Farmers Insurance plans to increase the number of homeowners insurance policies it will write and begin offering coverage again for new customers in other types of dwellings, citing improvements in California's home insurance market. The Los Angeles-based company, the state's second-largest home insurer, said it will boost the number of homeowners policies it will accept from new customers to 9,500 per month, up from 7,000.
Farmers did not offer more detail on how the market has improved, and did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Already this fire season, Southern California has experienced home losses, including a handful of homes during this week's Franklin fire in Malibu. The Mountain fire last month in Ventura County destroyed 243 buildings and damaged dozens more.