SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — One of California’s largest homeowner insurers is looking to raise its rates again.
State Farm is requesting a 30% increase for homeowners, 36% for condominium owners, and 52% for renters. But these rate hikes still need to be approved by California’s Department of Insurance.
“This filing doesn’t change anything for State Farm’s policyholders today,” said Deputy Insurance Commissioner Michael Soller.
Soller said the process could take six months. “We have real questions about State Farm’s strategy, what their long term plan is, so they can get back to serving California consumers,” Soller said.
The company stopped writing new policies in California due to wildfire risk and construction costs.
Last December, it raised rates by 20% for California home and condo owners. In March, the insurer announced it would not renew policies for around 30,000 homes in the state, including 2,000 in San Diego County.
“State Farm is triggering a rarely used part of the regulation that’s meant to address financial solvency questions," Soller said. "We need to look at the evidence that they're putting forward and see if it meets that standard.”
The Department of Insurance will review State Farm’s financial records to verify whether the company needs to raise rates to survive.
Homeowner insurance companies don't make as much profit in California. According to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, their incurred losses are around 14% more in the state than in the rest of the nation.
“We need insurance companies to be able to pay those future claims, so we’re balancing those when looking at a rate request," Soller said.
The Department of Insurance is working on new strategies to give homeowners more options in 2025. Soller is optimistic these changes will bring insurers back to California.
10News reached out to State Farm for a statement, but they did not respond in time for publication.
