A mother in the San Diego area says she was stunned after her homeowners insurance premium jumped by 350% in a single year — even though she had turned to California’s insurer of last resort for coverage.
Chrystal Nowakowski, a Vista-based real estate agent, said Farmers Insurance dropped her after she filed multiple claims, prompting her to seek a policy through the California FAIR Plan in 2023.
At first, the state-backed coverage cost about $900 annually. But by late December 2025, Nowakowski said she opened a bill showing her yearly premium had surged to around $4,000.
“It was when I opened up that piece of mail and I, you know, I was like, what? It’s insanity. They basically told me that my fire zone rating went from a zero to two and that was the biggest factor, but that they also had to adjust for inflation,” she told ABC10.
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The California FAIR Plan serves as a last-resort insurance option and operates as a private association made up of insurers licensed to conduct business in the state.
Its purpose is to offer “basic fire insurance coverage for high-risk properties when traditional insurance companies will not.”
Nowakowski said she challenged the increase and managed to lower the premium to $3,000, though she added that she was told costs could rise again by 30% to 50% in October.
The California FAIR Plan declined to discuss Nowakowski’s individual situation with ABC10, but it confirmed that regulators approved an average 29.1% rate hike set to take effect in October.
Officials noted that homeowners in areas facing greater wildfire risk could see premium hikes that exceed the statewide average.
California homeowners typically pay around $1335 for insurance but homes in high-risk wildfire zones have to pay significantly more, according to Hippo Insurance Services.
In recent years, FAIR Plan enrollment has nearly tripled and insurance premiums have also increased by 84% from 2020 to March 2026, according to a research conducted by Stanford.
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