California commissioner orders moratorium on canceling insurance for 750,000 residents following wildfires

California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara issued a one-year mandatory moratorium on insurance companies to maintain residential insurance coverage for 750,000 policyholders affected by the airport, bridge and line fires in Orange, Riverside, Los Angeles and San counties Bernardino.

The commissioner’s moratorium protects those living in contiguous fire precincts or postcodes from not renewing or canceling their insurance for a year from the date of Gov. Gavin Newsom’s emergency declarations, regardless of whether they suffered a loss.

On September 7, Newsom proclaimed a state of emergency covering San Bernardino County due to the fire. On September 11, Newsom proclaimed a state of emergency covering Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties due to the Bridge fire and Orange and Riverside counties due to the airport fire.

While existing law prevents non-renewals and cancellations for those who suffer a total loss in declared disaster areas, a 2018 law established protections for those living in or near a declared fire emergency, regardless of whether they suffer or not a loss. Owners who have suffered a total loss of property have up to 24 months of protection against non-renewal or cancellation.

TOPICS
California disaster Natural disasters Fire