Wildfire costs may cause more homeowners in California to lose their insurance

The increasing prevalence of wildfires in parts of California is causing insurers to re-consider covering homes and businesses. This might mean that more homeowners could lose their insurance in the coming months, brokers and underwriters have told the Wall Street Journal. Insurers are already reeling from massive payouts for wildfire losses in 2017 and 2018 – to the tune of more than $24 billion, according to the California Department of Insurance. And, according to reinsurance brokerage Guy Carpenter, wildfire losses in 2017 and 2018 exceeded any previous decade going back to at least 1970.