Six months after the devastating LA fires, California homeowners are trapped in an insurance nightmare. From State Farm’s massive rate hikes and policy cancellations to lawsuits over unpaid smoke damage claims, the crisis deepens.

In this 12-minute Inside the Issues segment, host Amrit Singh and insurance expert Karl Susman unpack:

Why State Farm dropped customers even after wildfire hardening upgrades

The $4.2 billion State Farm has paid out—and why it’s still under state investigation

Smoke damage claim denials and court battles over FAIR Plan coverage

AB 226 and the FAIR Plan Stabilization Act’s role in securing fast funding for claims

How a market conduct investigation of State Farm could reshape claim handling

The future: new legislation, lawsuits, and whether insurers will return to California’s market

For thousands of fire victims, answers remain scarce. But changes may finally be coming.

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California homeowners are facing more bad news. State Farm, the state’s largest home insurer, is pushing for huge rate increases—including nearly 80% for rental property coverage—amid ongoing wildfire losses and financial strain.

In this CBS News segment, expert Karl Susman breaks down:

Why State Farm says it needs additional rate hikes after already securing a 17% increase

The staggering new requested increases: 8.2% for homeowners, 25.8% for condo owners, and 79.3% for rental properties

How wildfire claims, underpricing, and market losses triggered this crisis

The Department of Insurance’s investigation into State Farm’s claims handling delays and problems

New legislation (AB 226) giving California’s FAIR Plan access to emergency capital, protecting consumers if insurers default

With thousands of homeowners left in limbo, this report reveals the battle between insurers, regulators, and wildfire victims over California’s insurance future.

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California homeowners facing wildfire risks may soon get relief. Two major pro-consumer bills are moving swiftly through the California legislature, promising major reforms to the state’s FAIR Plan—California’s insurer of last resort.

In this short segment, KTVU's Tom Vacar reports on:

How new legislation will let the FAIR Plan borrow money and issue catastrophe bonds

Why private insurers will be financially responsible if the FAIR Plan defaults

Concerns from Consumer Watchdog about potential unfair costs passed to policyholders

A new requirement forcing brokers to search the private market before placing customers in the FAIR Plan

Featuring expert insights from independent agent Karl Susman and consumer advocate Carmen Balber, this report breaks down what California homeowners need to know as these critical bills head to the governor’s desk.

Will Governor Newsom—amid presidential ambitions—sign the bill? Stay tuned.

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Join Dr. Lawrence "Lars" Powell, Director of the Center for Risk and Insurance Research at the University of Alabama, as he delivers a sharp, data-packed critique of California’s Prop 103, calling it a “case study in regulatory failure.” With 27+ years of experience in insurance market research, Dr. Powell dismantles the myth that Prop 103 saves consumers money—and instead reveals why it’s costing billions, restricting competition, and driving insurers out of the state.

📊 Backed by peer-reviewed research and real-world filings, this presentation exposes:
• Why insurance premiums ≠ insurance problems
• How California’s rate suppression blocks actuarial pricing
• What regulators get wrong by ignoring loss trends
• The $218 billion mistake of applying Prop 103 nationwide
• The $24 million spent on “interveners” that may hurt more than help

🚨 Quote Highlights:
• “California is to rate suppression what Alabama is to college football.”
• “Regulators insisting insurers lose money? The King Canute approach. Spoiler: the king got wet.”
• “This isn’t an insurance problem — it’s a ‘how you regulate insurance’ problem.”

This video is a must-watch for policymakers, actuaries, insurers, and every Californian who wants to understand why their homeowners insurance keeps vanishing—and what can be done about it.

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📝 YouTube Description:

💥 “It was a cold night in 1988… and California’s insurance future was rewritten.”

In this gripping, expertly delivered presentation, Sam Sorge breaks down the unintended consequences of California’s iconic Proposition 103—and exposes how its decades-old framework has paralyzed insurance reform, driven out insurers, and left homeowners and businesses scrambling for coverage.

With powerful storytelling and decades of legal context, Sorge uncovers:
• 🔥 The four provisions at the heart of the current crisis (“The Four Horsemen of the Insurance Apocalypse”)
• 🧱 Why California’s legislature can’t fix Prop 103—even with a 2/3 vote
• ⏳ The shrinking window to place an initiative on the November 2026 ballot
• 🧾 A bold proposal: “Delete three words—‘furthers its purposes’—and restore legislative power.”

🚨 Quote Highlights:
• “Proposition 103 has broken the promise it made to voters.”
• “The legislature is powerless to address the most pressing insurance issue of our time.”
• “Does that sound like democracy to you?”

