State Farm, the largest homeowners insurance company in California, jolted residents last year by announcing it would not renew 30,000 policies. That included about 8,100 homeowners in communities ravaged by the current wildfires, state officials said.
But facing pressure after the wildfires caused catastrophic damage, the insurer said on Wednesday that it would offer affected homeowners the chance to renew policies that had been in place when the fires erupted last week. The move came after California’s insurance commissioner issued a one-year moratorium preventing insurance companies from canceling policies or issuing nonrenewal notices to homeowners living around the areas where wind-driven fires ignited last week.
The cost and availability of home insurance after the fires is a looming worry for people across California and Western states battered by larger and more destructive wildfires.
In Los Angeles, tens of thousands of people have started to file claims seeking payments for their homes, cars and businesses. Those losses in total could reach $35 billion or more, according to an analysis by the firm CoreLogic.
Roughly 12,000 structures were damaged or destroyed in the fires that ravaged the areas around the Palisades and Eaton fires. State Farm said it had received 7,400 home and auto claims — a number that is likely to keep growing.
The staggering cost of the fires could add new strains to California’s already struggling insurance industry. As people weigh whether to rebuild or move away, many are worried about whether their insurance premiums will skyrocket or whether they could lose coverage altogether.
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