California Legislature OKs Annuity Sales Rule Update
California Legislature OKs Annuity Sales Rule Update

The California Senate voted 37-0 earlier this week to give final legislative approval to Senate Bill 263, California’s version of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners annuity sales standards model. The bill would update California’s existing annuity suitability rules and require annuity sellers to act…
Coalition of Consumer and Senior Groups Urges Governor Newsom to Veto SB 263
Coalition of Consumer and Senior Groups Urges Governor Newsom to Veto SB 263

SB 263 Harms Consumers and Undermines Vital Regulations Sacramento, California–(Newsfile Corp. – February 23, 2024) – A coalition of consumer and senior groups has sent a letter urging Governor Gavin Newsom to veto SB 263. Senator Bill Dodd’s (D – Napa) Senate Bill 263, sponsored…
Virtual town hall will spotlight ‘homeowner insurance crisis’ in Humboldt County
Virtual town hall will spotlight ‘homeowner insurance crisis’ in Humboldt County

As insurers abandon fire-prone areas, homeowners are hard pressed to find — and afford — coverage. Wildfires are increasingly common in rural Northern California, and many homeowners are having to rely on insurance coverage through the insurer of last resort known as the FAIR Plan.…
VIRTUAL TOWN HALL TO ADDRESS HOMEOWNER’S INSURANCE CRISIS IN CALIFORNIA
VIRTUAL TOWN HALL TO ADDRESS HOMEOWNER’S INSURANCE CRISIS IN CALIFORNIA

At this virtual Town Hall, participants will hear from experts from the California Department of Insurance, United Policyholders, University of California Cooperative Extension of Humboldt/Del Norte Counties (UCCE) and CAL FIRE, who will discuss on-going actions being taken to address California’s homeowner insurance crisis and…
California Public Adjusters Legislative Conference in Sacramento, February 27 and 28
California Public Adjusters Legislative Conference in Sacramento, February 27 and 28

One of the easiest and best presentations I will make this year will be on February 27 at the California Association of Public Insurance Adjusters (CAPIA) Legislative Conference in Sacramento. The topic is “Update to Significant California Property Insurance Legislation Recently Enacted.” California public adjusters…
As Home Insurance Bills Go Up, Owners’ Coverage Is Going Down
As Home Insurance Bills Go Up, Owners’ Coverage Is Going Down

Frequent natural disasters and high inflation have led insurers to raise premiums, and forced many customers to pare back their policies. Robert Shiver’s bill for his homeowner insurance jumped from $3,800 in 2022 to $8,000 in July. “I remember opening the bill and, honestly, laughing,…
Leading Senior Groups Join Coalition Opposing SB 263
Leading Senior Groups Join Coalition Opposing SB 263

Senator Bill Dodd’s (D – Napa) Senate Bill 263, sponsored by the California Department of Insurance (CDI), was passed by the Assembly on Monday, February 12, without the implementation of key amendments proposed by consumer protection groups. The coalition of consumer groups opposing SB 263…
Bach Talk: CALIFORNIA HOME INSURANCE UPDATE – 2024
Bach Talk: CALIFORNIA HOME INSURANCE UPDATE – 2024

The following is an update on the California home insurance situation from the non-profit consumer organization, United Policyholders, (“UP”).  UP is working hard to help California property owners stay insured and financially protected despite unprecedented availability and affordability challenges in the current marketplace. Insurers are…
Desperate California homeowners turning to the Fair Plan for insurance, but facing severe delays
Desperate California homeowners turning to the Fair Plan for insurance, but facing severe delays

The delays are forcing them to go uninsured, so mortgage lenders are putting them on force-placed insurance, which can cost thousands of dollars a month Lloyd Messineo’s Simi Valley home is surrounded by beautiful hills. But those hills are now creating a problem. “We thought…
Caught in the Crossfire: One Homeowner’s Battle with California’s Overwhelmed Insurance System
Caught in the Crossfire: One Homeowner’s Battle with California’s Overwhelmed Insurance System

When Lloyd Messineo’s homeowners insurance was abruptly dropped due to wildfire risk, he found himself ensnared in a bureaucratic labyrinth. Turning to the California FAIR Plan as a last resort, he faced inexplicable delays and costly force-placed insurance. His story underscores a larger issue that…
Hurricane in California hits homeowners already facing insurance crisis
Hurricane in California hits homeowners already facing insurance crisis

This week’s hurricanes in California hit a part of the US that was already struggling with a home insurance crisis. Insurance costs have become too high in most of California, with some insurers leaving the market, unwilling to take the risks posed by the frequency…
Storms in California hit homeowners already facing an insurance crisis
Storms in California hit homeowners already facing an insurance crisis

The storms pummeling California this week hit a part of the US already being battered by a home insurance crisis. Insurance costs in much of California have become exceedingly high, with some insurers abandoning the market, unwilling to take on the risk presented by the…
Bach Talk: An insured future depends on bold public/private innovation
Bach Talk: An insured future depends on bold public/private innovation

By Amy Bach, Executive Director, United Policyholders So far 2024 has brought more bad news for property owners, public officials, lenders and home builders on the insurance availability and affordability fronts with non-renewals, scant options and high premiums. Front page news across the country. Rate…
Increase your resiliency in the new year…
Increase your resiliency in the new year…

If you own a home, we suggest putting “make risk reduction improvements” on your New Year’s resolution list. Taking steps to make it less likely that severe weather or a wildfire will damage your home is more important than ever. Insurers have added new coverage…
Call Kurtis: What to do if your home insurance company drops you?
Call Kurtis: What to do if your home insurance company drops you?

The Hartford Insurance is the latest company to say it will stop writing new homeowners’ policies in California starting Feb. 1. It cites challenges in the market, especially with the California fire risk. The industry says it’s struggled to get the Department of Insurance to…
ReCoverCA Owner-Occupied Mitigation (OOM) Grant
ReCoverCA Owner-Occupied Mitigation (OOM) Grant

Grant Alert:  ReCoverCA Owner-Occupied Mitigation (OOM) Grant: Open Learn more here: https://www.fire.ca.gov/what-we-do/grants/wildfire-prevention-grants (Scroll down to OOM Grant) 2020 Eligible Counties Include: Butte, Santa Cruz, Solano, Fresno, Los Angeles, Napa, Shasta, Siskiyou, and Sonoma counties. Thank you Brittany Halfhide, ReCoverCA, for sharing this opportunity with our WRAP…
Uninsurable Homes Are Climate Change’s Latest Victims In The California and Florida Housing Markets
Uninsurable Homes Are Climate Change’s Latest Victims In The California and Florida Housing Markets

In a world grappling with extreme weather events and shifting insurance trends, the once-assured protection of homeowners’ insurance is becoming a luxury that many can’t afford. The housing markets in climate risk-prone states like California and Florida are facing an unprecedented crisis, as insurers grapple…
The least affordable housing market in more than a generation is facing another threat: Uninsurable properties
The least affordable housing market in more than a generation is facing another threat: Uninsurable properties

Garret Gray sort of laughs when he tells Fortune about how his house in a Los Angeles canyon was nearly uninsurable. Surrounded by brush, “it’s got a really bad CoreLogic fire score,” he says. And he should know: As the president of CoreLogic’s global insurance…