Washington wildfire town hall spotlights home insurance coverage gaps

Washington Insurance Commissioner Patty Kuderer used Medical Lake City Hall to discuss wildfire recovery and home insurance problems in a community still rebuilding from the 2023 Gray fire. The fire burned more than 9,500 acres and destroyed or damaged 240 homes.

Kuderer held the town hall with Medical Lake Mayor Terri Cooper and City Administrator Sonny Weathers.

The discussion covered rebuilding costs, coverage gaps, wildfire readiness, and possible legislation for communities facing similar risks.

Kuderer said her office wants residents to ask questions about insurance. She said state regulators need to hear from homeowners dealing with claims, cancellations, nonrenewals, and limited coverage options.

Cooper said Medical Lake leaders have learned a lot since the Gray fire. The town had to move quickly, spend early, and rely on local networks before larger government support arrived.

Medical Lake spent about $500,000 in the first six months after the fire. Cooper said local governments need money available immediately because disaster response starts the moment the fire hits.

She said people often assume big disasters bring fast big-government help. In Medical Lake, the first response came through supplies, resources, and local coordination.

Weathers described the day the fire approached town. He saw the smoke while at lunch, returned to City Hall, climbed onto the roof, and saw flames coming over the hill.

He then drove to the lake to help evacuate the park area. Fire crews, Washington State Patrol, regional responders, and other agencies moved in as the fire spread quickly near Eastern State Hospital.

Weathers said the town thought it had prepared for the worst. The fire showed officials they did not fully understand what the worst could look like.

Cooper said the local network became one of the clearest lessons. Businesses, neighboring towns, and Inland Northwest residents were among the first to provide firefighting help, supplies, and shelter.

Federal Emergency Management Agency approval for affected homeowners took more than six months. Cooper said the local response gave the town comfort during the county’s worst disaster.

Many homeowners in Medical Lake still face cleanup costs, insurance disputes, and problems finding complete coverage. Some are struggling to find coverage at all.

Kuderer said 32% of people with significant Gray fire damage lost their insurance. Two-thirds were underinsured.

Medical Lake homeowners also saw more cancellations and nonrenewals than the statewide average in 2024, the most recent data available. From 2022 to 2024, nonrenewals rose from 16 per 1,000 policies to 23, while cancellations increased from 3 per 1,000 to 16.

Kuderer said her office is watching the issue closely. She said the Office of the Insurance Commissioner has taken steps to help Washington homeowners find fair insurance policies.

During the last legislative session, Kuderer and Cooper supported two bills that stalled but could return. One bill would require insurers to disclose a property’s wildfire risk score.

The disclosure would also need to explain the reasoning behind the score and steps homeowners could take to improve it. Insurers use those scores to assess wildfire damage risk, including vegetation, topography, and climate trends.

Weathers said homeowners need to know the measuring standard before they can reduce risk. Without that information, they cannot make useful property improvements.

Kuderer also supported a statewide grant program to help retrofit existing homes against wildfire damage. Eligible work could include fire-resistant siding, double-pane windows, and other mitigation projects.

Other states have natural disaster relief programs, but Kuderer said Washington’s proposal would go further. It would prevent insurers from canceling coverage when a homeowner retrofits to industry standards.

She said homeowners who meet those standards should not face cancellation or nonrenewal because of wildfire risk. Cooper said that kind of grant program could have helped Medical Lake residents before and after the fire.

Cooper said the program also could have educated neighborhoods about wildfire resilience before the disaster. She said Medical Lake’s experience still might help other communities facing similar threats.