It’s getting tougher for Californians to get and keep fire insurance, writes Lookout politics columnist Mike Rotkin, and it’s not just people living in fire-prone, forested areas like Bonny Doon and the Santa Cruz Mountains. “People living in downtown Santa Cruz and on the Westside and Eastside have recently been shocked to discover that they need to find a new home insurance company – and that they need to do so in a hurry,” he writes.
insurance
Posted inBusiness & Technology
Santa Cruz County agents say new insurance rules offer hope for homeowners, even as fires rage in Southern California
Santa Cruz County agents see a glimmer of hope in new state regulations aimed at enticing insurance companies back to the California market, though questions about access and affordability remain.
Posted inLatest News
In Bonny Doon meeting, state says help on home insurance is coming
State Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara told 140 attendees of an online event organized by the Rural Bonny Doon Association on Wednesday night that his overhaul of the state insurance market is expected to be ready for implementation by December. Other insurance experts spoke of ways homeowners could improve their chances of finding coverage in a market situation made dire by the threat of wildfires in Santa Cruz County.
Posted inLatest News
Bonny Doon homeowners to hear from state on insurance crisis
California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara has accepted an invitation from the Rural Bonny Doon Association to speak at an online forum at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 25, on the home insurance crisis facing residents of Santa Cruz County who live in wildfire-prone areas.
Posted inLatest News
Santa Cruz County wildfire season continues without major incidents, but local fire marshal urges caution
Property owners appear to have stepped up their fire preparedness this year by clearing vegetation from around their homes, according to Central Fire District Fire Marshal Mike DeMars. He told Lookout that this year’s fire season has been calm in Santa Cruz County so far.
Posted inHousing & Development
Californians: Your rent might go up because of rising insurance rates
California’s landlords see rising insurance costs, so they say they’re going to have to raise rents. But they complain about laws that limit how much they can do so.
Posted inOpinion from Community Voices
My homeowner’s insurance saga in eight sentences: A true story
Santa Cruz Mountains resident Daniel DeLong thought his family had managed to dodge California’s homeowner’s insurance crisis. Then State Farm announced massive non-renewals. Here’s his honest account of what happened next, recognizing that his brain might have blocked out certain portions in order to maintain sanity.
Posted inHousing & Development
Insurance concerns loom large in Santa Cruz County, even in a hot housing market
The Santa Cruz County housing market stayed hot in May, as expected as summer rolls around. However, insurance concerns remain at the forefront of buyers’ minds, and both real estate agents and mortgage lenders have begun discussing insurance options right away, rather than leaving it as a secondary matter.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
Newsom unveils plan that would hasten insurance-rate reviews — and increases
A proposal to fix California’s insurance crisis would require the insurance department to process requests from insurers more quickly. But that could end with a lot of rate increases for consumers.
Posted inLatest News
What to do if you’ve been ‘non-renewed’ by your insurance company
At Tuesday evening’s insurance information forum in Scotts Valley, experts discussed how to proceed if you’ve been told that your insurance will not be renewed.
