Tag: wildfire insurance

California wildfire preparedness takes the spotlight as evacuations rise

Julie Campbell
California wildfire preparedness - forest fire

Thousands of residents are learning how to prepare as power outages and smoky conditions increase. California wildfire preparedness has become an important topic in the state as blazes continue to rage in various parts of the state, including in regions around Los Angeles. As the threat of fire intensifies and evacuations increase, residents are learning how to be ready. Residents who have not already made a California wildfire preparedness plan are being advised to do so. The reason is that there isn’t always a lot of advance warning before the…

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California fire insurance companies decline almost 350,000 policy renewals

H. Cutner
California fire insurance companies - Firefighters fighting wildfire

Insurers are taking big steps back from the industry in the state’s highest risk areas. New data from the state shows that California fire insurance companies have declined the renewal of almost 350,000 home policies since 2015. This was most common in areas with the highest wildfire risk. The data showed that insurers are trying to reduce their risk exposure as wildfires become more costly. The newly released data did indicate that California fire insurance companies have dropped hundreds of thousands of customers. However, it did not point out how…

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Last November’s California wildfires caused $11.4 billion in insured damage

Logan B.
California Wildfires - Damage from Fire

Residents of the state have filed many thousands of insurance claims from the Camp Fire. Last year’s record-breaking California wildfires have now generated $11.4 billion in insurance claims. This has made the fires in that month, which ripped their way through Butte County and Southern California, some of the most expensive the state has ever experienced. The Camp Fire killed 86 people and essentially burned the town of Paradise right off the map. Three quarters of the losses from California wildfires in November 2018 were the result of the Camp…

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Bankrupt California insurance company may face state takeover

Marc
Bankrupt California insurance company

Regulators move to take over an insurer unable to pay its wildfire claims following massive destruction. A California insurance company bankrupted by the Camp Fire and other wildfires may be taken over by the state. Regulators have made their first moves toward a takeover after wildfires raged through the state, destroying over 13,000 homes. Merced Property & Casualty Company was unable to keep up with the cost of its policyholder claims. The California insurance company was pushed into insolvency by the wildfire sparked on November 8, 2018. That same fire…

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California providers start dropping their high risk insurance customers

G. Turner
High risk insurance - Wildfire in Forest

Insurers have started withdrawing coverage from the most wildfire vulnerable areas. As wildfire season heats up, insurers across California have started to drop their high risk insurance customers. Homes that are the most vulnerable to wildfire may not be able to find coverage within the state as the flames start to spread yet again this year. Liberty Mutual and other insurance companies are stepping away from the highest wildfire risks. This trend could cause a growing number of Californian homeowners to find themselves without wildfire insurance coverage for their properties.…

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Wildfire insurance problems persist 2 years after Canadian Fort McMurray Disaster

Julie Campbell
Wildfire insurance problems - Forest Fire

After flames ripped their way through entire neighborhoods of the Alberta town, rebuilding is been slow. Two years after the devastating Fort McMurray fire in Canada, wildfire insurance problems continue to plague homeowners. In fact, only 20 percent of the destroyed homes are rebuilt. The northern Alberta saw 2,579 homes completely destroyed by the wildfire that struck in 2016. The destruction produced the highest wildfire costs in Canada until that time, as Live Insurance News reported. Donations to support those whose homes were ravaged poured in from across the country…

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California wildfire insurance stirs up heat between industry and state lawmakers

Logan B.
California wildfire insurance - forest fire

The state Senate Insurance Committee is taking on the insurance industry regarding this coverage. California wildfire insurance was a hot topic, so to speak, between insurers and the State Insurance Committee. The committee is chaired by Senator Steve Glazer (D), widely considered to be the most moderate senator in the upper house. The Senate Insurance Committee voted on to bills that will dictate the future of wildfire coverage. The vote took place on Friday for the two bills. These bills were designed to make significant changes to the way California…

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