Is Shopping Personal Lines Finally Slowing Down?

Are agencies seeing fewer requests to shop their coverage? According to a recent survey by JD Power, moderating insurance rates have led to a more stable shopping environment among consumers. “As rate actions moderate and premium increases begin to stabilize, consumers are finding fewer opportunities for meaningful savings through switching carriers,” JD Power noted in its Q3 2026 Signals Intelligence for Personal Lines Insurance report. But while shopping volumes are normalizing, the comparison-shopping behaviors developed during the recent market cycle are likely to remain a lasting feature of the insurance landscape, JD Power noted. Auto insurance shopping increased quarter to quarter and is flat year over year, while “switching” increased considerably. The overall shopping rate increased 13.2% from Q2, while switching carriers went up 5.1%. Auto shopping growth has slowed significantly from the elevated levels observed during 2024 and 2025, JD Power said. Home insurance shopping and switching both increased, and while renter insurance shopping is up, switching increased quarter to quarter but is down versus last year. Shopping for home insurance went up 7.7%, and switching went up 3.0%. Renters insurance shopping is up 6.5% in Q3, while switching is up 3.9%. “Property shopping has cooled more sharply, with periods of negative year-over-year growth reflecting reduced urgency among consumers to seek alternative coverage options,” JD Power added. Since Signals launched in 2020, pandemic-driven cost pressures pushed premiums and shopping higher, while widespread rate increases initially limited switching. As pricing stabilized and carriers resumed pursuing growth, switching rose, while shopping has stabilized somewhat, reflecting levels still elevated compared to earlier periods. Is this the new norm, and could AI agents like Meta Muse drive shopping and switching even higher by helping to make it easier for consumers to find better rates? JD Power says that monitoring shopping and especially switching will remain critical for carriers and agents through Q4 2026 and into 2027. Will these trends continue, or will they begin to level off? What’s happening in your agency now? What’s to come in 2027? Thank you to this issue’s sponsor, Liberty Mutual.