How Do I Get Off the California FAIR Plan?

You move to a regular homeowners policy when a regular insurance company agrees to insure your home again.

Most people on the FAIR Plan want exactly that: one policy, from one company, the way it used to be. Whether it's possible depends on your home and on which companies are taking homes in your area right now. We can't promise it. Those decisions belong to the insurance companies.

Darlene Baxter is a licensed California insurance agent and owner of Darlene Baxter Insurance Agency in Pleasant Hill, CA, helping homeowners, families and business owners get covered with real choices: their main company first, and other companies through the brokerage when it isn't the right fit.

The insurance companies do. Every company limits how many homes it will insure in one area, and those limits change.

New companies have been coming into California, and what's available changes from year to year. A home that couldn't find a regular policy last year may have options this year, and the other way around.

Nobody can promise the result, but a few things are worth your attention.

• Take care of the property. Clearing brush and other fire-safety work can matter to insurance companies when they decide which homes to take.
• Keep your claims record clean. A homeowner with two claims in five years will have a very tough time finding a regular homeowners policy.
• Keep your coverage in place. Don't drop the wrap policy to save money while you're on the FAIR Plan. Without it, a guest's injury, a burglary or a burst pipe would be yours to pay for.

Every home is different, so we look at yours before we say what might help.

We offer a review at every renewal. We check which companies are taking homes like yours, and if a regular homeowners policy opens up, you'll hear about it from us.

If one does, a single policy can replace the FAIR Plan and the wrap together. The review step in our process shows how that works.

Darlene Baxter is a licensed California insurance agent and owner of Darlene Baxter Insurance Agency in Pleasant Hill, CA, helping homeowners, families and business owners get covered with real choices: their main company first, and other companies through the brokerage when it isn't the right fit.

If you're on the FAIR Plan and want to know whether a regular policy is possible, call the office at (925) 940-6970 or send us a message. Tell us about your house. Our FAIR Plan and wrap policy page has the full picture.