California Wildfire Damage Claims

When a utility’s equipment starts a wildfire, California law can make the utility pay for damage to homes and property, even without proof that it was careless.

Under a legal doctrine called inverse condemnation, owners of damaged property can recover from an investor-owned utility whose equipment caused the fire. Other claims, such as negligence, may also apply.

Claims We Review

• Eaton Fire property and smoke damage: homes, rentals, businesses, smoke and ash damage, landscaping and trees, and losses insurance did not cover.

What Wildfire Damages Can Include

• The cost to repair or rebuild, or the loss in value
• Smoke, soot and ash cleanup and remediation
• Trees, landscaping and outbuildings
• Personal property
• Business interruption and lost rental income
• Losses beyond what insurance paid, including deductibles and amounts over policy limits

Frequently Asked Questions

My insurance already paid. Can I still make a claim?

Usually, yes, for losses insurance did not cover. Your insurer may have its own claim against the utility for what it paid.

I rent my home. Do I have a claim?

Renters may have claims for personal property, displacement and other losses.