Affordable home insurance is a problem only expected to worsen because insurers and lawmakers underestimated climate change, a new report says.
Los Angeles Fire Department firefighters fight a wildfire burning on the north side of CA-134 and CA-2 freeways, slowly backing towards homes in Glendale, Calif., Sunday, Aug. 25, 2019. The brush fire erupted near the border of Glendale and Eagle Rock and shut down the 134 Freeway in both directions, according to the Glendale Fire Department.
The report says states such as California, Florida and Louisiana – all prone to wildfires and damaging storms and flooding – are likely to see the most dramatic increases in premiums. But the fire that destroyed the Hawaiian community of Lahaina on Aug. 8, as well as the historic flooding that happened in Vermont and Maine in July, are examples of events that could drive up insurance costs for homeowners in other states.
First Street, a New York-based non-profit, has been a to-go researcher on the financial implications of climate change for years. Their research is used by Fannie Mae, Bank of America, the Treasury Department and others for understanding the potential risks to properties.There are several signs that climate change is taking its toll on the insurance industry. The U.S. homeowner’s insurance industry has had three straight years of underwriting losses, according to credit rating agency AM Best.
Goodlin, a former dental hygienist who is now executive director of the nonprofit Rebuild Paradise Foundation, said hundreds, if not thousands, of people are being hit by these rate hikes in a town being built with updated fire-safe building codes and little if any fuel to burn. She knows a homeowner whose premium is now $21,000 for a newly constructed home.
The number of homeowners covered by California’s FAIR Plan was 268,321 in 2021, almost double what it was five years before. That figure has almost certainly increased in the last two years, experts say. In Florida, Citizens Property Insurance Corp. now has 1.4 million homeowners’ policies in effect, nearly triple in five years.
Dodd was one of the key lawmakers trying to negotiate a bill in the final weeks of the state’s legislative session to address the issue. But all sides failed to reach an agreement. Mowery added that many reinsurance firms now have resources dedicated to studying the impact of climate change on how to price catastrophes.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Kidnapped teen rescued from Southern California motel room after 4 days of being held hostageAuthorities have rescued a 17-year-old boy in Southern California after he was kidnapped and held hostage for four days by captors who threatened to harm him if his family did not pay a $500,000 ransom
Read more »
Presidential hopefuls head to Southern California this weekWhat to know about the Republican presidential debate, GOP convention and our coverage.
Read more »
Teen kidnapped after staged car accident is rescued from a Southern California hotelKidnappers told the boy's mother that he was taken because his father had stolen something.
Read more »
Three LGBTQ proposals could put Southern California city council on ‘wrong side of history,’ critic saysTemecula City Councilmember Jessica Alexander is the driving force behind the items, one of which could strike a reference to the 1969 Stonewall uprising from a Pride Month proclamation and take ou…
Read more »
Uber strikes deal to partner with Yellow Cab, other taxi fleets in Southern CaliforniaUber on Tuesday announced a multiyear partnership with Los Angeles Yellow Cab and other taxi fleets across Los Angeles, Orange and San Diego counties.
Read more »
In Southern California, a $25 Million Oceanfront Estate Offers Vintage Character and Epic ViewsThe 1930s home in Laguna Beach’s guard-gated Three Arch Bay enclave has a private staircase to the beach.
Read more »