Business
State takes final step to fix California's troubled home insurance market
The state released another regulation Monday aimed at easing California’s home insurance crisis that will allow insurers to charge homeowners higher premiums to protect themselves from catastrophic wildfire claims.
The rule is the last in a package of home insurance reforms spearheaded by Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara, and it will allow insurers to pass on to consumers the costs of reinsurance.
Insurers acquire reinsurance typically from other larger insurers in order to limit their payouts during huge wildfires and other catastrophic events.
This will be the first time in California that insurers can include the cost of reinsurance in their premiums, though it is a common practice in other states.
Insurers have been pulling back from the state’s home insurance market, citing wildfire losses, and the regulation is intended to make the market more attractive for home insurers.
“Californians deserve a reliable insurance market that doesn’t retreat from communities most vulnerable to wildfires and climate change,” Lara said in a statement. “This is a historic moment for California.”
The department said it will limit the costs to consumers by tying the reinsurance charges to an industry standard that can’t be exceeded.
In order to take advantage of the new rule, the department said that insurers will have to increase their writing of comprehensive home policies in wildfire-distressed neighborhoods by 5% every two years until their policies are equivalent to 85% of their statewide market share. That would mean that an insurer that has a 10% share of California’s home insurance market would have to write 8.5% of the policies in such neighborhoods.
The department released preliminary maps this year of the areas. Southern California neighborhoods include ZIP Codes in Malibu, Beverly Hills and other communities in mountainous areas. Homeowners in those areas have been increasingly flocking to the FAIR Plan, the state’s insurer of last resort, which does not offer comprehensive policies.
The 85% formula is similar to another key element of Lara’s reforms, which will allow insurers to use so-called “catastrophe models” in setting premium rates. The models are computer programs that attempt to predict the likelihood and costs of disasters, such as wildfires, using complex variables rather than just past losses. The industry maintains they are essential because climate change has made wildfires more common and costly.
The regulation was praised by the American Property Casualty Insurance Assn., a trade group for home, auto and business insurers, which called the step “one of several critically needed reforms to stabilize California’s insurance market.”
Consumer Watchdog, a Los Angeles group that has claimed Lara is too close to the industry, blasted the regulation, alleging that it will lead to 40% or higher increases in rates given experiences in other states and that it includes loopholes that don’t guarantee insurers will write more policies in wildfire neighborhoods .
“Tellingly the commissioner did not do a cost impact analysis of his plan on consumers. That’s because this plan is of the insurance industry, by the insurance industry, and for the industry,” Jamie Court, president of the group, said in a statement.
Lara’s spokesperson, Michael Soller, called the criticisms “hogwash,” saying the department’s goal is to “create stability and increase availability — and better risk management by insurance companies is key to those goals.”
Southern California this year experienced several large wildfires, including the 4,000-acre Franklin fire that destroyed 20 structures in Malibu and the nearly 20,000-acre Mountain fire that demolished 243 structures in Ventura County.
However, neither came close to the losses of a series of fires in 2017 and 2018, including the blaze that burned down much of the Sierra Nevada foothill community of Paradise. That fire scorched 153,000 acres, destroyed 18,800 structures and killed 85 people. Insurer losses topped $12 billion, including two fires in Southern California, according to the department.
Multiple insurers have stopped writing new home policies, and the state’s largest home insurer, State Farm General, said this year it would not renew policies for 72,000 California property owners. However, there recently was some good news when Farmers Insurance, citing Lara’s reforms, said it will boost the number of homeowners policies it writes and resume writing new policies for condominiums, renters and landlords.
The regulation released Monday still must undergo review by the Office of Administrative Law before it can become law.
The luxury shopping center in Pacific Palisades will reopen next month after more than $100 million in renovations forced by the January 2025 wildfire that devastated the Los Angeles neighborhood.
Palisades Village will reopen Aug. 15, owner Rick Caruso announced Wednesday. The outdoor center survived the blaze that destroyed homes and other businesses but needed refurbishment to eliminate contaminants that the fire could have spread.
Crews are putting finishing touches on mall buildings after tearing them down to the studs, treating the wood and rebuilding the walls, Caruso said.
“Everybody’s working, and stores are moving their products in,” he said. “It’s a really cool feeling that people have really locked arms and are working together.”
An electrician installs lighting for a restaurant at Rick Caruso’s Palisades Village on Thursday. The shopping center is scheduled to reopen mid-August.
(Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)
Pacific Palisades resident Allison Polhill, who is rebuilding the home of 30 years that her family lost in the blaze, said she is “thrilled” at the prospect of returning to the mall she used to frequent. Its comeback is a boost for the community, she said.
“Every single step that we make to reopen our commercial corridors is going to bring more people back into the Palisades,” said Polhill, who expects to move back into her home at the end of August.
A total of 6,822 structures were destroyed in the Palisades fire, including more than 5,500 residences and 100 commercial businesses, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
Caruso previously attributed the mall’s survival to the hard work of private firefighters and the fire-resistant materials used in the mall’s construction.
The $200-million shopping and dining center opened in 2018 with a movie theater and a roster of upmarket tenants, including Erewhon, which may be the only grocer in the heart of the fire-ravaged neighborhood when it opens.
Caruso’s company was able to fill the mall with tenants despite the long shutdown.
Palisades Village is 99% leased, with the majority of tenants returning, said Jackie Levy, chief financial and revenue officer. Nearly one-third of the shops and restaurants are new to the property.
A firefighter carries a hose back to his rig while walking through a destroyed home from the Palisades fire in Pacific Palisades on Jan. 7, 2025.
(Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
Last year, Pacific Palisades-based fashion designer Elyse Walker said she would reopen her eponymous store in Palisades Village after losing her 25-year flagship location on Antioch Street to the inferno.
Other neighborhood shops destroyed in the fire that are reopening at the mall include K Bakery and Loomey’s Toys, which caters to children up to age 12 and used to be across the street from Palisades Elementary Charter School.
“It’s been a journey and I’m excited because I wasn’t sure that there was going to be a place to come back to,” said toy store owner Amanda Rastegar. “Hopefully we can bring some of that magic back.”
Rastegar’s home in the Palisades survived but was damaged by the fire. The family returned about eight weeks ago. Her last memory of the fire was a burning supermarket.
“I just couldn’t wrap my brain around what was happening,” she said. “By the time I left, Gelson’s was on fire.”
Among the returning tenants is Angelini Ristorante & Bar. Well-known Los Angeles chef Gino Angelini said he will be in the kitchen next month for a return of the Italian restaurant.
“We won’t do a big celebrity open,” he said. “We want to have a very soft opening and see our customers come back.”
Construction takes place at Rick Caruso’s Palisades Village on Thursday. The shopping center is scheduled to reopen mid-August.
(Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)
An elaborate celebration would not feel “correct for me,” Angelini said, because the devastation has been “very sad” for so many.
Other new tenants include local chef Nancy Silverton, who has agreed to move in with a new Italian steakhouse called Spacca Tutto. Women’s activewear retailer LESET will open its first West Coast location.
Caruso said he is optimistic that customers will return to the center, even though many Pacific Palisades residents are still dispersed. One tracking system estimated that about 30% of the Village’s customer base was impacted by the fire, he said.
“That means 70% did not get impacted, so there’s a lot of customers still left out there,” Caruso said. Historically, the center drew customers from as far away as Beverly Hills and Calabasas, as well as Malibu, Brentwood and Santa Monica.
He also hopes many will be inspired to visit the revived mall.
“I believe in the goodness of people and I believe that people are going to want to support the Palisades,” he said. “They’re going to want to be there and support the businesses that have had the courage and the heart to reopen.”
Walmart is rapidly expanding its network of electric vehicle chargers designed for customers to use while they shop.
The network could help fill gaps in EV infrastructure in states with greater need for chargers. Walmart, which has more than 5,000 locations in the U.S. and hundreds in California, says more than 90% of Americans live within 10 miles of one of its stores.
The chargers also offer an incentive for customers to choose Walmart — Walmart Plus members will receive a 10% discount off an average price of $0.46 per kilowatt-hour of energy at the company’s chargers.
Walmart chargers are already available at more than 75 locations in 17 states, with Texas boasting the most charging stations, followed by Florida and Arizona.
Matthew Nelson, Walmart’s director of energy policy, said last week on LinkedIn that the network will soon reach 29 states, including California.
“We are delivering on the promise of affordable, reliable and convenient charging,” Nelson said in his post.
According to Walmart’s website, six charging stations are coming to California soon, though the company did not offer a specific timeline.
The chargers will be installed at stores in Antelope, Brea, Fresno, Stockton, Suisun City and Vallejo.
Most charging sites in California will include eight to 16 fast-charging stalls, said Walmart spokesperson Kelsey Bohl.
The company first announced plans in April 2023 to install its own EV chargers at Walmart and Sam’s Club stores, with a goal of installing thousands of chargers by 2030. Partnering with ABB E-Mobility and Alpitronic, it added 25 new charging sites this past May and six more in June.
“Walmart is building a leading retail-integrated EV fast-charging network, focused on delivering an affordable, reliable and convenient charging experience where customers already shop,” Bohl said in an emailed statement. “Customers can charge while they shop, access stations through the Walmart app they already use, and benefit from affordable pricing.”
The charging stations already available include 612 individual charging stalls using 400-kilowatt chargers. Each stall has a dual charging cord with both Combined Charging System and North American Charging Standard connectors. The standard connectors, designed by Tesla, are smaller and lighter than the combined systems.
The primary way to pay for the chargers is through the Walmart app, but the company is also experimenting with built-in credit card readers to allow those without the app to use the stations.
Customers can check charger availability on the Walmart app. The company said the chargers will be available 24 hours a day.
Robotaxis could be turning into robocops.
A self-driving Waymo reported two teens to San Mateo, Calif., police on Monday after they were found drinking alcohol and shooting toy guns in the back of the vehicle.
According to a social media post from the San Mateo Police Department, officers detained two 15-year-olds after the Waymo they were riding in contacted the department and stopped in a parking lot until law enforcement arrived.
“Parents do you know where your teens are?” the San Mateo Police Department wrote on Facebook following the incident. “Waymo does!”
Officers removed both teens from the vehicle and determined they were using toy guns to shoot Orbeez out the windows. Orbeez are small, water-absorbing beads sold at toy stores.
“Toy guns, water guns, and BB guns all pose real dangers, especially to an untrained eye,” the Police Department said. “The simple handling of them can cause fear in [passersby].” “
A video posted on Facebook shows at least five officers and a police dog responding to the scene and approaching the Waymo with their weapons raised.
Waymo did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Waymo vehicles have internal cameras and microphones that may be used in an emergency or to “promote safety and security,” according to Waymo’s online support page.
The cameras are also used to ensure the vehicles are clean and to help find lost items, according to the support page.
The company said it does not use facial recognition or other biometric identification technologies to identify individuals.
“In more urgent circumstances, support may access live video during a trip,” the Waymo page said.
The San Mateo Police Department’s Facebook post has garnered nearly 60 comments, with one user accusing Waymo of “snitching.”
“At least they got a designated driver?!” one user commented.
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