New Hampshire
What is influencing insurance rates in New Hampshire? – NH Business Review
Home and car insurance rates have risen nationally due to inflation, extreme weather events and litigation
The bad news is that home insurance rates have risen nationally by an average 34% between 2018 and 2023. The good news is that the rate of increase in New Hampshire was 17.9%.
Car insurance rates are also climbing — 36% nationwide since January 2020. While rates have been climbing in the Granite State, the average cost here is among the lowest in the country.
But it still begs the question: Why are insurance rates climbing, even in New Hampshire?
Some insight was offered by a Property & Casualty Markets Symposium hosted by the New Hampshire Insurance Department. Inflation, weather events and litigation were the three primary reasons for property insurance increases, according to information offered at the March symposium held in Concord.
Property and casualty insurance includes many forms of coverage, usually associated with homeowners insurance, auto insurance and renters insurance.
Insurance Commissioner D.J. Bettencourt said he convened the symposium “to help us understand what’s going on and to help the consumer understand why they’re experiencing what they’re experiencing.”
“One of the most frequent questions that we get is: Why are my premiums going up? Why am I not able to get access to coverage that I’ve been able to get access to before? And of course, all of that speaks to the dynamics of this interesting market that we’re experiencing right now,” said Bettencourt.
The featured presenter at the symposium was Robert Hartwig. He is a clinical associate professor of finance in the Moore School of Business at the University of South Carolina, and he serves on the Federal Reserve Board’s insurance policy advisory committee.
A frequent presenter on issues related to insurance markets, Hartwig cited inflation as a major source of the increases to policyholders. As costs have risen for insurances those costs are passed on to the consumer, according to Hartwig.
For insurance underwriters, 2023 was the worst year since 2017 and the second worst year since 2011.
“One of the major issues for the industry — and that is really the principal driver in many instances — is the issue of inflation which is still working its way, kind of a pig through a python type of situation,” said Hartwig.
He noted that the Consumer Price Index since the end of the COVID pandemic has risen 19% for consumers, but, for insurers, their costs have increased because of the higher costs (as much as 41%) for plumbers, contractors, laborers and building materials.
“Whereas inflation has subsided in the broader economy, it’s at its peak in the property-casualty insurance industry today at least in terms of passing it through to consumers,” said Hartwig.
For every $100 paid in premiums in 2023, $101 was paid out to cover insured losses, according to Hartwig. “That’s a prescription for a pretty bad year,” he said.
Data from Realtor.com shows that, between 2018 and 2023, the average cost of homeowners insurance in New Hampshire has increased 17.9%. Nationally, the increase was 33.8%, with some of the highest increases in Texas (59.9%), Colorado (57.9%), Arizona (52.9%), Utah (51.9%) and Nebraska (48.6%).
Bankrate says the current average annual premium for homeowners insurance in the state is $973, based on a home valued at $300,000. It notes that many variables contribute to the cost of insurance and that specialized coverage (for flooding, for instance) is a separate cost.
Car insurance rates have climbed 36% since January 2020, according to consumer price data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Within the past year alone, rates for car insurance have soared more than 20%, the data shows.
Bankrate says the average cost of car insurance in the U.S. is $2,311 per year for a full coverage policy, while New Hampshire drivers pay an average of $1,660 annually. CarInsurance.com puts the cost as the eighth lowest in the country.
As with homeowners insurance, the cost of insuring a vehicle in New Hampshire depends on many, many factors, such as age, driving record, where the car is kept, even a driver’s credit rating.
In terms of homeowners insurance, Realtor.com cites climate change–affected weather as a primary reason for increases everywhere.
“Climate risk is a big deal. It can impact home values, insurance costs and the overall stability of a housing market,” said Jiayi Xu, economist at Realtor.com. “The issues are whether you can get access to affordable insurance and how much the costs will increase. In areas with high climate risk and lower home prices, people are tolerating these risks in exchange for more affordable housing.”
In his presentation, Hartwig did not refer to climate change. Rather, he used terms such as “wild weather” and “disaster” to describe an additional reason after inflation for the rise in insurance costs. He also used the term “cats,” insurance shorthand for catastrophic events, such as hurricanes, floods, wildfires, tornados and the like.