📜 Topics Covered:
• Prop 103’s legislative history and voter approval
• Auto insurance mandates and litigation drivers from the 1980s
• Regulatory gridlock, rate hearing delays, and Consumer Watchdog’s $19M intervention fees
• Failed legislative attempts to reform Prop 103 via “furthering its purposes”
• Initiative paths for change (2026 vs 2028)

🎯 Whether you’re a policy advocate, insurer, homeowner, or concerned Californian, this video delivers the context and clarity you need to understand why insurance is broken in California—and what must be done to fix it.

📅 Key Date: August 13, 2025 – Deadline for November 2026 Ballot Initiatives

🎥 Watch. Share. Take action.

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Is Proposition 103 destroying California’s insurance system from the inside?
Christian Forrest, research fellow at the Independent Institute, delivers a blistering exposé on how outdated regulations, wildfire risk, and political gamesmanship have left homeowners scrambling for coverage — or completely uninsured.

In this eye-opening talk based on his policy report “How California’s Homeowners Insurance Market Collapsed — and How to Fix It”, Christian walks us through:
• 🔥 Why 7 of the top 10 insurers stopped writing new business
• 📉 The Fair Plan’s soaring premiums and $1B losses
• 🏠 Why building in wildfire zones is subsidized by bad regulation
• 🧮 How rate suppression and the 6.9% cap cripple actuarial soundness
• ⏳ Insane delays: 337-day average wait for intervened rate filings
• 🤯 The perverse incentives created by Prop 103’s “consumer intervener” system
• ⚠️ How Consumer Watchdog earned $11M from the very law it championed
• 📊 Why California has the worst rate suppression in the U.S.

🎖️ Golden Fleece Awards
Hear why the Independent Institute awarded its infamous “Golden Fleece” to:
• Harvey Rosenfield (author of Prop 103)
• Proposition 103 itself
• The CA Department of Insurance
• California Insurance Commissioners

Whether you’re a homeowner, policymaker, or just trying to understand why your premiums have skyrocketed — this is a must-watch breakdown of the regulatory iceberg beneath the insurance crisis.

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Welcome to the full recording of a groundbreaking conference co-hosted by the Independent Institute, the International Center for Law & Economics, and the WIAA Education & Research Foundation.

This event brings together top experts to dissect the true causes of California’s broken insurance market and the controversial role of Proposition 103 — a 1988 law that still governs every rate change in the state.

👥 Featuring:
• Karl Susman – Insurance expert witness and 30-year broker
• Kristian Fors – Research Fellow, Independent Institute
• Lars Powell – Director, Center for Risk & Insurance Research, University of Alabama
• Sam Sorich – Former President, Association of California Insurance Companies

🔍 Topics covered include:
• Why 7 of the top 10 insurers have exited California
• The myth of Prop 103’s 20% “savings”
• Why the FAIR Plan is overwhelmed and broken
• The 4 Horsemen of California’s Insurance Apocalypse
• Real-world wildfire losses and the human toll
• Data-backed critiques of Consumer Watchdog’s $19M in intervention fees
• Repeal strategies for 2026 or 2028 ballot initiatives

📉 Spoiler: This is no longer a tipping point — the collapse has already happened.

🎯 Learn how Prop 103 has crippled availability, discouraged innovation, and triggered one of the worst coverage crises in state history.

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Insurance expert Karl Susman breaks down the wildfire devastation, skyrocketing premiums, and the catastrophic collapse of California’s insurance market. From the frontline experience of 141 total-loss clients to the outdated policies of Proposition 103, Karl gives a raw, fact-checked wake-up call on why urgent reform is needed. Watch now to understand what’s really behind the coverage crisis.

This presentation dives into:
• The real human toll of wildfire devastation
• The collapse of the California home insurance market
• Why insurers are fleeing the state in record numbers
• The surprising impact of Prop 103 on auto insurance rates and safety
• The truth about the California FAIR Plan Association
• Why real reform is not just possible — it’s essential

If you live in California, work in insurance, or care about market stability and climate risk, this is a must-watch.

🚨 1 in 10 homes were completely uninsured — not underinsured, uninsured.
💬 “We’re not over the tipping point —we’ve hit the ground. People just haven’t realized it yet.”
📉 7 of the top 12 insurers have stopped writing new business in California.
🏚️ The California FAIR Plan was never meant to be the only option — yet that’s where we are.
💸 “The good drivers are subsidizing the bad drivers — and they have no idea.”
📠 “Prop 103 is a fax machine law in a smartphone world.”
🚗 Auto insurance drivers with deadly accidents get Good Driver discounts after just 3 years
🔍 Proposition 103 governs everything insurers do, but supporters claim it’s not responsible for the crisis?
• 🧾 Regulations passed in 1988 still determine how rates are set, despite climate change, inflation, and massive demographic shifts.
• ⚖️ “There will be no claims to file… if there are no policies left to write.”
• 📊 California’s insurance market is in measurable free fall, with less coverage and higher prices than ever before.

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Karl Susman speaks with Kristine Lazar regarding what comes next with the most recent ruling against the California FAIR Plan.


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