California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara announced an impending action to protect communities affected by the wildfires in Los Angeles County following Governor Gavin Newsom’s emergency declaration. Under state law, once the fire’s perimeter is determined, Lara will issue a bulletin identifying areas in the immediate vicinity of the fires that will be protected for one-year from homeowners’ insurance non-renewal or cancellation due to wildfire risk. In 2024 more than 1 million policies were protected for one year because of Commissioner Lara’s actions.
“My heart goes out to the many Angelenos affected by this disaster, and our top priority right now is protecting Californians during this crisis,” said Lara. “My department and I are committed to ensuring your claims are honored and that you receive the services you contracted for with your insurance company. Insurance companies are pledging their commitment to California, and we will hold them accountable for the promises they have made.”
Mandatory One Year Moratorium on Non-Renewals
Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara, while serving as state senator, authored Senate Bill 824 (2018). This important consumer protection law requires a mandatory one-year moratorium on insurance companies canceling or non-renewing residential insurance policies in certain areas within or adjacent to a fire perimeter after a declared state of emergency is issued by the Governor.
“Losing your insurance should be the last thing on someone’s mind after surviving a devastating fire,” said Commissioner Lara. “This law gives millions of Californians breathing room and hits the pause button on insurance non-renewals while people recover.”
How the moratorium works
Following a Governor declaration of a state of emergency, the Department of Insurance partners with CAL-FIRE and the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services to identify wildfire perimeters and adjacent ZIP codes within the mandatory moratorium areas. The protection from cancellation or non-renewal lasts for one year from the date of the Governor’s emergency declaration.
This one-year protection applies to all residential policyholders within the affected areas who suffer less than a total loss, including those who suffer no loss. Those who suffer a total loss have additional protections under the law.
Find out if you are protected
Commissioner Lara has implemented the new law following wildfires in 2019, 2020, and 2021. If you live near one of these fires, find the fire name in the list below and click the link to open the Commissioner’s Bulletin for a list of included ZIP codes. If you live in one of those ZIP codes, your insurance company cannot issue a cancellation or non-renewal for wildfire risk for one year from the date of the Governor’s emergency declaration associated with the nearby fire. Below is a list of fires for which Bulletins have been issued since the passage of this new law as well as the Pre-Bulletin Notices for the 2021 fires. The Department continues to coordinate with CalFire and CalOES to identify the various fire and fire perimeters that are subject to the one-year moratorium for the 2021 fires.
If your ZIP code is included in the moratorium and you received a notice of cancellation or non-renewal for wildfire risk, you should contact your insurance company to seek a reinstatement of the policy. If your insurance company refuses, you are encouraged to contact us and file a Request for Assistance.
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