Homeowners risk billions in losses as ‘Dirty Dozen’ insurers—citing climate risks— pull coverage while profiting from fossil fuels

The Center for International Environmental Law identifies a 'Dirty Dozen' of insurers that have restricted coverage for California homeowners, citing climate risks, while maintaining significant financial ties to fossil fuels. This practice is described as a 'vicious cycle of uninsurability' that shifts the economic burden of the climate crisis onto households.

• Twelve major insurers, termed the 'Dirty Dozen', have restricted homeowners insurance in California, citing climate risks, while collectively holding an estimated $113 billion in fossil fuel investments and earning $3.6 billion in underwriting income from fossil fuels.
• Analysis by Insure Our Future indicates that more than 100,000 insurance non-renewals in California could result in homeowners losing between $9.87 billion and $32.1 billion in property value.
• Three specific companies recently announced mass non-renewal decisions in California: Berkshire Hathaway (50,000 policies via AmGUARD), State Farm (30,000 policies), and Nationwide (20,275 policies via Crestbrook).
• The Center for International Environmental Law suggests that insurers' actions—profiting from fossil fuels that drive climate change and then refusing to renew policies in exposed areas—may constitute unconscionable conduct under California's Unfair Competition Law (UCL) or a violation of the implied covenant of good-faith dealing.

APA

Khan, R., & Slidders, C. (2024). Homeowners risk billions in losses as ‘Dirty Dozen’ insurers—citing climate risks— pull coverage while profiting from fossil fuels. Center for International Environmental Law. https://www.ciel.org/california-climate-insurance/

Chicago

Khan, Risalat, and Charles Slidders. Homeowners risk billions in losses as ‘Dirty Dozen’ insurers—citing climate risks— pull coverage while profiting from fossil fuels. Center for International Environmental Law, 2024. https://www.ciel.org/california-climate-insurance/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Khan |first1=Risalat |last2=Slidders |first2=Charles |title=Homeowners risk billions in losses as ‘Dirty Dozen’ insurers—citing climate risks— pull coverage while profiting from fossil fuels |publisher=Center for International Environmental Law |date=3 April 2024 |url=https://www.ciel.org/california-climate-insurance/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{khan2024homeowners, author = {Khan, Risalat and Slidders, Charles}, title = {{Homeowners risk billions in losses as ‘Dirty Dozen’ insurers—citing climate risks— pull coverage while profiting from fossil fuels}}, publisher = {Center for International Environmental Law}, year = {2024}, month = apr, url = {https://www.ciel.org/california-climate-insurance/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }