Wildfire survivors will face less burden on the road to recovery after Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 495 on Oct. 10, authored by Sen. Ben Allen (D-Santa Monica) and sponsored by Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara.

Beginning in January, insurance companies will be required to pay 60% of personal property coverage limits, with a cap of $350,000, to policyholders who experience a total loss without requiring policyholders to submit a detailed inventory for at least 100 days.

“The recent L.A. fires exposed difficult inefficiencies in our insurance system that unnecessarily delay the urgently needed financial support survivors are justly due,” Allen said. “I am grateful to have worked with Insurance Commissioner Lara over the past year to ensure fairer upfront payments are moving out the door quickly and without overburdening those who just lost everything.”

Under current law, insurance companies are only required to pay 30% of primary structure coverage limits, and it is capped at $250,000. The formula often results in insufficient payments for properties with higher limits – examples of which were common in the recent wildfires. Policyholders are also currently required to complete a content inventory and to submit proof of loss to insurers within 60 days of loss. This process is unduly burdensome for policyholders and unrealistic as many policyholders in the recent wildfires did not have access to their insured property for an extended period of time due to unsafe or hazardous conditions, Allen said. The bill also requires insurers to provide the Department of Insurance with annual point-in-time reinsurance and catastrophe model data.

For information, visit sd24.senate.ca.gov.