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State Sen. Ben Allen, D-Santa Monica, and former San Francisco Supervisor Jane Kim both agree that California’s property insurance market needs fixing.
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But in a debate Thursday, the candidates for the state’s next insurance commissioner showcased what is a defining difference in their race: How far they want that change to go.
“The truth is I’m not actually really running against Ben Allen,” said Kim, a Democrat. “I’m running against the status quo.”
That status quo has been marked by a drumbeat of devastating fires in recent years and increasing worries about more in the future. It has led to higher prices for coverage, companies cutting back and restricting the number of policies they offer and more people turning to the California FAIR Plan, the state-created last resort insurance provider.
A main pillar of Kim’s campaign is calling for the creation of a public disaster insurance program, where all Californians would be in one pool and pay premiums based on property value or risk.
Allen said he too is for bold and aggressive ideas, but not in the way Kim is suggesting. He wants to speed up the time it takes the California Department of Insurance to review requests by companies to change their rates and enhance the state’s wildfire mitigation efforts to reduce the risk of future blazes, incentivize that type of work and bring more insurers back.
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“I’m just not interested in making a set of commitments to you, promises that I have no intention or ability of meeting,” said Allen, who is terming out of the Legislature.
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The job of insurance commissioner is often overlooked and underappreciated, yet it may be one of the most difficult roles that is on the ballot in November. Current Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara has faced intense scrutiny as the state’s insurance market has faltered and has pushed through a series of changes in recent years to try and stabilize it.
Kim said her goal is to redefine what the job is.
“My opponent and I are not running for the same office,” she said. “He is running for what this office used to be. I’m running for what this office could be.”
Her ideas include requiring companies to provide Californians more notice when they do not want to renew policies, pay interest on delayed claims and receive consent to reduce coverage.
Allen said that changes both candidates want to push through will need to go through the Legislature, where he has the experience and connections to get things done.
“I’ve got deep relationships with the legislative leadership,” he said. “It’s about having somebody in this office who’s ready on day one to get to work, helping to fix these vexing, vexing problems.”
Kim countered that if relationships in state government was already lowering premiums, the candidates wouldn’t be having the debate.
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Californians will decide in less than a month: Which approach is better?