More condominium owners are coming
forward telling us they're farmers.
Insurance policies are being
cancelled due to wildfire risk.
The latest A 115 unit
complex in Scripps Ranch.
Good evening and thank you for joining us.
I'm Carla chichetto.
I'm Marcella Lee.
Tonight, for the first time,
we are hearing from farmers insurance.
As CBS's David Godfredson reports,
some HOA's are considering changing
their bylaws so individual condo owners
can carry their own property insurance.
Our total premium went from 50,000
a year to almost 800,000 a year.
Condo owner Dave Sloat is talking about
the master property insurance policy on
the Village Woods complex in Scripps
Ranch that farmers insurance did not
renew in November due to wildfire risk.
The $32 million policy covered
exterior damage to the entire complex,
a replacement policy cobbled
together on the secondary market.
Could now cost each condo owner an
additional 5 or $600.00 per month.
In addition to our premium going up by 16X,
our deductible has gone from $10,000
per incident to 250,000 per incident.
Because of the higher deductible
on the replacement policy,
the HOA is going to have to use
its own reserves to pay for this
damage that happened last month
when two eucalyptus trees fell.
Destroying 2 garages.
But it's the wildfire risk that's to blame.
As CBS8 has reported over the past two weeks,
farmers Insurance recently dropped policies
on 338 condo units in Rancho Bernardo,
240 units in Mira Mesa and 320
condo units in Tierra Santa.
Combined with 115 units in
this Scripps Ranch complex,
more than 1000 homeowners are now
looking for affordable insurance.
Farmers insurance.
Won't comment on individual policies,
but emailed CBS a statement saying quote
similar to other insurers in the state,
we regularly review our market
exposure and make adjustments as
necessary to appropriately manage risk.
We're looking into private insurance,
but there's a problem there with walls
that are shared with other residents.
Condo owner Mike Colmenero
says he's already pricing out
policies to cover his own condo.
But changing to individual coverage
will require changes to the HOA bylaws
requiring a 2/3 vote of all condo
owners in the Scripps Ranch Complex.
The bottom line is we're getting
screwed by the insurance companies,
and our local representatives and
elected officials don't seem to
want to do anything to help us.
Now we're out here live in Tierra Santa
tonight because the owners of the Villa
Monterey complex are being asked to
cast ballots to change their bylaws.
Not only to make it so they have to
pay for their own homeowners insurance
for the each individual condo,
they're also being asked to approve
a $7200 special assessment for each
and every condo owner, and that has
to be approved by a majority vote.
David, that's $600 a month.
That is a lot of money, man.
OK, any progress at this point
by state lawmakers on a long
term solution to this condominium
insurance crisis we're looking at?
Yeah, well, state insurance Commissioner
Ricardo Lara says it's a top priority of
his to expand condo complex insurance.
But still no word tonight from his
office whether he's going to go along
with eighteen state legislators who
are requesting that he raised the
maximum on the state safety net
insurance plan called the Fair Plan.
Still no word from him tonight.
Condo insurance owners,
condo owners need.
Some insurance answers quickly.
David Godberson reporting
for us live. Thanks, David.