MEDICAL LAKE, Wash. – When fires devastated Medical Lake and Elk in August 2023, families lost homes, vehicles and personal heirlooms. New data from the Washington Office of the Insurance Commissioner shows that the majority of homeowners reached their insurance coverage limit when attempting to rebuild.
According to the Office of the Insurance Commissioner (OIC), there were 355 significant dwelling claims filed after the 244 of which paid out 100% of their coverage for damage. Commissioner Mike Kreidler says that means the majority of homeowner’s insurance coverage plans didn’t completely cover the damage.
“That’s a sign that in most cases, the coverage limits were reached…It’s a tragic loss for the people involved in these fires and an unfortunate situation to not be made whole after a life-changing event,” Kreidler said.
Kreidler’s office says that not enough Washingtonians in high-risk communities are properly insured for the worst. Senior Policy Advisor David Forte hopes that homeowners will make sure that their coverage could fully cover the cost of rebuilding their homes, as well as covering potential expenses associated with a home burning down.
“What this means is these folks did not have enough insurance to fully rebuild their home. And the lesson that we should learn from this is, when we talk to our insurance agents and our brokers, we ask about inflation, guard coverage or extended replacement loss coverage,” Forte said.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency operates a Wildfire Risk Index which identifies regions that could be susceptible to devastating fires. OIC suggests that those in risk areas have a minimum of 24 months of loss of use coverage, which would cover the amount of time it takes to rebuild a home.
“There were people that only had 12 months of coverage…They’re out of their temporary housing funds, and they could still not be in their home yet,” Forte said.
While OIC has pushed insurance companies to expedite the debris removal process and urged insurers to extend living expenses for wildfire victims, the office warns that homeowners in high risk areas should do their own due-diligence in preparing for future fire seasons.
