Fire season in the West is getting longer, more severe and costlier, impacting both the availability and affordability of home insurance in Idaho.
Recent data released by the US Senate shows that 3,100 individual policies were not renewed in the state in 2023.
“Almost every day now we get calls from individuals whose homeowner's insurance is going up dramatically, or their homeowner's insurance is dropping coverage.” said Department of Insurance Director Dean Cameron, speaking at a press conference to discuss Gov. Brad Little’s Wildfire Report.
“We have 91 insurance companies in Idaho who sell homeowners insurance,” he said. “In 2023, 22 of those companies asked to discontinue or non-renew individual policies.”
Two Idaho counties, Blaine and Boise, had some of the highest non-renewal rates among counties nationwide, according to the Senate data.
This is happening as the state population continues to grow.
“Consequently, we're seeing more human caused fires and more growth in the wildland urban interface than we've seen before,” said Department of Lands Director Dustin Miller at the same event.
