Despite the recent failure of a bill to protect the rights of homeowners who have suffered losses due to natural disasters, California Senator Martha Escutia has reintroduced components of the legislation.
Escutia is determined to fight the "use it and lose it" practice that prevents victims from rebuilding their homes and lives. "We will not give up until every past and future victim of such a disaster is protected from insurance companies who cancel them after legitimate claims," she said.
Last October, a series of wildfires ravaged southern California, resulting in insured losses estimated at more than $2 billion. Insurers received more than 19,000 claims, 3,500 of which were for residences that were completely destroyed. Following the firestorms, many policyholders complained to the DOI regarding the way in which their claims had been handled. In addition to a number of proposed bills to address claim issues, a mediation session was arranged between several of the state's largest homeowner insurers and the insurance commissioner.
Want to continue reading?
Become a Free PropertyCasualty360 Digital Reader
Your access to unlimited PropertyCasualty360 content isn’t changing.
Once you are an ALM digital member, you’ll receive:
- Breaking insurance news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
- Weekly Insurance Speak podcast featuring exclusive interviews with industry leaders
- Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
- Critical converage of the employee benefits and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, BenefitsPRO and ThinkAdvisor
Already have an account? Sign In Now
© 2025 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
