California’s already strained property insurance market is facing a new challenge as two more insurers, Tokio Marine America Insurance Co. and Trans Pacific Insurance Co., plan to withdraw from the wildfire-prone state entirely starting in July.
The two companies, units of Japan-based Tokio Marine Holdings Inc., disclosed their plans in filings submitted to the California Department of Insurance. They said the decision will affect 12,556 policies with premiums of $11.3 million. “Given the small segment of personal lines business we write and escalating costs, we cannot sustainably support personal lines coverages and do not plan to return,” the company said in an emailed statement. “We remain committed to commercial lines in California – and across the country – and supporting our agents and customers with exceptional service through this transition.”
They join a growing list of major insurers across California that are ending or reducing coverage as the state grapples with risks posed by wildfires and other natural disasters fueled by climate change.The disclosure of the exit comes just a few weeks after State Farm General Insurance Co. said it will be cutting about 72,000 policies in July, just nine months after announcing it would stop offering new coverage.
To stabilize the market and coax insurers back to California, Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara last year announced a new regulatory overhaul to allow insurers to factor future climate risks and reinsurance costs into their pricing. In turn, insurers will be required to offer more coverage in fire-prone areas. Many of the details have yet to be released, and the earliest the plan could go into effect is December.