“The Northeast is one area where you’ve not had some of the major cats that we’ve seen in some other parts of the country. You’ve had some wild weather, including floods and flooding of vehicles and that can contribute certainly to some of the increases we’ve seen here,” he said.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has a ranking of states and counties using what is called the Climate Resilience Screening Index (CRSI). It measures the resilience of U.S. counties and communities to natural disasters.
The national average index is 4.213. New Hampshire comes in with a higher overall resiliency at 9.154. Within New England, Maine (17.971) and Vermont (12.848) are higher, Massachusetts (7.889), Connecticut (3.702) and Rhode Island (3.533) are lower.
The greatest risk for New Hampshire is flooding, related to heavy rain and/or melting snow events and to flooding along the coast as sea level rise continues.
Hartwig talked about the E&S markets. Excess and Surplus (E&S) is a specialty market that offers insurance coverage for risks that standard insurance companies don’t for properties in, say, wildfire zones, high crime areas and along the coast. These E&S market coverages are more expensive because of the nature of the risks involved.
“A lot of this is being generated in places like Florida, California, Texas, Colorado, places like that, and some coastal areas,” said Hartwig. “I don’t think New Hampshire accounts for very much of this, but you may have observed yourself some migration of premiums in New Hampshire to the E&S market.”
Some major insurers are leaving high-risk states. Allstate and State Farm, for example, said in 2022 that they’d stopped writing new policies in California because of the wildfire risk. In April, just weeks before the start of hurricane season, thousands of Floridians lost their ASI-Progressive home insurance coverage.
The New Hampshire Insurance Department says no such incidents of homeowners being dropped by their insurance companies have been reported to it.
As for the E&S market cited by Hartwig, the Insurance Department says it represents less than 1% of total market share in the Granite State. The activity in that market has been largely related to flood insurance, according to the Insurance Department.
The third factor cited by Hartwig was litigation payouts by insurance companies, which he described as “a tax that has to be passed along.”
Hartwig cited a number of reasons for litigation and large awards: “Increasing propensity to sue,” he said, “large jury awards, courts increasingly favoring plaintiffs, general distrust of large corporations that they feel deserve to be punished, third-party litigation funding — you maybe heard you can invest in lawsuits nowadays, aggressive plaintiff bar advertising.”
Another factor in play, as it affects auto rates in New Hampshire, is the greater degree of claims coming from reckless and dangerous driving incidents.
Bettencourt was among a group on June 4 that sought to raise awareness about the dangers of aggressive and reckless driving, driving at excessive speeds, and other hazardous behaviors on New Hampshire’s roadways.
The event was held at the New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon and included representatives from the insurance department, the NH Department of Safety, NH State Police, American Automobile Association of Northern New England, the speedway, the New Hampshire Motorcyclists’ Rights Organization, and the New Hampshire Automobile Dealers Association.
“The connection between reckless driving habits and escalating auto insurance rates is very, very clear. Engaging in speeding or distracted driving not only jeopardizes your own safety, but also endangers the lives of fellow motorists on the road. It is critical for Granite Staters to understand that their choices behind the wheel also affect the availability and affordability of insurance coverage for all drivers. The New Hampshire Insurance Department is hearing a lot from consumers about the rising cost of auto insurance premiums,” Bettencourt said in his remarks.
“Our message today is to emphasize that reckless driving behaviors are not only a safety threat but also put at risk the affordability of auto insurance rates for all motorists. Motorists should be aware that a reckless driving citation, or some other serious motor vehicle violation, will be reflected in your auto insurance premiums for several years,” he added. “This is not going to be a one-time event for you. So please bear those things in mind, not only for your own safety, not only for your own ability to afford your auto insurance coverage, but for all Granite Staters to be able to have access to affordable auto insurance.”
Recently published data reflect the ongoing increases in the price of child care and decreases in access to care in New Hampshire, placing additional economic strain on Granite State families seeking affordable and high-quality care for their children. The price of child care for a family with an infant and a four-year old seeking center-based care averaged about $30,000 in 2025, up from $22,500 in 2017, while the number of licensed center and home-based child care providers has declined by 120 since 2017.
The national organization Child Care Aware of America (CCAoA) released its 2025 annual report on May 13, 2026. The report outlines the state-by-state early childhood education landscape, including both the price of care and provider supply within each state. In New Hampshire, these data were collected through the CCAoA’s New Hampshire Child Care Resource and Referral Agency and the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS). Together, these data provide valuable, and updated, insights into the state’s early childhood care landscape and the challenges Granite State families face in accessing and affording child care services.
