Dave Jones, California’s insurance commissioner, has declared an emergency situation following the Camp and Woolsey wild fires. This will allow insurance companies to use out-of-state adjusters, in an attempt to handle the large volume of claims resulting from the fires.
The declaration can be found here:
As everyone that works on the policyholder side can attest, following a natural disaster, the allowance of unlicensed adjusters often leads to representations by the insurance companies in conflict with state laws.
Learning from past mistakes, the notice states that all Claims Adjusters, whether licensed in California or not, must be trained on the California Unfair Practices Act,1 Fair Claims Settlement Practices Regulations, and all other laws relating to property and casualty insurance claims handling. The notice does not allow for unlicensed public adjusters to perform services, so if you are a public adjuster looking to help, make sure you have the proper credentials for California.
Policyholders in California currently have 36 months after a declared disaster to collect full replacement cost to rebuild, replace at a new location, or purchase an already existing home at a new location. Subject to policy provisions, additional living expense coverage is also available for 36 months.
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1 Cal. Bus & Prof § 17200.
