Tyler Perry is speaking out against insurance company cancellations amid ongoing Los Angeles wildfires, saying the policies are “appalling” and indicative of “pure greed.”
As a number of fires ravaged communities across vast Southern California – the largest of them being the Palisades and Eaton fires – some of those who lost their homes were doubly victimized when they found that several insurers, like State Farm General and Chubb, had either chosen not to renew its policies or stopped writing new ones, particularly for high-value homes with a high risk of wildfires .
“Seeing a girl use a garden hose to try to protect her parents’ 90-year-old home because their insurance was canceled was just heartbreaking,” The Six Triple Eight »wrote the filmmaker on Instagram yesterday. “Does anyone else find it appalling that insurance companies can take billions of dollars out of communities for years and then all of a sudden be allowed to cancel millions of policies for people the same thanks to which they became rich? People who have paid contributions all their lives find themselves with nothing because of pure greed.”
As thousands of people in Los Angeles begin the slow, frustrating and intimidating process of filing insurance claims, California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara recently announced a ban on insurance companies canceling or not renewing insurance policies for homeowners affected by the Palisades and Eaton fires for one year, backdated. October 9.
“Your insurance company should do the right thing and retain you as a valued policyholder,” Lara said, noting that the ban covers a 90-day period between October 9 and January 7, when the Palisades and Eaton fires started.
In Pacific Palisades, about 10% of home and fire insurance policies were not renewed between 2020 and 2022. In Altadena, during the same period, the figure was about 8%.
Perry also said in his post that he was “trying to figure out what steps to take to do everything I can to help as many people as possible,” adding that he was “keeping everyone in my prayers”.
