Weekly Roundup: Uninsurable Future, Low Credit Score Means Higher Rates, More Wildfire Fallout
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 15, 2025
Contact: contact@insurancefairnessproject.com
Weekly Roundup: Uninsurable Future, Low Credit Score Means Higher Rates, More Wildfire Fallout
Each week, the Insurance Fairness Project highlights the latest developments in the national climate-driven property insurance crisis. For more insurance updates, follow us on LinkedIn, X/Twitter, and Bluesky.
1/ INSURANCE INDUSTRY WARNS OF AN “UNINSURABLE” FUTURE: A chilling new report shows climate change is pushing the global insurance system toward collapse. Without structural reform, extreme weather could make vast regions “uninsurable” — creating ripple effects across the entire global economy.
CNBC: Why insurers worry the world could soon become uninsurable
“If this volume just grows even more, we simply have a societal situation that is not bearable anymore because it is just too much risk that is no longer covered,” Thallinger told CNBC by video call.
2/ INSURERS’ CLIMATE MATH DOESN'T ADD UP: A new analysis from Ceres exposes a gap between insurers’ climate commitments and real accountability. While 87% of 45 major U.S. insurers cite climate goals, none set measurable targets to track progress.
Ceres: The Measurement Gap: A Deep Dive into Climate Risk Reporting in the U.S. Insurance Sector
“This analysis comes at a time when the insurance industry is under mounting pressure from climate-driven losses. With extreme weather events intensifying and the global protection gap projected to rise 5% to $1.86 trillion in 2025, insurers must move beyond rhetoric and invest in real climate accountability.”
3/ NEW REPORT REVEALS HOME INSURERS PRICE BASED ON CREDIT SCORE, NOT RISK: A new report from the Consumer Federation of America (CFA) and Climate and Community Institute (CCI) reveals insurers are charging homeowners more for poor credit than for living in high climate-risk areas.
Having a low credit score on average costs homeowners an extra $1,996 each year. They pay the greatest penalty for bad credit in Pennsylvania, Arizona, Oregon, and West Virginia.
CCI’s Moira Birss: “The insurance industry is gaslighting us when it says they price homeowners insurance policies to reflect climate risk.”
Read the report: Penalized: The Hidden Cost of Credit Score in Homeowners Insurance Premiums
4/ INSURERS MUST STEP UP FOR WILDFIRE SURVIVORS: In a joint op-ed, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and County Supervisor Kathryn Barger are calling out insurance companies for hitting wildfire survivors with non-renewals and spiking premiums, deepening an already dire housing crisis.
Pasadena Star News: Karen Bass and Kathryn Barger: Insurers need to step up for LA wildfire survivors
“Families are doing everything they can to rebuild their lives–a reality they never anticipated. The last thing they need is a second crisis at the hands of the insurance industry. It’s time for the insurers and regulators to step up and meet the moment with urgency, compassion, and action.”
5/ MISINFORMATION KILLS OREGON WILDFIRE RISK MAPPING: Oregon lawmakers were forced to abandon a science-based wildfire risk map after a flood of misinformation described it as a tool to raise insurance rates and taxes.
Talking Points Memo: How the Rapid Spread of Misinformation Pushed Oregon Lawmakers to Kill the State’s Wildfire Risk Map
“One of the biggest public health and safety challenges states are facing are climate-driven, severe-weather-related events,” Jones said. “Not giving people useful information to make decisions on that, to me, is not a path to public health and safety.”
6/ FLORIDA NON-RENEWALS HIT HOMEOWNERS HARD: Florida homeowners are facing a new wave of insurance non-renewals and dropped coverage, often with little notice. This follows years of hurricanes and rising claims, leaving thousands scrambling for coverage, or going without it entirely. Data journalist Julia Taliensin says “it may be that this climate risk is starting to kind of price people out.”
Central Florida Public Media: Florida leads nation in home insurance non-renewal rates
The Cool Down: Experts issue warning over alarming trend in home insurance industry: 'I don't want to sugarcoat it'
Newsweek: Florida Insurers Celebrate Record Profits as Premiums Surge for Residents
Resources
Insurance Fairness Project: Polling – Voters Want Their Government to Address the Property Insurance Crisis
Public Citizen and the Revolving Door Project: Mapping the Home Insurance Crisis
Consumer Federation of America: Overburdened: The Dramatic Increase in Homeowners Insurance Premiums and its Impacts on American Homeowners
Brookings Institution: Homeowners insurance in an era of climate change
Revolving Door Project: Trump disaster policy tracker:Timeline and Map
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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.
