Colorado Division of Insurance coverage (DORA) Commissioner Michael Conway has issued a new request to owners insurance coverage corporations to increase Extra Dwelling Bills (ALE) advantages for these affected by the Marshall Hearth on December 30, 2021. This request for additional extensions of ALE protection echoes the issues raised in my weblog publish, The Clock Is Ticking: Understanding the Want for Prolonged ALE Protection After the Colorado Marshall Fires. The November 2023 request comes as many policyholders are nonetheless rebuilding their properties and approaching the two-year anniversary of the fireplace, which marks the expiration of their present ALE advantages. 

Commissioner Conway’s letter emphasizes the urgent timeline and precarious scenario for owners nonetheless rebuilding from the fireplace. 

The Marshall Hearth has been devastating to so many individuals, and as we method the two-year anniversary of the catastrophe, lots of the survivors are nonetheless working to rebuild their properties and put their lives again collectively. . . 

[M]any owners are months away from finishing the rebuilding of their properties. And for these folks, the two-year anniversary may even imply the tip of extra dwelling bills (ALE) advantages, the advantages which have helped to maintain a roof over their heads all through this rebuilding course of. . . 

Realizing the adverse penalties of getting ALE advantages expire compels me as Colorado’s Insurance coverage Commissioner to request that all the insurance coverage corporations with insurance policies within the Marshall Hearth space supply extensions on ALE to the survivors who’re nonetheless within the strategy of rebuilding their properties. Even brief ALE extensions can be significant to folks. . . 

[G]ranting extensions to Marshall Hearth survivors would embody the spirit of laws handed in 2022, particularly HB22-1111 Insurance coverage Protection for Loss Declared Hearth Catastrophe, to empower and help the neighborhood to deal with swift restoration and environment friendly useful resource allocation…

On the finish of 2022, DORA’s first request sought ALE extensions of as much as an extra yr. Commissioner Conway is now advocating for extra shorter extensions, stressing that even brief extensions of ALE advantages would considerably assist owners, particularly when mixed with the Housing Assist Program for Marshall Hearth Survivors not too long ago introduced by the Group Basis of Boulder. The Housing Assist Program, backed by as much as $5 million from the Boulder County Wildfire Fund, might present as much as $2,500 month-to-month to these going through monetary hardship as their ALE advantages expire. This 2023 request by DORA advocating for policyholders is commendable.  

It’s additional value noting DORA’s partnership with United Policyholders in conducting a complete two-year survey to know and tackle the broader challenges confronted by Marshall Hearth survivors. This survey goals to trace progress and establish insurance coverage and wildfire restoration points, constructing upon the information collected from earlier 6- and 12-month surveys.   In case your insurance coverage supplier has not prolonged your ALE protection, or you’re going through challenges securing an extension, please contact our workplace to debate your scenario and choices.