Legislators and Experts Discussed Colorado’s Insurance Market Challenges and Last Year’s Reforms

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March 11, 2026

Contact: contact@insurancefairnessproject.com

Legislators and Experts Discussed Colorado’s Insurance Market Challenges and Last Year’s Reforms

Colorado’s reforms won’t solve the insurance crisis overnight, but they shine a light on the comprehensive approach needed for a resilient insurance system that better protects homeowners.

To watch a recording of the panel, click here. 

Read the Insurance Fairness Project’s Colorado report.

Earlier today, the Insurance Fairness Project hosted a press call featuring Colorado State Representative Brianna Titone; Dave Jones, the former California Insurance Commissioner and current Director of the Climate Risk Initiative at UC Berkeley School of Law’s Center for Law, Energy & the Environment; and Grace Adcox, Senior Climate Strategist at Data for Progress. The speakers  discussed Colorado’s escalating home insurance crisis and the policy steps underway to address it. 

Colorado’s Insurance Crisis Is Driving Up Costs for Families

“As we see climate change intensify natural disasters, especially for wildfires, lawmakers need to work cooperatively with the insurance industry to keep insurance affordable,” said Colorado State Representative Brianna Titone. “My bill, HB25-1182 seeks to lower risk for both customers and insurance companies by incorporating approved customer level fire mitigation efforts, community mitigation, and other state and agency level efforts to better account for actual risk. Understanding risk and empowering investment in mitigation by customers can lead to lower overall risk. This is a win-win for customers and insurers.”

“Colorado’s home insurance crisis offers a hard look at the calculus many states will have to consider in the coming years. As extreme weather becomes more frequent, and more damaging and costly, home insurance will become inaccessible to working families without intervention," said Grace Adcox, Senior Climate Strategist at Data for Progress. "Voters want to see bold, decisive action to keep insurance prices fair, hold companies accountable, and protect their homes and communities from the impacts of climate change."

Colorado’s Policy Approach Could Serve as a Model for Other States

Speakers discussed how Colorado’s insurance market remains under significant strain, and major challenges remain unresolved, but reforms adopted last year (HB 1182) laid important groundwork, increasing transparency around wildfire risk models and seeking to align insurance pricing with mitigation efforts. Importantly, Colorado paired that bill with a building code reform, and the two laws together are already yielding benefits and incentivizing Coloradans to deepen their commitments to climate resilience. This is consistent with Governor Polis and other leaders’ recognition that insurance markets can only be stabilized if a comprehensive set of actions and a “whole of government” approach is taken. 

“'Insurers are not taking mitigation into account in pricing and underwriting, " said Dave Jones, California’s former Insurance Commissioner and current Director of the Climate Risk Initiative at UC Berkeley’s Center for Law, Energy and the Environment. "Colorado enacted the most important insurance law to pass last year, which requires the models used by insurers to take into account property, community, and landscape scale mitigation, for both pricing and underwriting — the decision whether to write or renew insurance. More states should do the same, to make sure that homeowners get an insurance benefit from the investments they and their local, state and federal governments are making in adaptation and resilience."

New Report Details Rapidly Rising Home Insurance Costs in Colorado

The call also previewed a newly released report by the Insurance Fairness Project that examined Colorado’s rapidly escalating home insurance crisis in detail. The report found that home insurance costs are rising faster in Colorado than they are nationally, and households are feeling the squeeze. Colorado used to be a relatively affordable insurance market; now it’s the 8th most expensive state for home insurance in the U.S. For many families, insurance is becoming one of the fastest-growing parts of their budgets.

“These actions won’t solve the crisis overnight, but they begin to lay the groundwork for a more resilient insurance system that better protects homeowners and taxpayers alike,” said Nova Dugan-Mezensky, a spokesperson for the Insurance Fairness Project. “Colorado’s experience should serve as a warning, but can also offer insights into the comprehensive insurance reform needed to address this systemic crisis. States across the country are facing wildfires, hurricanes, floods, and other severe storms. They need to choose to act now or wait until things get much worse for homeowners and communities.”

Families in Colorado and across the country deserve an insurance system that’s transparent, fair, and built for the climate realities we now face. The path forward requires sustained oversight, smart reform, and a commitment to keeping homeowners protected. 

Read the Insurance Fairness Project’s report.

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The Insurance Fairness Project is an information hub dedicated to offering insights into the home insurance crisis, exploring its drivers and highlighting solutions alongside issue experts and community advocates.