Crucial Insurance Deadline Looms In Two Weeks For Maui Fire Victims
Crucial Insurance Deadline Looms In Two Weeks For Maui Fire Victims

The second anniversary of the Aug. 8, 2023 wildfires that devastated Lahaina and damaged other communities on Maui is also a major deadline for insurance policyholders to file claims for replacement cost benefits, the primary coverage for property and contents damaged or lost in the…
The INSURE Act: Could a New Federal Backstop Stabilize Home Insurance and Make Homes Insurable Again?
The INSURE Act: Could a New Federal Backstop Stabilize Home Insurance and Make Homes Insurable Again?

Across the country, homeowners are facing a home insurance crisis. Not only are premiums on the rise, but the policies themselves are becoming harder—and in some places, nearly impossible—to find. In states vulnerable to natural disasters like California, Florida, Texas, and Louisiana, major insurers are…
Schiff revives INSURE Act to create federal reinsurance program
Schiff revives INSURE Act to create federal reinsurance program

US Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) has reintroduced the Incorporating National Support for Unprecedented Risks and Emergencies (INSURE) Act, legislation aimed at addressing instability in the residential insurance market through the creation of a federal catastrophic reinsurance program. The bill proposes a federally backed reinsurance mechanism…
Kaibigan ng Lahaina and United Policyholders to host insurance policy review workshop
Kaibigan ng Lahaina and United Policyholders to host insurance policy review workshop

Kaibigan ng Lahaina, in partnership with United Policyholders, will host an insurance policy review workshop at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday at the Office of Recovery within the Lahaina Gateway Center. The session will focus on navigating personal property claims and inventory. The workshop is free and…
Sen. Schiff Introduces Bill to Stabilize Insurance Market, Protect Homeowners from Increased Costs of Natural Disasters
Sen. Schiff Introduces Bill to Stabilize Insurance Market, Protect Homeowners from Increased Costs of Natural Disasters

Washington, D.C. — Today, U.S. Senator Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) introduced the Incorporating National Support for Unprecedented Risks and Emergencies (INSURE) Act, legislation to stabilize the home insurance market by creating a federal catastrophic reinsurance program. This bill will help keep insurance premiums affordable and provide…
How to prepare for a wildfire evacuation
How to prepare for a wildfire evacuation

A wildfire can start at any moment, and they can move fast and unpredictably. Preparing for an evacuation should begin before there is any danger. If your household is under voluntary or potential evacuations, begin to prepare your home and get ready to leave. If…
Embers of Change: Building a fire-resilient California
Embers of Change: Building a fire-resilient California

The recent wildfires that have ravaged Southern California have left an unprecedented trail of destruction. The Eaton fire in Altadena burned more than 14,000 acres, while the Palisades fire in Pacific Palisades consumed 23,448 acres. In total, over 16,000 structures were destroyed, including thousands of…
As Texas floods capture attention, experts urge Californians to reconsider flood insurance
As Texas floods capture attention, experts urge Californians to reconsider flood insurance

While Californians are typically more concerned about wildfires than flooding, many are watching the devastation in Texas unfold. It’s estimated that just 2% of households statewide carry a flood insurance policy. Amy Bach, the executive director of United Policyholders, joined us on ‘The Nine,’ who…
Altadena fire survivor is told State Farm’s $900K check on hold due to insufficient funds
Altadena fire survivor is told State Farm’s $900K check on hold due to insufficient funds

Amelia McDonald couldn’t believe her ears. She had been navigating what she calls “a horrible experience” trying to get her claims paid by State Farm after the Eaton Fire burned down her Altadena home and ranch in January. She, along with her father, daughter and…
Advice on rebuilding after fires — from people who’ve lived it
Advice on rebuilding after fires — from people who’ve lived it

Full panel discussion from LAist article by Aiko Offner. Be realistic about timing and costs, join forces with your community and allow yourself some guilty pleasures. That’s the advice of fire survivors and rebuilding experts who participated in LAist’s discussion about the six-month anniversary of…
California Positioned to Lead National Property Insurance Reform
California Positioned to Lead National Property Insurance Reform

Insurance attorney Daniel Veroff says the devastating Los Angeles County wildfires have created an opportunity for California to address systematic underinsurance of homeowners. The devastating Los Angeles County wildfires in January exposed a crisis that has been decades in the making: the systematic underinsurance of…
Los Angeles fire survivor is told State Farm’s $900K check on hold due to insufficient funds
Los Angeles fire survivor is told State Farm’s $900K check on hold due to insufficient funds

Amelia McDonald couldn’t believe her ears. She had been navigating what she calls “a horrible experience” trying to get her claims paid by State Farm after the Eaton Fire burned down her Altadena home and ranch in January. She, along with her father, daughter and…
Rebuilding Altadena bogs down in red tape and frustration
Rebuilding Altadena bogs down in red tape and frustration

About six months after the Eaton Fire, a majority of lots with destroyed homes in Altadena have been cleared. But for homeowners hoping to rebuild, the hard work remains: slogging through insurance paperwork and government permits. On Len Silvernail and Diane Toomey’s cul-de-sac near Rubio…
Regulator starts task force to address denials of LA fire smoke claims
Regulator starts task force to address denials of LA fire smoke claims

Following a June 24 LA Superior Court ruling against the California FAIR Plan for illegally denying wildfire smoke damage claims, the state’s insurance commissioner has created a Smoke Claims and Remediation Task Force. Read more.
California moves to set nation’s first smoke damage insurance standard
California moves to set nation’s first smoke damage insurance standard

One of the most common insurance complaints after a fire comes from people whose homes are still standing but covered in potentially toxic soot. Because there is no state or federal standard for smoke damage, insurance companies often refuse to pay for cleanup, leaving victims…
‘Unsafe to Inhabit’: The Toxic Homes of L.A.
‘Unsafe to Inhabit’: The Toxic Homes of L.A.

After the fires clouded neighborhoods in smoke, residents whose homes were spared learned that danger was still lurking in the walls, the furniture and the air. But their insurers have doubts. Read more
In landmark decision, judge rules California FAIR Plan’s smoke-damage policy is illegal
In landmark decision, judge rules California FAIR Plan’s smoke-damage policy is illegal

In a landmark decision, a Los Angeles judge has ruled that California’s home insurer of last resort is violating state law by how it treats smoke damage claims — a policy that homeowners have long complained shortchanges them, including, most recently, victims of the Jan.…
Your CLUE report could save you money on auto and home owners insurance
Your CLUE report could save you money on auto and home owners insurance

If your car is in an accident, or your house is damaged in a storm, the insurance claims you file will wind up in your CLUE report. The trouble is most people have never heard of a CLUE report, even though the data in it…