SF Chronicle Article

California announces changes to ease the thorny problem of fire insurance for vintners, farmers

by Esther Mobley, SF Chronicle 10.12.21

Along Spring Mountain Road in St. Helena.

Jessica Christian/The Chronicle

As this year’s wildfire season approached, many vintners and farmers in California found themselves unable to secure wildfire insurance for their properties, as private insurers raised their premiums by as much as 300%, or in some cases canceled their policies altogether.

Now, help may be on the way. On Tuesday, California’s insurance commissioner, Ricardo Lara, announced measures that should make it easier for agricultural businesses to get insured against wildfires. The policy limit on the state’s insurer of last resort — which only became available to commercial agricultural businesses a few months ago — will expand for the first time in 24 years, to account for inflation. Lara called the current policy limit “ridiculous.”

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