Hot Topic: Wildfire Risk 

and Insurance Markets

Federal Advisory Committee on Insurance

Fall 2022 Meeting, U.S. Treasury Building, Washington, D.C.

Thursday, September 29, 2022

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About United Policyholders (UP)

• A 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization with a Platinum Guidestar rating 

and a national corps of professional and disaster survivor volunteers

• 31 years of advocating for fair sales and claims practices and 

helping solve problems that impede consumers’ ability to be 

indemnified in case of loss through insurance products.

• Working in coordination with insurance regulatory agencies, public 

officials and stakeholders

• A trusted information resource and respected voice for insurance 

consumers in all 50 states

• Funded by donations and grants

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Our Three Programs 

• Roadmap to Recovery®

– Helping individuals and businesses solve insurance coverage 

and claim problems.

• Roadmap to Preparedness®

– Increasing disaster preparedness by promoting savvy shopping, 

inventorying and insuring property to value, and mitigation

• Advocacy and Action

– Advocating for insurance consumers in courts of law, legislative 

and other public policy forums, and in the media.

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“This changes everything”

• Climate change is profoundly impacting the P/C marketplace, 

coverage, claims and loss recovery financing

• Regulators and consumers face challenges related to the 

availability, affordability and quality of property insurance

• Predictive technology (modeling and risk scores) is both helping and 

hurting.

• Institutionally supported risk reduction is imperative 

• Significant progress related to wildfire mitigation in 2022

Reference: Naomi Klein, This Changes Everything: Capitalism and The Climate, Simon & Schuster, 2015

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A shift in focus

Roadmap to Preparedness messaging focused on insuring to value 

and inventorying assets to avoid post-loss claim challenges 

• Focus shifted in 2016 to:

– Working with producers and CDI to help consumers shop for any affordable 

available option outside the CFP, DIC and surplus lines education

– Identifying long term strategies to sustain a private market, restore competition

– Coordinating with stakeholders to identify effective risk reduction approaches

– Strengthening and improving residual market options

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United Policyholders

Wildfire Risk Reduction and Asset Protection Project 

("WRAP")

A regular convening of public and private stakeholders, firefighting 

pros, community-based risk reduction advocates, public officials and 

agencies, fire scientists and insurance sector reps working together to:

• Reduce wildfire risk and restore home insurance availability and affordability 

in WUI and other regions

• Increase financial and technical assistance options for property owners to 

make risk reduction improvements, build community engagement

• Secure insurance incentives and rewards for property owners that proactively reduce wildfire risk

visit: www.uphelp.org/WRAP
Rewards to incentivize mitigation

- Premium discounts

- Improved risk score = more options

- Non-renewal protections/guarantees

- House less likely to burn

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Wildfire Mitigation Progress

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www.uphelp.org/wrapchart

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Voluntary insurer discounts

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Voluntary insurer renewal rewards

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Progress in 2022

• Safer From Wildfires and Wildfire Prepared Home

frameworks/programs

• Significant increases in funding for wildfire risk reduction

• Cal OES funded WRAP Resource Center

– Aggregate and disseminate info re: available risk reduction 

grants and technical help (Fire Safe, Firewise, COPE, etc.)

• Increase in insurers voluntarily offering rewards/support

• No legal challenges to CDI mitigation regulations

• More vendors offering risk reduction services

• Increased understanding of brush 

management/firefighting strategies that save structures

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Challenges remain

• CO availability/affordability challenges are increasing, residual 

market designing underway (OR, WA?)

• CA Fair Plan products and processes need improvement

• Take-all-comer residual programs need backstop (FL CAT Fund)

• Insurer reluctance to recognize risk reduction in rates and UW 

• Resistance to 5’ defensible space/Community-wide engagement in 

risk reduction

• Continued attacks on CA limits on the use of CAT models to set 

rates, pass along reinsurance costs to phs

• How to deal w/ “150 years of not letting forests burn”

• Political attacks on CA, environmentalists, finger pointing

• Decades of development in WUI regions

• Climate change’s overall impact on P/C sector

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Questions?

Email info@uphelp.org, amy.bach@uphelp.org

Visit www.uphelp.org

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