Regulators unveil wildfire safety plan. Will it fix rural California’s insurance crisis?
Regulators unveil wildfire safety plan. Will it fix rural California’s insurance crisis?

State regulators rolled out a “Safer from Wildfire” program Monday to encourage rural residents and business owners to gird their properties as a way of fixing the insurance crisis that’s plagued the Sierra foothills and other fire-prone areas of California the past few years. The…
If you live in a fire-prone part of California, this roadmap can help you save on insurance
If you live in a fire-prone part of California, this roadmap can help you save on insurance

With the fire season growing longer and wildfires increasing in intensity, Californians living in fire-prone areas are having a harder time finding affordable insurance for their homes — if they can find coverage at all. With that in mind, state officials unveiled a “Safer from Wildfires” framework this week for…
California Insurance Commissioner Lara and State Emergency Agencies Issue “Safer From Wildfires” Framework to Protect Existing Homes and Communities
California Insurance Commissioner Lara and State Emergency Agencies Issue “Safer From Wildfires” Framework to Protect Existing Homes and Communities

Drawing on the direct experience of first responders, fire safety experts, and the latest research on wildfires, Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara and emergency management leaders in Governor Gavin Newsom’s Administration today announced “Safer from Wildfires,” a new insurance framework that incorporates wildfire safety measures to…
Insurance Companies Are Abandoning Homeowners Facing Climate Disasters
Insurance Companies Are Abandoning Homeowners Facing Climate Disasters

Insurance companies are leaving homeowners at the mercy of climate catastrophes they helped create. Major insurance companies are choosing to protect the fossil fuel industry while abandoning homeowners whose safety and livelihoods are being threatened by the industry’s carbon emissions. Insurance giants Chubb, Liberty Mutual,…
Should wildfire victims get more insurance money up front? Some lawmakers think so.
Should wildfire victims get more insurance money up front? Some lawmakers think so.

When wildfire struck Grand County, Marjorie Cranston and her husband lost their home of 15 years. The loss was hard enough, Cranston said, without spending months scouring her brain to remember every single item lost in the flames. The 2020 East Troublesome Fire destroyed an estimated 366…
California wildfire survivor helps residents impacted by Marshall Fire navigate insurance
California wildfire survivor helps residents impacted by Marshall Fire navigate insurance

LISTEN TO THE INTERVIEW HERE The process of recovering from the Marshall Fire looks different for each person affected. For those who were insured, working with their provider to file claims and compile detailed inventories of belongings has become part of day-to-day life. But not…
Community Foundation Boulder County raises $27M for wildfire victims
Community Foundation Boulder County raises $27M for wildfire victims

BOULDER — The Community Foundation Boulder County has raised $27 million for the Boulder County Wildfire Fund, which benefits victims of the Marshall Fire and the Middle Fork Fire. Funds were raised from 65,000 donors, with $7 million allocated in direct financial assistance. “Over 90%…
Housing workshop provides pragmatic and creative ways to see a future Greenville
Housing workshop provides pragmatic and creative ways to see a future Greenville

The Housing Workshop put on by the Dixie Fire Collaborative on Saturday, Feb. 5 in the Greenville Elementary School cafeteria might have been best described as a pragmatism-meets-creative-thinking in helping to guide property owners in Greenville to take the steps necessary in attempting to rebuild.…
United Policyholders Amy Bach on Marshall Fire Insurance Challenges
United Policyholders Amy Bach on Marshall Fire Insurance Challenges

Click below to listen to the radio interview: 2/3/22 KOA 850 AM & 94.1 FM
UP Launches 2022 California Home Insurance Survey
UP Launches 2022 California Home Insurance Survey

California Homeowners: Take the Home Insurance Survey Today www.uphelp.org/CAhomeSurvey   To help the thousands of Californians who are having trouble keeping their homes insured for a price they can afford, United Policyholders has launched a California Home Insurance Survey.  This survey will be open for…
Insurance Companies Are Abandoning Homeowners Facing Climate Disasters
Insurance Companies Are Abandoning Homeowners Facing Climate Disasters

Insurance companies are leaving homeowners at the mercy of climate catastrophes they helped create. Major insurance companies are choosing to protect the fossil fuel industry while abandoning homeowners whose safety and livelihoods are being threatened by the industry’s carbon emissions. Insurance giants Chubb, Liberty Mutual,…
We get it…risk reduction isn’t easy
We get it…risk reduction isn’t easy

Here’s a New Year’s resolution that doesn’t involve depriving yourself of something you like to eat or drink: Do at least one thing in 2022 to make it less likely that your home could be damaged or destroyed due to a weather event or natural…
We get it…investing in risk reduction isn’t easy
We get it…investing in risk reduction isn’t easy

United Policyholders works hard to give people practical tips and guidance that’s realistic.  The risk of wildfires is making insurance alot more expensive and hard to buy in many U.S. states.  If you live in a wildfire-prone area, “hardening” your home and participating in community-wide risk…
Insurer pays state almost $170,000 for 2019 Rendezvous Road Fire
Insurer pays state almost $170,000 for 2019 Rendezvous Road Fire

DNR recovers firefighting costs for 175-acre blaze An insurance company has paid almost $170,000 through homeowner’s liability insurance to the state Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to cover firefighting costs for the Rendezvous Road Fire, which burned 175 acres in July 2019. A September 2019…
Wildfire risk: Marin homeowners face increasing insurance woes
Wildfire risk: Marin homeowners face increasing insurance woes

Marin homeowners are seeing an increase in insurance policy rates and dropped policies in the pandemic era due to wildfire risk. Statewide, a new report from the California Department of Insurance released last month found the number of California homeowners whose policies were not renewed…
National Association of Insurance Commissioners Names 2022 Consumer Liaison Representatives
National Association of Insurance Commissioners Names 2022 Consumer Liaison Representatives

The National Association of Insurance Commissioners issued the following news release: The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) recently named 40 consumer liaison representatives for 2022. The 23 funded and 17 unfunded consumer representatives began their terms January 1. Nineteen of the funded consumer representatives participated in the program in…
Boulder County officials answer residents’ questions about fire recovery process
Boulder County officials answer residents’ questions about fire recovery process

Before the start of Thursday’s community meeting, Garry Sanfaçon shared words of caution to residents who were victims of the Marshall Fire. “Tonight, we’re not going to be able to answer every single question you have — we don’t know all of the answers yet,”…
For people who lost homes in the Marshall Fire, insurance might not cover everything.
For people who lost homes in the Marshall Fire, insurance might not cover everything.

It could be months before many homeowners that lost everything in the Marshall Fire are able to even clean up the debris left by the blaze. In the meantime, many are already girding for battle with their insurance companies. Colorado Insurance Commissioner Michael Conway is…