Los Angeles – As California faces the aftermath of some of the worst wildfires in its history — urban conflagrations that have devastated entire neighborhoods and spread toxic soot and ash across wide regions — Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara today announced the formation of a new Smoke Claims & Remediation Task Force within the California Department of Insurance.
“For more than 30 years, California has lacked consistent statewide standards for investigating and paying smoke damage claims,” said Commissioner Lara. “The result is confusion, delays, and families forced to return to unsafe homes. Consumers are angry and rightly so. Californians deserve better — and this Task Force will help us create lasting solutions.”
While the state has faced major wildfires before — in places like Santa Rosa and Paradise — today’s smoke impacts are broader and more complex, reaching deeper into urban areas than ever before. California has never experienced smoke damage of this scale, across such a large and densely populated region.
In March, Commissioner Lara issued a formal Bulletin requiring insurers to fully investigate and pay legitimate smoke damage claims. He also sent a directive to the California FAIR Plan — the state’s insurer of last resort — requiring it to follow the same standards. Yet for decades, there have been no clear or consistent statewide protocols for how insurers should handle smoke-related losses.
The new Task Force will bring together public health experts, environmental health professionals, smoke remediation specialists, fire safety experts, and consumer advocates to recommend science-based standards, best practices for smoke restoration of homes and personal property, and enforcement tools to the Department that ensure Californians are treated fairly in the wake of wildfire smoke exposure.
As climate change accelerates the frequency and scale of wildfires, smoke impacts are becoming more severe and widespread — reaching far beyond burn areas and affecting entire neighborhoods downwind from major fire events. Some residents have reported being denied smoke claims outright or were required to clean visible damage themselves before their claims would even be considered.
“Smoke damage is real damage,” said Commissioner Lara. “This is about health, safety, and equity. Californians shouldn’t be forced to scrub soot off their walls or breathe in contaminated air just to get the help they’re entitled to. We are taking action — not to chase headlines, but to pursue clear, science-driven standards that protect people and their property.”
The Smoke Claims & Remediation Task Force will be charged with:
- Evaluating existing methods of best practices and recommending uniform standards for inspecting, testing, and remediating properties with smoke damage;
- Recommending standards for determining whether structures damaged are below, at, or above, established levels for health and safety of occupants; and,
- Determining which state and local government agencies must be involved in creating and enforcing these standards, including to mitigate the submission of fraudulent or exaggerated smoke claims.
Commissioner Lara is actively appointing Task Force members and will announce its membership in the coming weeks. The first convening will be scheduled thereafter.
The Department of Insurance can help consumers with insurance coverage or claim questions. Contact us at our consumer hotline at 800-927-4357 or through online chat or email at insurance.ca.gov.
