A month ago, the Palisades Fire ripped through Heather Burnett's apartment, destroying everything from furniture to jewelry.
Burnett, moved from Lafayette to the Pacific Palisades just four months before the fire.
But the horrific flames miraculously spared one thing-- her Buddha statue.
"I believe it's a miracle," Burnett said. "That's my faith."
A glimmer of hope standing despite never-ending rubble.
Her Buddha was shielded from the flames by a piece of drywall that fell over it, but somehow didn't crush it. And now it's wedged between the wall and the balcony, making it nearly impossible to recover.
She hopes she'll be able to retrieve the Buddha, but because her apartment was red tagged she's not sure how.
"I'm hoping maybe there will be a way to get it," Burnett said.
Burnett, who is currently a nanny, has dedicated her life to working with kids for the last 25 years.
The Evacuation:
The backstory:
The morning the fire broke out, she was in her apartment with the young boy she was looking after.
"I woke up to the sirens," Burnett said. "They didn't stop, so after a few minutes I was like something is going on."
She looked outside and immediately evacuated.
She grabbed her cat, Timmy, and the young boy and a few changes of clothes and her passport.
She couldn't leave her cat and the boy in her car to go grab more belongings.
"My first priority was this child, he is in my care, I have to get him out," Burnett said.
Like so many, she lost everything.
Moving On
Dig deeper:
With or without the Buddha, Burnett is hoping to move on, but like many Americans, is underinsured.
Her daughter, Alexanne Date, started a GoFundMe to help Burnett start over.
But she felt guilty accepting help.
"It didn't feel right because I'm so much luckier than so many other people," Burnett said. "I did it because, as almost everyone, I'm under insured."
Insurance Nightmare
She is dealing with an insurance nightmare.
Her policy was written by Spinnaker Insurance, a company recommended by her apartment complex.
KTVU obtained a copy of her policy and had Karl Susman, an insurance expert, look over it.
"At first glance it's not written the right way," Susman said.
According to Susman, they left the liability limit down to the minimum when, for a dollar more a year, they could have covered her for up to $500,000.
"You can tell this was not written by anyone who does this for a living," Susman said.
Susman said renters' policies are significantly different from homeowners' policies and insurance companies can require people like Burnett to show proof of purchase for everything from electronics to a pair of socks.
"Unfortunately, this consumer [Burnett] is not going to get any protection from the department of insurance when it comes to itemization," Susman said. "That is based on homeowners insurance and that is a renter policy."
Burnett will likely have to itemize all of her belongings, unless Spinnaker Insurance decides to make an exception.
Something major insurance companies like State Farm have already done.
4
State Farm Requests ANOTHER Rate Increase
Insurance Hour March 15, 2025 12:39 am