Rising price of early childhood education in NH
Based on analysis conducted by CCAoA, the average price of child care in New Hampshire in 2025 remains high for Granite State families. The average price of care for an infant and toddler in center-based care was $16,462 and $15,262, respectively, in 2025. For home-based care, the 2025 average price was $12,017 for an infant and $11,732 for a toddler. Furthermore, for a family with an infant and toddler making approximately the median income for a married couple with two children under age 5 in New Hampshire, the price of center-based care for their children would amount to approximately 25% of their family income. This financial burden is even greater for a single or unmarried mother, earning the median income of approximately $52,000 in New Hampshire, as paying the full average price of center-based child care for an infant and toddler would consume 61% of family income.
Additionally, these prices in care have increased substantially over time. From 2017 to 2025, the average enrollment price of center-based care and home-based care increased 32% and 30%, respectively. The largest increase in tuition prices during this period was 33% for toddlers and 4-year-olds in center-based care, as well as for 4-year-olds in home-based care. These increases in tuition prices outpaced inflation during the same period.
For many Granite State families, the price for child care tuition will represent their greatest annual expense, particularly for families with multiple children and those living in rural regions of the state. According to Economic Policy Institute’s Family Budget Calculator, a family with two adults and two children living in Coos County, the New Hampshire county with the lowest cost of living, would spend on average 2.5 times more for center-based care for an infant and toddler than they would on housing. As affordability challenges and the overall cost of living continue to rise, some families may have to contend with difficult tradeoffs among essential household and family expenses, including child care services.
Although care for infants and toddlers are often the most expensive forms of care, child care-related expenses do not end once children enter kindergarten. Many families continue paying for before- and after-school programs, summer care, and school vacation coverage for years afterward. As a result, the costs outlined in this analysis likely represent only one portion of the broader child care expenses many Granite State families face.
Childcare supply challenges persist
While the price of child care tuition in New Hampshire remains high, the number of licensed providers has declined over time. The CCAoA’s report indicated that, in 2025, there were 613 licensed center-based programs and 104 home-based programs across New Hampshire. However, since 2017, the number of licensed center-based and home-based programs decreased by 10% and 32%, respectively. The greater closure rate in home-based programs across the State may have a disproportionate impact on families with low and moderate incomes seeking more affordable care options, as well as families in rural regions, communities of color, and families seeking non-traditional hour care, who rely more on this type of care to fill the gaps in available care from other providers. This decrease in number of providers, particulars those in home-based settings and in rural regions of the State, has likely placed further strain on family’s access to care, as they may have to travel longer distances for child care services.
Alongside the overall decline in child care providers during this period, the number of center-based programs participating in the New Hampshire Quality Rated Improvement System, or Granite Steps for Quality (GSQ), a statewide program designed to assess and improve the quality of care services in early childhood education settings, has decreased 16%. Of the remaining 99 providers that participated in the GSQ in 2025, only four reached the highest level of quality, or step 4 of the GSQ. These findings suggest that, as families navigate New Hampshire’s shrinking child care supply landscape in the State, they are encountering fewer options that offer recognized high-quality care services.
Families and providers continue to face growing financial pressures
The average tuition prices reported in the CCAoA’s analysis of the New Hampshire Early Childhood Education landscape do not necessarily reflect the cost of care all families pay for enrollment, or the cost providers pay for delivery of care services. Many families with low and moderate incomes qualify for the New Hampshire’s Child Care Scholarship Program (NHCCSP), a federal-State fiscal partnership that helps Granite State families afford child care through a tiered voucher system. Families who are eligible to participate in the NHCCSP may pay a weekly “cost share” of anywhere from $0 to 7% of their family income, with different tiers of eligibility depending on those family income levels. Families enrolled in the NHCCSP may also be charged a “co-payment” by the provider if tuition exceeds the weekly standard rates set by DHHS. In 2024, State policymakers expanded NHCCSP income eligibility for families, resulting in a significant increase in the number of families enrolled in the program, though this growth has slowed in recent months.
Beyond the increase in eligibility for families in the 2024 expansion, policymakers also increased reimbursement rates for participating providers. While the provider reimbursement rates are set through the State’s Child Care Market Rate Survey, the prices only account for enrollment tuition prices. Consequently, these rates only capture what providers estimate families are willing and able to pay, but do not necessarily account for the provider costs for delivering high-quality care services and operating costs, including facility expenses, workforce and staff compensation, staff training, professional development training, as well as other costs. To supplement this gap in revenue, some providers turn to additional revenue streams such as grants, donations, and fundraising initiatives.
