California Homeowners

Californians are faced with massive home insurance rate hikes, abrupt insurance non-renewals, or have been forced to buy a costly bare-bones insurance policy of last resort from the FAIR Plan.

Many have invested time and tens of thousands of dollars in home improvements and brush clearance to make their homes more resistant to wildfires, but insurance companies have ignored those efforts.

They are calling on lawmakers to ensure that every Californian who does the right thing and protects their home from wildfire has a right to buy affordable, comprehensive insurance in California. These are their stories.

Read the Stories of California Homeowners

KELSEY SZAMET

Alta Dena

By the time the flames stopped crawling across the foothills of Altadena, the homes across the street from Kelsey Szamet were reduced to ashes. Hers was still standing, but inside, it reeked of smoke. The basement was blanketed in ash. The garage was contaminated. The attic HVAC system covered...

CIRESSA HENDERSON

Alta Dena

Over a $16,000 renter’s policy, State Farm dragged Ciressa Henderson through hell. Her reality was this: As virtually a lifelong renter, she cannot find any long-term housing because State Farm considers signing a lease permanent housing, and therefore won’t pay her. “I was told if you sign a one-month lease...

TIM MCCUNE

Pacific Palisades

When embers rained down during the Pacific Palisades wildfire, Tim McCune’s home didn’t burn down. But in many ways, what came next felt almost worse. “The closest houses that burned were across the street from us, about 200 feet away,” recalled McCune. “We had embers land in the yard…lots of soot,...

NICOLE ANDERSON

Santa Cruz

Nicole Anderson lost everything after the CZU Lightning Complex Fire in 2020: her home, a couple of beloved animals, and nearly all her possessions. It was the third time she had evacuated her property since moving to the mountains in 2007, but the first time she wouldn’t return. “We've been...

JAMES & KELLY DUARTE

Lucerne

James, a retired senior living in the quiet town of Lucerne in Northern California, never imagined that simply staying insured would become a luxury he could barely afford. At 65 years old, he lives with his wife, Kelly Duarte, who is 59 and still working. The couple resides in...

GEORGE BRAUE

Orinda

Getting basic information about how insurers arrive at wildfire risk ratings that can send premiums to stratospheric levels has been impossible for homeowner George Braue. George lives in Orinda, a small town in the East Bay Hills. Braue’s 2,500-square foot home used to be insured for wildfire and liability by...

JOE K

Los Angeles

The last 15 months were pretty stressfull for Joe K. He wasn’t sure if he would have insurance for his home, or whether he could afford it. He already faced a double whammy from his home insurance company Farmers. First, the company said it would non-renew him because of his roof,...

FRANK EGGER

Fairfax

Frank Egger’s home insurance story mirrors many others whose home insurance policies were non-renewed and who faced the CA FAIR Plan as the alternative. But he gained some insights into why so many people in Fairfax may be being non-renewed. Frank is a former seven term Mayor of Fairfax, a...

NATALIE S

Novato

Natalie is calling out home insurers for raising rates but not giving homeowners and their communities credit for the work they have already done, and continue to do, to mitigate against wildfire. Natalie lives in Novato, the largest city in Marin County on the southwestern, mountainous side of town. She...

MAYERLY VANEGAS LARRETA

Alhambra

Mayerly Vanegas Larreta is exasperated because she is not getting any detailed answers as to why her home insurance premium went up 57% between 2023 and 2024. She and her brother own a condo their parents live in in Alhambra, ten miles from downtown LA. It’s 1,400-square feet, on a hill...

MAGDA MOLINA

Los Angeles

In the end, Mercury Insurance made Magda Molina and her husband, Nathan Prevost, spend almost $8,000 for nothing. And all it bought them was a one-way ticket to getting dropped from their home insurance plan. The past year has been an incredibly frustrating journey down the insurance rabbit hole for...

LINDA DANNELS

Lake Arrowhead

FAIR Plan insurance premiums are rising so much that some people have made the hard choice to drop the wrap around policies bought to cover everything besides fire. That means accepting the risk of paying out of pocket that others might not be willing, or able, to do. That’s what...

MAUREEN O’CONNOR

Sunland

Maureen O’Connor knows what it feels like to have her home insurance non-renewed not once but twice. The first time she managed to get it reinstated, but the premium rose nearly 60%. The second time the insurer notified her that she would be non-renewed, her agent did not follow...

ANN MITCHELL

Altadena

Last year, Ann Mitchell paid Farmers a $3,467 annual home insurance premium. Upon renewal last July, and without any warning, her premium nearly quadrupled to $12,149. She’d been with Farmers for more than 25 years and had multiple car insurance policies and a business policy with them. Her agent...

RENEE PASQUINELLI

Kneeland

Renee Pasquinelli has a mantra when it comes to insurers using black box catastrophe models to sweepingly rate California properties as high wildfire risk. It’s one size does not fit all. Renee is a retired California Department of Parks and Recreation senior environmental scientist. She’s got 30 years of experience...

SUSAN C

Reseda

After speaking with her elected representatives, her home insurance company, and contacting the California Insurance Department, Susan still has no answers justifying why her Farmers home insurance premium jumped 83% this year. Instead, she sees California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara making it easier for insurers to raise rates and...

MARK BURTON

Northern California

Mark Burton is the poster child for obscene AAA home insurance premium hikes in recent years. The latest hike came to $14,601 for his home insurance premium covering July 2024 to July 2025. He would have had to pay $22,632 if he didn’t have other insurance policies with the...

EVAN CERVANTES

Sunland

Evan Cervantes lives in a heavily residential area with busy streets in Sunland in a house on a 5,000-square foot lot.  He has a busy road on one side, neighbors on two sides and an empty hill lot in back with a few trees and some brush. He and...

BRUCE BRESLAU

Chatsworth

Bruce Breslau is a communications professional who lives with his husband in the California West community on the historic Iverson Movie Ranch in Chatsworth. It’s got 290 units and its homeowners’ association (HOA) was recently slammed with the double whammy of Farmers Insurance terminating the community’s home insurance and...

GIGI BANNISTER

Crestline

California homeowners are not just facing losing their comprehensive home insurance and being forced onto the CA FAIR Plan for wildfire coverage.

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