State Farm seeks big rate hikes

State Farm’s latest California rate push sits on top of an already shrinking market. The company has argued that wildfire losses, reinsurance costs and regulatory delays have made the state’s homeowners market hard to price, while outside analysts say premiums are still headed higher across California in 2026. (insurify.com) ### What exactly is State Farm asking for? State Farm has been pressing California regulators for higher homeowners rates after the 2025 Los Angeles wildfires added to already large catastrophe costs, according to State Farm statements and Insurify reporting. (insurify.com) The company said in a May 4 update that California faces both an affordability and availability crisis, and blamed regulatory delays and uncertainty for discouraging insurer participation. (newsroom.statefarm.com) California’s Department of Insurance says insurers must file proposed rate changes for actuarial review, and consumers can review filings and submit comments through the department’s rate-filing system. The department says the commissioner can review rates for reasonableness, though the site also says the commissioner cannot approve or deny rate increases in that filing process. (newsroom.statefarm.com) ### Why is this coming up again now? The 2025 Los Angeles wildfires gave insurers a fresh loss event to point to. State Farm said it paid more than $5.7 billion on more than 13,700 auto and homeowners claims in the affected areas, where it said it insured more homes than any other carrier. (newsroom.statefarm.com) Insurify said California homeowners could see a 16% increase in home insurance rates by the end of 2026. In the same reporting, Insurify put the state’s average annual home insurance cost at $2,455 at the end of 2025. ### Is this only about price, or also about getting coverage at all? (interactive.web.insurance.ca.gov) March 20, 2024, is still a key date in the California market. On that date, State Farm General said it would non-renew about 30,000 homeowners, rental dwelling and other property policies, and withdraw from commercial apartment coverage affecting about 42,000 policies. Those non-renewals began on a rolling basis starting July 3, 2024, for homeowners and related property policies, and Aug. 20, 2024, for commercial apartment policies, State Farm said. (newsroom.statefarm.com) The company said the affected business represented just over 2% of its California policy count. (insurify.com) ### How big is State Farm in California? State Farm said on May 4 that it insures more than 1 million homes in California. The company also described itself as the leading auto and homeowners insurer in the state. That scale matters because fewer State Farm policies, higher proposed rates, or both can push more homeowners into a market with fewer choices. (newsroom.statefarm.com) State Farm said customers affected by non-renewals would be notified ahead of expiration and given information on other coverage options. ### What should California homeowners watch next? California homeowners can watch the Department of Insurance filing portal for State Farm and other carrier submissions, status updates and public-comment opportunities. (newsroom.statefarm.com) The department says filings are posted as they become available and can be sorted by company name and filing date. (newsroom.statefarm.com) Insurify’s broader 2026 outlook points to continued pressure even beyond any single filing. The firm said California is one of the states where home insurance premiums are projected to rise by 10% or more by the end of 2026. (insurify.com) (interactive.web.insurance.ca.gov) (newsroom.statefarm.com)