There is now a new option for more than 58,000 Cape and Islands homeowners who have been relegated to the FAIR Plan for their insurance coverage.

Arthur D. Calfee Insurance Agency Inc., is introducing a new insurance program for Cape and Islands homeowners.  Calfee Insurance have offices in Falmouth and North Falmouth but write insurance all over Cape Cod and throughout MA.

Homeowners switching from the FAIR Plan, which provides coverage for those unable to obtain it in the private market, can expect to save an average of $300 per year or more, said Davidson O. Calfee, President of Arthur D. Calfee Insurance Agency Inc. 

"We think it's going to be pretty widely sought-after," Calfee said yesterday. "And the pricing is very competitive as well."

"We can write everything from waterfront, to those homes that might be located more inland such as the Mashpee and Sandwich area," he said.  There is also

The new homeowner's insurance will be available to Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket homeowners with single-family homes worth between $200,000 and $5 million. 

Homeowners insurance has been a significant concern on the Cape and Islands even before Hurricane Katrina hit the southern coast.  Many private insurers began limiting their coverage in coastal areas or pulling out entirely.

Tens of thousands of homeowners were forced into the FAIR Plan.  At the end of 2003, there were 10,007 Cape and Islands homes insured by the plan; today, it covers over 60,000 properties in the region.

Currently, 52 insurance companies offer homeowners coverage in at least parts of the Cape, according to the Web site of the state Division of Insurance. Other counties are served by dozens more insurers.

Some companies serving the Cape and Islands do so selectively, said Kevin Beagan, director of the State Rating Bureau, which reviews insurance filings for compliance with regulations.

It was this limited availability of homeowners coverage on the Cape and Islands that prompted Arthur D. Calfee Insurance Agency Inc. to develop its own product, Calfee said.

"The problem is, the reinsurance treaties have been getting more and more restrictive," Calfee said. "This creates an opportunity for someone to come in who has no exposure on the Cape today."

Calfee Insurance worked with UPC Insurance, to put together its new coverage offering. Because Buttine does not currently underwrite any homeowners policies on the Cape or Islands, it does not have to worry about incurring too much risk in the area.