Wildfire victims want insurance chief to resign

L.A.-area residents say Ricardo Lara let State Farm and others run roughshod over them.

- By LAURENCE DARMIENTO

IN ALTADENA on Thursday, fire victims called on Gov. Gavin Newsom to help.

(GENARO MOLINA Los Angeles Times)

Victims of the January wildfires in Los Angeles County urged Gov. Gavin Newsom on Thursday to call for the resignation of California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara, saying the regulator has allowed insurers to run roughshod over them.

Lara, an independently elected state official, was accused at an Altadena news conference of being too closely aligned with the interests of insurers who homeowners say have delayed, denied and lowballed claims, forcing victims to tap retirement accounts and max out credit cards as they fight for their benefits.

“Gov. Newsom, we need your help. Your Palisades constituents have your back. Now is the time for you to have ours,” said Jill Spivack, 59, a Pacific Palisades resident whose home of 25 years burned down but who has yet to start rebuilding.

“You made promises when the cameras were rolling,” Spivack added. “Now we need to see your actions behind those words. Commissioner Lara has proven he won't protect consumers. Please replace him with someone who will.”

The event, attended by several dozen Altadena and Pacific Palisades fire victims, was held by the Eaton Fire Survivors Network and attended by other groups, including the Los Angeles insurance advocacy group Consumer Watchdog, which called on Lara to resign last year.

Joy Chen, executive director of the network, cited recent surveys that found 70% of insured survivors have encountered delays and denials, while 8 in 10 Eaton and Palisades fire survivors are still displaced. The fires damaged or destroyed nearly 13,000 homes.