High-Risk Fire Areas Leave Some Homeowners Without Insurance

KPBS | By KPBS Public Broadcasting

Published June 13, 2007 at 8:26 AM PDT

This story was published more than 16 years ago.

What responsibility does the insurance industry have to California homeowners who live in high-risk fire areas? We speak with a consumer advocate who says that highly profitable insurance industry sho

High-Risk Fire Areas Leave Some Homeowners Without Insurance

(File photo, Full Focus/KPBS )

Alison St John (Guest Host): When you buy a home, legally you have to buy an insurance policy to cover it. But now, some insurance companies are requiring homeowners to take expensive measures such as clearing the land from two to 300 feet around the property to reduce the risk of fire or to change the shingles on the roof. One company, Allstate , has already declared that it will no longer offer new homeowner policies in California.

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Is this a justifiable business precaution to reduce liability, or is the industry making unwarranted demands on consumers to increase their profits?

Guests

Carmen Balber , consumer advocate for the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights .
Loretta Worters, vice president of the Insurance Information Institute .