Assembly advances bill to help Californians keep their home insurance

Sacramento, CA – A bill to help homeowners keep their insurance by requiring greater disclosure of reasons for nonrenewal and instructions for how to keep coverage when possible passed the Assembly Insurance Committee today. The bill, SB 1301 by Senator Ben Allen, is co-sponsored by Consumer Watchdog and the Every Fire Survivor’s Network in response to concerns expressed by L.A. fire survivors and consumers across the state that they will not be able to keep their home insurance.

The bill requires insurance companies to give homeowners more notice before a loss of coverage, specific disclosure of the reasons and evidence behind the nonrenewal, and clear instructions on what to do to keep their home insurance if the issue is repairable. It also would prevent dropping consumers solely based on the age of a roof or because a homeowner filed a prior claim.

Californians experience the 4th highest rate of home insurance nonrenewals in the nation and nearly one million Californians have been pushed onto the low-benefit, high-cost FAIR Plan, or into unregulated surplus lines insurance companies, in just the last few years.

“Californians across the state fear they will be next person on their street to lose insurance. Consumers have a right to know the rules so they can act on them,” said Carmen Balber, executive director of Consumer Watchdog.

“This is about keeping families housed and protected from catastrophe,” said Senator Ben Allen, author of SB 1301. “Californians are getting dropped from their property insurance at too high a rate, leaving them unnecessarily vulnerable to disaster and potentially pricing them out of the housing market. Strengthening notice requirements and providing opportunities to remedy provide residents with the tools needed to mitigate risk and improve insurability.”

“Without reliable access to insurance our housing market will crater. This bill will protect every Californian,” said Joy Chen, executive director of the Every Fire Survivor’s Network.

“SB 1301 would require insurers to clearly state, in writing, what is needed to maintain coverage and give homeowners a real opportunity and time to comply. If those protections had been in place, we would likely still have our policy today,” said Magda Molina, who testified in support of the bill today. Magda and her husband spent $8,000 on repairs that their insurance company demanded, only to be told it wasn’t enough to keep their coverage.

SB 1301 is the third insurance accountability bill sponsored by Consumer Watchdog and the Every Fire Survivor’s Network to advance in the Assembly Insurance Committee this month. Last week, SB 877 and SB 878, bills to get consumers the insurance benefits they paid for by Senator Sasha Renée Pérez, passed with bipartisan support. All three bills head to the Assembly Appropriations Committee.

Polls show over 90% of Californians support requiring insurance companies to give longer notice before nonrenewal and sufficient time to make improvements to stay insured.