Latest Wildfire Headlines
All the headlines from our Wildfire Topic Page, ordered by recency.
California Wildfire Claims Ignite Industry-Wide Credibility Crisis
Feb 24 2025 // As someone who lost everything in a devastating fire–from cherished family photos to irreplaceable heirlooms–I understand firsthand the profound impact of both fire destruction and an insurer’s response....
Zurich Insurance Sees $200 Million LA Wildfire Loss
Feb 21 2025 // Zurich Insurance Group AG is expecting pretax losses of $200 million from the January California wildfires as the insurer reported a 5% gain in profit for 2024. Group operating profit rose to $7.75 billion in the year, the...
AM Best Revises Outlooks to Negative for Mercury and Subsidiaries Over LA Wildfires
Feb 20 2025 // AM Best revised the outlooks to negative from stable and affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of A (Excellent) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Ratings (Long-Term ICR) of “a” (Excellent) for the members of...
Farmers Estimates $600M in Losses from LA Wildfires
Feb 19 2025 // Farmers said on Wednesday that it expects losses from the Los Angeles wildfires last month to reach an estimated $600 million. Insurance companies have so far paid out more than $6.9 billion for losses from the biggest two...
Scientists Racing to Discover Depth of Ocean Damage From LA Wildfires
Feb 19 2025 // On a recent Sunday, Tracy Quinn drove down the Pacific Coast Highway to assess damage wrought upon the coastline by the Palisades Fire. The water line was darkened by ash. Burnt remnants of washing machines and dryers and...
Trump’s Hiring Freeze Throws Wildfire Fighters Into Disarray
Feb 18 2025 // Federal firefighters have found their jobs on the chopping block as a result of US President Donald Trump’s executive orders, with a hiring freeze simultaneously blocking reinforcements in the aftermath of the Los...
Texas Braces for Freezing Weather With Wildfire and Flood Risks
Feb 18 2025 // Several varieties of extreme weather are forecast for Texas this week as state officials monitor rising wildfire risks in West Texas and possible flash flooding in East Texas before frigid cold settles in across the state...
California Wildfire Mitigation And Recovery Bill Package Introduced
Feb 14 2025 // California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara and a group of state lawmakers are pushing a 10-bill legislative package designed to improve disaster preparedness and help protect wildfire survivors. The bills intended...
Insurers Have Now Paid Out Nearly $7B for LA Wildfires, Report Shows
Feb 13 2025 // Insurance companies have so far paid out more than $6.9 billion for losses from the biggest two of the Los Angeles-area wildfires that swept through the region and destroyed tens of thousands of homes last...
Mercury Expects to Lose $1.6B to $2B From LA Wildfires
Feb 13 2025 // Although Mercury Insurance Group expects gross losses from the 2025 California wildfires in the $1.6 billion-$2.0 billion range, potential subrogation and reinsurance recoveries will drop the ultimate bill down to $325...
Edison Utility Faces Shareholder Lawsuit Over LA Wildfires
Feb 12 2025 // The parent company of Southern California Edison has been sued for allegedly defrauding shareholders before the recent Los Angeles-area wildfires by assuring them it could shut down power lines to reduce the risk of...
Hawaiian Electric Welcomes Top Court’s Ruling on $4B Wildfire Settlement
Feb 12 2025 // Utility company Hawaiian Electric on Tuesday welcomed the Hawaii Supreme Court’s decision towards finalizing the more than $4 billion settlement related to the 2023 Maui wildfires saying it was favorable to the...
WDIS Launches Wildfire Only Coverage for E&S Commercial Property in California
Feb 12 2025 // Wildfire Defense Insurance Services Inc. has launched wildfire only coverage for E&S commercial property in California. The product is available for a range of commercial property classes of business. The target class...
California Approves FAIR Plan Request to Assess Insurers $1B for Wildfire Claims
Feb 11 2025 // California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara approved a California FAIR Plan request for a $1 billion assessment on admitted market insurers to cover claims from the Los Angeles wildfires. The FAIR Plan reported it has...
Travelers Expecting $1.7 Billion in Catastrophe Losses From LA Wildfires
Feb 11 2025 // Another major California insurer is reporting losses in excess of $1 billion from the Los Angeles area wildfires. The Travelers Companies Inc. announced Tuesday it will lose an estimated $1.7 billion from last...
What’s Tying Up $4B Settlement for Hawaii Wildfire Victims
Feb 11 2025 // Hawaii’s Supreme Court heard arguments last week over insurance issues that are tying up a potential $4 billion settlement over Maui’s catastrophic 2023 wildfire, the deadliest in the U.S. in more than a...
AccuWeather: Elevated Risk of Mudslides at LA Wildfire Burn Scars From Coming Storm
Feb 7 2025 // Meteorologists are warning of an elevated risk of dangerous debris flows and destructive mudslides in Southern California next week in areas scorched by destructive Los Angeles wildfires. AccuWeather meteorologists expect...
LA Neighbors See Different Post-Wildfire Rebuilding Options Due to Insurance Crisis
Feb 7 2025 // Before a wildfire ravaged their street in northwest Altadena, Louise Hamlin and Chris Wilson lived next door to each other in nearly identical houses. “I chose an old home in an old neighborhood because it has...
AM Best: Wildfires Intensifying California’s Property Insurance Troubles
Feb 6 2025 // Wildfires are intensifying the problems in California’s property insurance market, according to a new commentary from AM Best. Those problems include a major insurer pullback from California in the past year,...
California Wildfire Losses: Net or Gross?
Feb 5 2025 // The insurance industry admittedly may not be as glamorous as high-tech, investment banking, advertising, or Hollywood. After all, consider that the most influential publication on what’s happening in property &...
