Premiums on Fire

The report examines how a 21.8% rate hike for State Farm homeowners insurance in California, approved in March 2025 following devastating wildfires in Los Angeles, disproportionately affects policyholders in high-risk areas. It projects that the average State Farm policyholder in California will pay $841 more in 2025 than in 2023, with some communities seeing premiums more than double. The analysis highlights that 280,000 policyholders across 122 communities will face annual premium increases of $1,000 or more. The document argues that these escalating costs are a direct result of climate change and suggests that the financial burden should shift from policyholders to the oil and gas companies responsible for fossil fuel pollution.

• The average State Farm policyholder in California is projected to pay $840.94 more for homeowners insurance in 2025 compared to 2023, representing an average percent increase of 45% over two years.
• Significant premium increases are concentrated in high-risk areas, specifically zip codes along the Sierra Nevadas and Southern California regions prone to wildfires and rising seas; in some of these areas, premiums will more than double within two years.
• Approximately 30% of California communities (122 subdivisions) will see average annual premiums rise by $1,000 or more from 2023 to 2025, affecting 280,167 policyholders.
• The most extreme dollar increase is projected for zip code 91302 in Calabasas (Los Angeles County), where over 1,700 policyholders will see average premium increases of $7,553.72, or 75%.
• The Laguna-Pine Valley CCD is expected to experience the highest percentage increase in average premiums between 2023 and 2025 at 94%, affecting 468 policyholders.
• Three major wildfires in the Los Angeles region in January 2025 caused over $250 billion in damage, and attribution analysis indicates that climate change made the conditions contributing to this destruction more intense and probable.
• The California FAIR Plan, the state's insurer of last resort, required an additional $1 billion in funds to remain solvent following the Los Angeles fires.

APA

Center for Climate Integrity (2025). Premiums on Fire. https://climateintegrity.org/uploads/media/Premiums-On-Fire-2025.pdf

Chicago

Center for Climate Integrity. Premiums on Fire. 2025. https://climateintegrity.org/uploads/media/Premiums-On-Fire-2025.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Center for Climate Integrity |title=Premiums on Fire |date=March 2025 |url=https://climateintegrity.org/uploads/media/Premiums-On-Fire-2025.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{centerforclimateintegrity2025premiums, author = {{Center for Climate Integrity}}, title = {{Premiums on Fire}}, institution = {Center for Climate Integrity}, year = {2025}, month = mar, url = {https://climateintegrity.org/uploads/media/Premiums-On-Fire-2025.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }