California Department of Insurance

(PLACERVILLE, CALIFORNIA) Sept 24, 2022 — As wildfires continue to threaten homeowners throughout California, Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara on Thursday ordered insurance companies to preserve residential insurance coverage. The commissioner’s bulletin shields those policyholders within the wildfire perimeter or in adjacent ZIP codes of the Mosquito and Fairview fires in Riverside, Placer and El Dorado counties from insurance non-renewal or cancellation for one year from Sept. 8.

“Wildfires are devastating even if you did not lose your home, so it is absolutely critical to give people breathing room after a disaster. This is not the time to be having to search for insurance,” said Commissioner Lara, whose Department of Insurance staff will be on-site at local assistance centers in El Dorado and Placer counties.

The moratorium order includes 40 ZIP codes in Riverside, Placer and El Dorado counties, affecting more than 236,000 wildfire survivors.

Consumers can go to the Department of Insurance website at bit.ly/nononrenewals to see if their ZIP code is included in the moratorium. Consumers should contact the Department of Insurance at (800) 927-4357 or via chat or email at insurance.ca.gov if they believe their insurance company is in violation of this law or have additional claims-related questions.

The Department of Insurance partners with the Cal Fire and CalOES, pursuant to an existing statute, to identify wildfire perimeters for mandatory moratorium areas. The Department of Insurance will continue to collaborate with Cal Fire and CalOES to identify additional wildfire perimeters for any fires where there is a declaration of a state of emergency.