Scorching Premiums: Climate Costs Hit Insurance Market

Climate One

News, Social Sciences, News Commentary, Science, Earth Sciences

4.7 • 583 Ratings

🗓️ 1 August 2025

⏱️ 64 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Climate disruptions and growing risk are upending insurance markets, leading many insurers to abandon parts of the country all together. Due to fires, floods and other extreme events, more and more homeowners are facing rapidly rising premiums or being dropped from their insurance plans altogether. Increasing numbers of homeowners are taking refuge in the state insurance plans of last resort, straining the program resources. For homeowners, whose house is often their biggest financial asset, this creates a huge financial risk. So what should people do to evaluate climate risks and insurance availability during their housing search? And how can governments help insurers weather the increasing frequency of climate-induced disasters so they can continue to underwrite our homes? Guests: Rachel Cleetus, Senior Policy Director, Union of Concerned Scientists Claire O’Connor, Los Angeles real estate agent and homeowner Dave Jones, Director, Climate Risk Initiative at the Center for Law, Energy & the Environment, UC Berkeley This episode also includes a news feature produced by Camryn Sanchez of KJZZ in Phoenix. Support Climate One by going ad-free! By subscribing to Climate One on Patreon, you’ll receive exclusive access to all future episodes free of ads, opportunities to connect with fellow Climate One listeners, and access to the Climate One Discord. Sign up today. For show notes and related links, visit our website. Ad sales by Multitude. Contact them for ad inquiries at multitude.productions/ads Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	Hi, just leave and work now. Sorry, it's a bit loud.
0:03.3	Um, basically, so I was thinking we could get Macies tonight. Had a big Mac on my mind all day, and delivery fee on the app is now from 99P. So you win? Of course you are. Love you. Bye! Exclusively on the McDonald's app. 18 plus, service fee and small order fee may apply. Participating restaurants. Serving times and teas and seas apply.
0:25.7	300 years of expertise in every twining sleep blend.
0:30.0	100 hours of craft in every cup.
0:34.0	Eight natural ingredients in every sip.
0:40.8	One night of winding down in every drop. Your moment of serenity.
0:47.9	Brought to you by twining sleep. Twinings. Alive in every drop.
0:54.7	I'm Ariana Brocious. I'm Kushan Avidar.
0:56.2	And this is Climate 1.
1:00.9	I've been seeing so many news reports lately about how quickly and dramatically the cost of homeowners
1:06.9	insurance is going up.
1:08.6	One study found premiums rose 33% between 2020 and
1:12.7	2023, and there's a clear reason why. It's the climate. Human-caused climate change is making
1:19.6	extreme weather more intense and more frequent all across the country, and globe, really,
1:25.5	from floods to wildfires to hugely powerful windstorms and
1:29.7	more. And insurers are reacting to that increased risk. Not just by raising rates, which in most
1:37.3	states they can do with impunity, but also by not renewing policies. That's leaving increasing
1:42.6	numbers of homeowners without insurance. A couple
1:45.8	climate one staffers have already been dropped by their home insurance company at least once.
1:50.0	And it's easy to assume the places where policies are being canceled or are super risky or rural
1:56.0	places, but that's not always true. Later in this episode, we'll hear from an L.A. resident who lived near Sunset Boulevard,
2:03.4	who lost her insurance last year.
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Climate One, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Climate One and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.