If you missed the insurance town hall Thursday evening with Commissioner Ricardo Lara, you missed the future of fire insurance in California. Our state commissioner and his staff were there helping people suffering from problems with their insurance companies, but more, Commissioner Lara outlined his plan to address the rising fire insurance rates across California. This centers on making all homes in the state fire safe by using the same NFPA inspections that our city offers.
Insurance companies cannot sustain the losses of the last several years without sky-high rate increases but hardening homes against ember ignition and proper brush clearance can cut these losses by at least half. Commissioner Lara wants to mandate taking such mitigation efforts into account when companies determine whom to insure and at what rate level.Â
Also, the commissioner is pushing the Fair Plan to become comprehensive in its coverage, including increasing the limit to three million from the current $1.5 million.
It was clear from the meeting that Commissioner Lara and his staff are passionate about changing the relationship between the big insurers and us ratepayers, trying to prevent the situation where homeowners end up underinsured as was the case in Woolsey. He also had a one-year moratorium passed in the legislature preventing companies from cancelling policies. Unfortunately, the cut-off date was just prior to the Woolsey Fire on Nov. 9.
But, we need to do our part and this means hardening your home. This is huge. There was a reason certain homes survived in Woolsey when those around them burned. Most houses in Malibu have only one or two points of vulnerability to ember ignition and these are easily rectified. The inspection is free and takes less than an hour. Contact Jerry at FireSafety@malibucity.org or 456-2489 ext. 387. This advice multiplies in effect when done by an entire neighborhood.
Scott Dittrich