Over 50,000 Shasta County homes protected from insurance non-renewals because of Commissioner action

News: 2021 Press Release

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara today ordered insurance companies to preserve residential insurance coverage for more than 50,000 policyholders who have been affected by the Fawn Fire in Shasta County. This Order protects those living within the perimeter or adjoining ZIP Code of the declared wildfire disaster regardless of whether they suffered a loss. Including today’s Order, Commissioner Lara’s actions have protected an estimated 408,000 homes statewide following 2021 wildfire emergency declarations.

“My moratorium order will give wildfire survivors some peace of mind knowing they can keep insurance coverage as they recover,” said Commissioner Lara, whose Department of Insurance staff will be on-site in Shasta County to help Fawn Fire survivors – along with 14 other in-person local assistance or disaster recovery centers in different communities this year. “My Department will be there every step of the way as people rebuild stronger and safer, and I will continue to enforce this crucial law that protects our state’s wildfire survivors after a declared emergency.”

The Commissioner’s ability to issue moratoriums is a result of a California law he authored in 2018 while serving as state senator in order to provide temporary relief from non-renewals to residents living within or adjacent to a declared wildfire disaster. 

Today’s moratorium order follows Governor Gavin Newsom’s September 27 emergency declaration and gives protection from insurance company-initiated non-renewals for one year for residential property insurance policies in 17 ZIP codes within or adjacent to the fire perimeter. Consumers’ one year of protection from non-renewal starts on the date of the Governor’s emergency declaration that included the fire affecting them. Three of those 17 ZIP codes were included in an earlier emergency declaration.

Today’s order protects over 50,000 policyholders, bringing the total to over 408,000 policyholders when combined with the Commissioner’s moratorium orders following Governor Newsom’s July 16, July 23, August 5, August 10, August 17, August 30, and September 7 Declarations affecting parts of Alpine, Amador, Butte, Calaveras, El Dorado, Glen, Humboldt, Lake, Lassen, Mendocino, Modoc, Mono, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou, Tehama, Trinity, Yolo, and Yuba counties.

Consumers can go to the California Department of Insurance website to see if their ZIP Code is included in the moratorium. Consumers should contact the Department of Insurance at 800-927-4357 or via chat or email at insurance.ca.gov if they believe their insurance company is in violation of this law, or have additional claims-related questions.

The Commissioner’s action is part of a larger solution he is pursuing for consumers and wildfire survivors that includes working to increase insurance protections and market competition to help protect consumers. Commissioner Lara’s actions since taking office in 2019 include: 

• Introduced rules that would allow consumers to obtain their home or business’s “wildfire risk score” from their insurance company and require that they receive credit for actions they have taken to make their properties safer. 
• Created a partnership with CAL FIRE, the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (CalOES), and other state agencies to establish achievable, science-based home-hardening measures would allow more people to qualify for an insurance discount or other incentive. 
• Sponsored new insurance protections signed into law by Governor Newsom  — despite opposition from insurance companies — that will mean larger payouts for some claims, less red tape from insurance companies, and more help for people under evacuation orders. 
• Ordered the FAIR Plan, the state’s insurer of last resort, to offer a more comprehensive homeowners policy as an option, which a judge recently upheld. 

“I am doing everything in my power to continue protecting California consumers,” added Commissioner Lara, who traveled to 36 counties before the pandemic and held virtual meetings since then to listen to the challenges that consumers have with insurance. “The Department of Insurance is here to help consumers and is committed to working with our partners to find solutions to this problem which continues to be exacerbated by climate change.” 

Following Governor Newsom’s state of emergency declarations, the Department of Insurance partners with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) and the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (CalOES), pursuant to existing statute, to identify wildfire perimeters for mandatory moratorium areas. The Department of Insurance will continue to collaborate with CAL FIRE and CalOES to identify additional wildfire perimeters for any fires where there is a declaration of a state of emergency. 

# # #

Media notes:

• The mandatory one-year moratorium announced today covers an estimated 51,611 residential policies in ZIP codes located within or adjacent to the Fawn Fire under Senate Bill 824 (Lara, Chapter 616, Statutes of 2018), also known as the Wildfire Safety and Recovery Act.
• While existing law prevents non-renewals and cancellations for those who suffer a total loss in areas subject to a declared disaster, the new law established protection for those living within or adjacent to a declared wildfire emergency of whether they suffer a loss — recognizing for the first time in law the disruption that non-renewals cause in communities following wildfire disasters. Homeowners who suffered a total property loss have up to 24 months of protection from non-renewal or cancellation.
• Consumers can go to the Department of Insurance website to find the Commissioner’s Bulletin to see if their ZIP Code is included in this moratorium.