SCHIFF INTRODUCES BILL TO ENSURE HOMEOWNERS, VULNERABLE COMMUNITIES NOT EXCLUDED FROM CATASTROPHIC COVERAGE
SCHIFF INTRODUCES BILL TO ENSURE HOMEOWNERS, VULNERABLE COMMUNITIES NOT EXCLUDED FROM CATASTROPHIC COVERAGE

Today, Representative Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) introduced the Incorporating National Support for Unprecedented Risks and Emergencies (INSURE) Act to stabilize the home insurance market while ensuring vulnerable communities are not excluded from coverage. This legislation would create a federal catastrophic reinsurance program to insulate consumers from…
Coastal homeowners could see up to 99.4% insurance rate increase
Coastal homeowners could see up to 99.4% insurance rate increase

The North Carolina Rate Bureau, an organization that represents insurance companies in the state, has asked the Department of Insurance to increase homeowners’ insurance rates by an average of 42.4%. In beach areas such as Brunswick, Carteret, New Hanover, Onslow and Pender counties, however, the…
State Farm to raise homeowners rates in California
State Farm to raise homeowners rates in California

Adjustment driven by “increased costs and risk” State Farm policyholders in California are bracing for higher home insurance premiums after regulators approved a rate increase for the insurance giant this year. The approved 20% adjustment applies to renewed policies and will be effective from March…
KVNF Regional Newscast: January 4, 2023
KVNF Regional Newscast: January 4, 2023

Coloradans can now get thirty percent off the price of electric lawn and garden equipment. A new state law that took effect this week offers a tax credit to equipment retailers if they offer the discount to consumers at the time of purchase. Participating retailers…
Getting Insured: Tips for finding home insurance in California
Getting Insured: Tips for finding home insurance in California

A new court ruling could give homeowners slightly more choices under the California Fair Plan, but experts say that could take time. If 2024 is the year you can finally buy a new home, the next and maybe even greater challenge could very well be…
State Farm homeowner insurance rates to skyrocket
State Farm homeowner insurance rates to skyrocket

Customers with home insurance policies through State Farm will soon pay higher premiums after California granted a rate hike. State Farm insures one in five homes in the Golden State. Its policyholders will see an average increase of 20% beginning March 15. However, pro-consumer United…
California’s largest home insurer to hike rates this year
California’s largest home insurer to hike rates this year

California’s largest home insurer will raise rates by an average of 20% this year. The California Department of Insurance approved State Farm’s request to increase rates for policies that are being renewed, a State Farm spokesperson confirmed. The new rates take effect March 15. “These…
Two years after Colorado’s most destructive wildfire, victims are still struggling with insurance claims
Two years after Colorado’s most destructive wildfire, victims are still struggling with insurance claims

It’s been two years since the Marshall Fire burned more than a thousand homes in Boulder County. On December 30, 2021, winds of more than 100-miles-per-hour propelled the flames toward a heavily populated suburban area south of Boulder. Two years on, many homeowners continue to…
State Farm raising insurance rates 20% for California customers in new year
State Farm raising insurance rates 20% for California customers in new year

State Farm customers across California are facing a 20% rate hike starting March 15, 2024 after California Department of Insurance officials greenlit the insurance giant’s new rates. The announcement comes months after State Farm General Insurance Company stopped accepting new California homeowners as customers because…
Crisis on the Availability and Affordability of Wildfire Insurance
Crisis on the Availability and Affordability of Wildfire Insurance

At the California State Association of Counties’ (CSAC) annual meeting in November, where I serve as the County’s representative, I moderated an informational panel titled “Fire Insurance Crisis: How We Got Here and Where We’re Going.” The panel included Deputy Commissioner of Community Relations and…
Supervisor Hall Leads Discussion on Fire Insurance, Emergency Planning
Supervisor Hall Leads Discussion on Fire Insurance, Emergency Planning

Supervisor Heidi Hall took a leadership role at the California State Association of Counties’ annual meeting in November in Alameda County. She moderated the panel, “Fire Insurance Crisis: How We Got Here and Where We’re Going.” The panel included a representative from state Insurance Commissioner…
FAIR Plan insurance polices delayed as more homeowners turn to the ‘insurance of last resort’
FAIR Plan insurance polices delayed as more homeowners turn to the ‘insurance of last resort’

Mark and Alma O’Brien’s Napa County ranch dodged major damage in a grass fire, however it did not dodge all of the fallout. When ABC7 News spoke with them last year, their insurance company had dropped the couple’s coverage. “We have been trying to find…
Buying a house? Want to know if it floods? It might be hard to find out.
Buying a house? Want to know if it floods? It might be hard to find out.

Two weeks after Pam Sidman and her family moved into their new condo in Brooklyn in September, New York City got historic, torrential rain. That morning, her wife, Kelly, looked out their bedroom window into the yard and noticed water backing up by their son’s…
Will climate change make your homeowners insurance unaffordable? Here’s what you need to know
Will climate change make your homeowners insurance unaffordable? Here’s what you need to know

With both premiums and sea levels rising, here’s how you can save money on homeowners insurance. Leigh C. knew that the homeowners insurance on her home in Black Forest, Colorado, an area just northeast of Colorado Springs, would be renewing soon. But when she opened…
Outlook for home insurance in 2024
Outlook for home insurance in 2024

Key points Climate change is increasing homeowners insurance claim severity and frequency. In the short term, homeowners can expect higher home insurance premiums, the possibility of nonrenewal and fewer options for insurance. In the long term, home insurance rates may start to stabilize. 2023 was…
Insurance In California Is Changing. Here’s How It May Affect You
Insurance In California Is Changing. Here’s How It May Affect You

For most people, insurance is the first line of defense against climate change. When struck by wildfire, flooding or other calamity, an adequate insurance policy can come to the rescue. It’s like a financial first responder, an ambulance full of money to help people back…
Advice from experts on securing property insurance and keeping costs down
Advice from experts on securing property insurance and keeping costs down

As another insurer leaves California, organizations like United Policyholders and the Department of Insurance have tips and resources to help homeowners shop for coverage and challenge nonrenewal. Before settling for the California FAIR Plan, make sure to exhaust all other options. The California Department of…
Another insurer is leaving California. Here’s what the troubling trend could mean to North Bay homeowners
Another insurer is leaving California. Here’s what the troubling trend could mean to North Bay homeowners

A subsidiary of Farmers Insurance has become the latest in a long string of companies to leave or limit coverage in the state since May, including Allstate, State Farm, Farmers and USAA. Yet another insurer is leaving the California market, affecting tens of thousands of…