Hearing airs concerns over wildfire insurance coverage
July 13 hearing in Oakland. “Some businesses and homeowners cannot get coverage they need from the FAIR Plan alone,” he said. “So they have to purchase difference-in-conditions in- surance policies, which may or may not fill gaps in coverage, and may also be very, very cost-prohibitive.” All insurance companies authorized to operate in California must participate in the Fair Access to Insurance Requirements Plan. It was created in the 1960s after wild- fires and civil unrest made obtaining insur- ance difficult. Farms and agricultural oper-
ations were excluded until the enactment of Senate Bill 11 last year. California Farm Bureau Administrator Jim Houston testified that insurance is one more headache for farmers and ranchers. “We are dealing right now with fewer in- puts—less water, less fertilizer, less energy, less employees,” Houston said. “Having to deal with the insurance crisis on top of that really puts a strain on our businesses.” Houston said he’s pleased the plan now covers farm structures, but he said
By Kevin Hecteman California’s insurer of last resort needs some work. That was the message deliv- ered on the California FAIR Plan at a state Department of Insurance hearing. Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara said more Californians are turning to the FAIR Plan after losing coverage in the wake of years of devastating wildfires. New FAIR
Plan policies ballooned from 23,049 in 2018 to 77,650 in 2020, according to de- partment data, while renewals rose from 117,398 to 163,816 over the same period. “We are here today because of our con- tinued concerns that the FAIR Plan is not meeting its mission of ensuring access and availability of insurance for those Californians who need it,” Lara said at the
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July 20, 2022 Ag Alert 9
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