Coverage Crisis: Washington homeowners are paying the price for wildfires before they ignite

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The nastiest thing is that the insurance companies took people's money for years, then ditched them just when it seemed they might need to pay out. Had they not been taking that money, the homeowners could have been putting it into a mutual pool -- forming their own not-for-profit mutual insurer -- or even just setting money aside as personal insurance.

So why doesn’t the insurance commissioner Mike Kreidler actually do something? Or does he just blow a lot of hot air like Jay Inslee and Bob Ferguson?

Paying into an insurance company for years is a mistake. They'll raise your rates every renewal. You're just a potential claim number to them.

Isn't this what insurance companies are for

This is quite interesting and to be overall expected once State Farm began dropping homeowners throughout California. I was wondering how long it would take for other insurance companies to begin doing the same thing throughout the Northwest in any area that is surrounded by thick forests. Insurance companies are playing the long game of how they can make money by pocketing what people invest in, but not lose so much money because of payouts due to more frequent and extreme forest fires that keep occurring year after year and it doesn't seem to be getting any better. It seems to me the only way to prevent any of this worry or concern is either your home needs to be 100% fire proof before you buy it, your home needs to be built underground like a bunker, or some kind of fireproof housing protection products or devices need to be invented and purchased by homeowners to have a higher chance to qualify for homeowner insurances from anyone. Interesting enough, I have several fireproof housing and vehicle protection product ideas that could be created by someone out there, but I would need a crap ton of investor funding to make it happen or I need to win a good size lotto ticket to use to invest in!

If insurance company has to cover everybody, that means everybody gonna pay the bill, which is not fair as well.

The years of insurance company that were raking in the $$$$ now realize the gotta start paying out….

what is fucked, they are refusing to offer new coverage for houses sold in downtown Tacoma, miles away from all of the wildfires, but you still have to have insurance to buy a house

Funny how the state just started their action. To homeowners push your governor or elected officials to monitor and collect data to file against insurance. Because in the end it will be the state and communities that will suffer. While the insurance just keep cashing in your contributions.

Why do people think you “pay into” insurance? You don’t pay into insurance any more than you pay into phone service.

The government needs to step in and protect homeowners immediately! This is unlawful for an insurance company to dump an insurer IF THEY ARE FINANCIALLY VIABLE!! OR ELSE, BOYCOTT THESE COMPANIES AND PUT THEM IN A BIND!

I think that if an insurance company drops you, after years and years of collecting money from you, the law should require them to pay that money back...

Parents can’t even get insurance for their home and property due to fires.

Why should homeowners in a high density/low-fire-risk area be paying jacked up premiums to include those few people choosing to live in a forest? Everyone knows forests burn down sometimes, and eventually everywhere is burned in a forest if one waits long enough. There is technology and abatement measures people living in forests can purchase to reduce their fire loss risks, other than relying on insurance carriers to make them whole again after a wildfire loss.

It’s all about profit

Kreidler sounds clueless.....

Sounds like an opportunity to start your own home insurance company with the neighborhood or rural communities.

What do you expect? You build a big wooden house in the middle of a fire-prone forest and expect the rest of the insurance pool to subsidize your arrogance. A fire driven by a 30 mph wind would go right through the place. If you have so much confidence in the fire protection stuff you did around the house then just drop all insurance.

Ahh, yes, Predatory Capitalism at it's finest.