The Hartford to Discontinue Writing New Homeowners Policies in California

The Hartford confirmed this week it will discontinue writing new homeowners policies in California.

The carrier reportedly has less than 1% of the state’s homeowners market.

The Hartford issued the following statement follwing a request for comment for this article:

“The homeowners’ insurance environment in California has unique challenges that have required us to reconsider the viability of writing new homeowners’ business in the state. Based on these challenges and our analysis of the trends, we have decided to stop offering new homeowners policies starting Feb. 1, 2024. We do not enter into this decision lightly, and we appreciate and support efforts like Commissioner Lara’s Sustainability Insurance Strategy to help bring stability to the market.”

The Hartford said it will be watching those efforts, and it continue to write all its other existing products in California, such as business insurance and personal auto, and will continue to renew existing homeowners’ business consistent with its underwriting guidelines.

State Farm General Insurance Co. announced at the end of May that it had stopped accepting new policy applications for property/casualty insurance in California for reasons including increased risks from wildfires and inflation. The decision followed a similar move by Allstate Corp. last year.

Other large carriers that have announced a reduced appetite for writing California homeowners insurance include American International Group (AIG) and Chubb.

A new report from Gallagher Re released late last year showed the threat of damaging wildfires in conjunction with inflation and pricing challenges has led to a distressed insurance and reinsurance market, particularly in California.

Related:

• Insurer Group Reacts to California Department of Insurance Musing on Cat Modeling
• State Farm’s California Halt Reflects Overall Poor Underwriting Experience, Ratings Agency Says
• AIG to Move High Net Worth Homeowners to E&S