Insurance claims paid so far after LA wildfires exceed $6.9bn
According to the California Department of Insurance, the insurance industry has paid $6.94 billion in residential and commercial claims to consumers in Southern California, related to the Los Angeles wildfires, as of February 5th, 2025.
This includes 33,717 claims, with 19,854 of those receiving partial payments due to California law, which requires advance payments to speed up recovery.
On January 23rd, Commissioner Ricardo Lara issued an order on directing insurance companies to provide advance payments for replacing personal property or contents without requiring itemized claims. These payments were reportedly capped at 30% of a policy’s dwelling limit, up to $250,000.
Additionally, insurers were also instructed to pay at least four months’ worth of living expenses as an advance.
The bulk of the remaining unpaid claims includes property damage and debris removal, which will be processed when policyholders begin rebuilding.
The California Department of Insurance also confirmed that $73 million has also been paid to policyholders for auto insurance claims related to the wildfires.
“With so much misinformation and speculation surrounding our insurance market after the Southern California wildfires, it is crucial for the public to track claims and monitor payouts. I want consumers to know that we are closely overseeing the entire claims process to ensure their protection,” commented Commissioner Lara.
“I expect insurance companies, including the FAIR Plan, to continue providing essential advance payments to help survivors recover as quickly as possible,” he added.
Meanwhile, we recently reported that the mark-to-market impact to catastrophe bonds from the Los Angeles, California wildfires has risen, as a number of cat bond names recently saw further mark-downs on pricing sheets, while some aggregate cat bonds saw negative movements that had not done so before.
Read all of our coverage related to the Los Angeles, California wildfires here.
