08/27/2024 | News release | Distributed by Public on 08/27/2024 12:19
CBO analyzes recent changes in property insurance markets and considers alternative insurance products as well as policy approaches to increase the availability and affordability of insurance for homeowners and renters.
Climate change heightens the risks of wildfires and other natural disasters. As insurance payouts for losses sustained in those disasters increase and as uncertainty about future losses grows, people in many high-risk areas have faced difficulty obtaining or affording insurance coverage for their property. As risk and costs increase, premiums will increase as well, which may make insurance less affordable for homeowners. If state regulators do not allow higher premiums, insurers may exit high-risk areas, reducing the availability of insurance.
In this report, the Congressional Budget Office analyzes recent changes in property insurance markets and considers alternative insurance products as well as policy approaches to increase the availability and affordability of insurance for homeowners and renters. The highlights of that analysis include the following: