California Bill Seeks to Add ‘Transparency’ to Arieal Images Used by Insurers

California lawmaker is pushing to require insurers to notify homeowners in advance of taking or using aerial images of their property, and to stop insurers from basing decisions to cancel, non-renew, or reduce coverage based on aerial images older than 180 days.

Assembly Bill was introduced last week by Assemblymember Lisa Calderon, D-Whittier, chair of the Assembly Insurance Committee. Calderon said the aim of the bill is to protect homeowners by providing transparency when aerial images of their homes are taken or obtained by insurers.

“As the insurance crisis continues, it is imperative we do what we can to protect policyholders,” stated Calderon. “AB 1559 empowers homeowners by adding a layer of transparency when it comes to non-renewals.”

Aerial imagery, which includes images taken by drones, satellites, and airplanes, can help insurers conduct inspections and acquire detailed information not visible through a traditional home inspection, but the technology can also lead to erroneous insurance policy non-renewals based on inaccurate, outdated or misleading images, according to Calderon.

Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas is a co-author of AB 1559. It is also being sponsored by California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara. The bill requires insurers to notify homeowners in advance of taking or obtaining aerial images of their properties, and it requires insurers to provide those images to the homeowners upon request. AB 1559 would also prohibit carriers from basing decisions to cancel, non-renew or reduce coverage on aerial images older than 180 days.

Lastly, the bill provides rights to policyholders who were subject to insurance decisions based on aerial images, including the right for policyholders to receive the images along with the notice of non-renewal and the ability to request in-person verification of aerial images taken.

Topics California Carriers

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