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As wildfires rage, Californians increasingly rely on pricey insurance

Fire-prone zip codes in Malibu and neighboring Pacific Palisades were hit particularly hard by insurance-carrier withdrawals from the Golden State.

By Leslie Kaufman | December 13, 2024 at 01:07 PM
A home stands on a burned hillside during the Woolsey Fire in Malibu, Calif., on Tues., Nov. 13, 2018. (Credit: Patrick T. Fallon/Bloomberg

(Bloomberg) — Even before the Franklin Fire grew to more than 4,000 acres and compelled famous residents like Cher and Dick Van Dyke to evacuate, Malibu and other California communities faced a severe home insurance crisis, exacerbated by California’s rising wildfire risk.

See also: California insurance industry battered by wildfires, inflation

Coverage was getting harder to find, prices were rising and more homeowners were turning to a less-regulated form of insurance known as “non-admitted” or “surplus.” The average surplus premium to protect property this year was roughly $46,000 in Malibu, where real estate can run into the tens of millions of dollars. The situation is only likely to worsen as climate change ups the odds of destructive wildfires.

Major carriers have “stepped out of the market, making it difficult for consumers” in the area, said Nancy Madwin, general manager of Coast to Canyon Insurance Services, a brokerage with an office in Malibu.

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