NCIUA policyholders who install IBHS-certified FORTIFIED roofs: up to $6,000 in coastal areas and up to $10,000 along the Outer Banks and barrier islands, first-come, first-served. We couldn't confirm whether funds remain, so check strengthenyourcoastalroof.com or call 877-472-6862 before planning around it.
Dwelling fire, commercial fire, homeowners, and wind-and-hail forms; the NCJUA does not write here
Homeowners and wind-and-hail only; no dwelling-fire or commercial-fire from the NCIUA
Needs an admitted carrier's primary policy that excludes wind; doesn't cover fire
A pool this large changes the math for the whole state.
| Territory | Area | 2025 approved | 2026 approved |
|---|---|---|---|
| 110 | Beach areas in Currituck, Dare and Hyde Counties (Beach Area) | 5.1% | 4.8% |
| 120 | Beach areas in Brunswick, Carteret, New Hanover, Onslow and Pender Counties (Beach Area) | 16.0% | 15.9% |
| 130 | Coastal areas in Currituck, Dare, Hyde and Pamlico Counties (Coastal Area) | 2.8% | 2.8% |
| 140 | Eastern coastal areas of Brunswick, Carteret, New Hanover, Onslow and Pender Counties (Coastal Area) | 10.5% | 10.1% |
| 150 | Coastal areas in Beaufort, Camden, Chowan, Craven, Jones, Pasquotank, Perquimans, Tyrrell and Washington Counties (Coastal Area) | 1.0% | 0.9% |
| 160 | Western coastal areas of Brunswick, Carteret, New Hanover, Onslow and Pender Counties (Coastal Area) | 5.0% | 4.8% |
Do these in this order.
Get the reason for your non-renewal in writing, and confirm whether your county and address fall in the Beach Area or the rest of the Coastal Area.
Pull together the house facts: year built, dates of electrical, heating, plumbing and roof updates, roof age and type, and photographs of every structure.
Apply through your agent or by calling 1-800-662-7048, before any named storm enters the freeze box. If you need wind-only coverage, your primary policy must already be in force and exclude wind.
Ask about the roof grant and any wind-mitigation credits before you replace a roof, and get the roof's certification paperwork.
Confirm lender acceptance and an overlapping effective date so there's no gap that could trigger force-placed insurance.
What people ask before they call an agent.
What is the NCIUA, and why is it also called the Beach Plan and the Coastal Property Insurance Pool?
The NCIUA is the North Carolina Insurance Underwriting Association, created under Article 45 of Chapter 58 of the General Statutes. It long went by “Beach Plan” and now brands itself the Coastal Property Insurance Pool (CPIP). It is the last-resort writer of homeowners and wind-and-hail coverage for 18 coastal counties.
Which counties does the NCIUA cover?
The statutory Coastal area is Beaufort, Brunswick, Camden, Carteret, Chowan, Craven, Currituck, Dare, Hyde, Jones, New Hanover, Onslow, Pamlico, Pasquotank, Pender, Perquimans, Tyrrell and Washington counties. Inside them, the Beach Area (land south and east of the inland waterway and the sounds, generally the barrier islands and Outer Banks) can get every line the NCIUA writes; the rest of the Coastal Area gets homeowners and wind-and-hail coverage only.
Why does an NCIUA policy cost more than my old one?
By statute the NCIUA's rates are the Rate Bureau's manual rates plus a surcharge: 15% for homeowners coverage including wind and hail, and 5% for wind and hail alone (G.S. 58-45-45). Manual rates also vary widely by territory; beach areas of five coastal counties (Territory 120) saw approved base-rate increases of 16.0% and 15.9% in the 2025 and 2026 steps.
What roof information does the NCIUA need?
Since October 10, 2025 the NCIUA has required the roof's age and type for new business on forms HO 2, HO 3, HO 8, HW 2, HW 3 and HW 8. The announcement states no age cutoff or roof-type restriction, so have the information ready rather than assuming a particular roof will be declined.
Do I have to pay if a hurricane overwhelms the NCIUA, even if I'm not insured by it?
Possibly. Member insurers pay assessments up to $1 billion per calendar year for an event or series of events. After that, G.S. 58-45-47 lets a catastrophe recovery charge be levied as a uniform percentage on residential and commercial property insurance policyholders statewide, capped at 10% of the annual premium on any one policy. The NCIUA and the FAIR Plan also charge their own policyholders.
What is the difference between full homeowners and wind-only coverage from the NCIUA?
A full homeowners policy (HO 00 02, 00 03, 00 06 or 00 08) is available to people who meet the underwriting standards and can't get homeowners coverage from authorized insurers actually writing it in the state. Wind-and-hail-only coverage is a companion policy: NCDOI says it requires an active primary policy from an admitted North Carolina carrier that has excluded windstorm, and it does not cover fire, so the primary policy has to supply that.
How big is the NCIUA?
At June 30, 2026 its statutory statement shows 276,275 policies — 255,676 residential and 20,599 commercial — and surplus of $1,914,239,976. The association's January 1, 2024 modeling-data report listed 235,315 policies, an increase of about 17% in two and a half years; the two figures come from different documents, so treat the percentage as approximate.