California FAIR Plan Endorses Bill Expanding Coverage to Farms

The California FAIR Plan Association is publicly supporting a bill to amend the California Insurance Code to allow the FAIR Plan to write commercial coverage for permanent structures on farms.

The California Fair Access to Insurance Requirements, or FAIR, Plan is an insurance pool established by law to assure the availability of basic property insurance to people who own insurable property in California and who are unable to obtain insurance in the private insurance market.

Senate Bill 11, authored by state Sen. Susan Rubio, D-Los Angeles, comes after a wave of historic wildfires that have led to some farms facing non-renewal and unable to turn to the FAIR Plan for coverage because the California Insurance Code specifically excludes the FAIR Plan from covering farms.

“SB 11 will fill a significant gap in the insurance market and expand the FAIR Plan’s ability to offer commercial coverage to farm owners experiencing loss due to wildfire,” Anneliese Jivan, president of the California FAIR Plan Association, said in a statement.

SB 11 as now worded will enable the FAIR Plan to offer basic property insurance for permanent structures on farms used primarily to produce commercial agricultural commodities or livestock. It does not include crop insurance, which is typically covered through a different insurance line.

Support for SB 11 includes the California Farm Bureau and the Rural County Representatives of California.