The rising price of child care tuition, coupled with the declining supply of providers in recent years, reflects the growing financial pressures families and child care providers face in New Hampshire. While programs such as the NHCCSP have an important and necessary role in reducing these barriers, additional State funding initiatives and policy strategies may be needed to more adequately address these challenges and provide meaningful financial relief for families seeking to access child care.
The New Hampshire Fiscal Policy Institute is sharing these articles with the partners in The Granite State News Collaborative. NHFPI is an independent nonprofit organization that explores, develops and promotes public policies that foster economic opportunity and prosperity for all New Hampshire residents. For more information visit nhfpi.org. These articles are being shared by partners in The Granite State News Collaborative. For more information visit collaborativenh.org.
SALEM, N.H. — A Lowell High School freshman was identified on Friday as the victim of a fatal shooting in Salem, where authorities say the 15‑year‑old was found dead outside a home during the pre-dawn hours.
New Hampshire Attorney General John Formella’s office said in a press release that police responding to a 911 call discovered the teen, identified as Wichai Saksene, just outside the residence on Orchard Terrace.
An autopsy later determined he died from a single gunshot wound to the chest, and his death has been ruled a homicide.
Authorities said the circumstances remain under active investigation but noted there is no known threat to the public, as all involved parties have been identified.
In a message that began “sad news for your awareness,” Lowell Public Schools Superintendent Liam Skinner told School Committee members that Saksene was a Lowell High freshman and former student of Stoklosa Middle School and Lincoln Elementary School.
He added that central office staff are assisting Lowell High with communications to staff and families and that Student Support Services has activated a critical incident team to be at the high school on Monday.
The Salem Police Department stated in a social media post that they are working with the New Hampshire State Police Major Crimes Unit and Formella’s office to investigate the shooting.
Follow Aaron Curtis on X @aselahcurtis, or on Bluesky @aaronscurtis.bsky.social.
New Hampshire
Transgender former New Hampshire state representative sentenced to 33 years for child sex abuse: report
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A transgender former New Hampshire state representative will spend more than three decades in federal prison after admitting to receiving nude photos of children at a Massachusetts daycare.
Stacie Marie Laughton, 41, of Nashua was sentenced to more than 33 years behind bars after pleading guilty to sexual exploitation of children, according to a report from local outlet WCVB.
Laughton received the explicit images from his former intimate partner, Lindsay Groves, 40, of Hudson, New Hampshire, who was sentenced earlier this month to 22 years in prison, according to the report.
FORMER SUBSTITUTE TEACHER AND BOYFRIEND FACE 38 CHILD SEX CHARGES AS BOND NEARS 9 MILLION
Former transgender Democrat New Hampshire Rep. Stacie Marie Laughton pleaded guilty to sexual exploitation of children, according to the Nashua Police Department. (Nashua Police Department)
Groves, who previously pleaded guilty to three counts of sexual exploitation of children and one count of distribution of child pornography, was employed at the Creative Minds daycare in neighboring Tyngsborough, Massachusetts, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts.
Authorities said that between May 2022 and June 2023, Groves took multiple photos of prepubescent children in a private bathroom during routine diaper and pull-up changes prior to nap time.
WASHINGTON STATE TEACHER CHARGED WITH INCEST AFTER ALLEGEDLY HAVING SEX WITH TWO TEENAGE BOYS SHE ADOPTED
Stacie Marie Laughton was sentenced to 33 years in prison. (Citizens Count)
Groves then sent the photos to Laughton via text message, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
A forensic review of Laughton and Groves’ cellphones uncovered more than 10,000 text messages sent between the two over a one-month period in 2023.
Court documents revealed the messages included discussions about and transfers of explicit images of children, including victims as young as 3 to 5 years old.
Lindsay Groves used her position at a daycare to take illegal photos that were later shared with Laughton, authorities said. (Nashua Police Department)
The U.S. Attorney’s Office confirmed all the children in the case were identified, and their families were contacted by law enforcement.
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Hillsborough County jail officials confirmed to NH Journal that Laughton has been housed in the male population.
Creative Minds Early Learning Center and the U.S. Attorney’s Office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s requests for comment.
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