In San Diego County, 62,683 homeowners policies were not renewed in 2023, 9.5% of those that came up for renewal, and FAIR Plan policies went from 10,614 in 2020 to 22,320 in 2023, by Department of Insurance counts. California law gives you 75 days' written notice with the reason. Fire, earthquake and flood are three separate decisions here, and only fire is in a standard homeowners policy.
What the county numbers show
The Department of Insurance publishes homeowners policy counts by county. For San Diego County in 2023 it shows 597,398 policies renewed and 62,683 not renewed, which works out to 9.5% of the policies up for renewal, against 9.4% statewide. That count includes owners who sold, switched or stopped paying as well as insurers that chose to leave a home.
The clearer signal is the residual market. FAIR Plan policies in the county (new plus renewed) were 10,614 in 2020 and 22,320 in 2023, more than double. Difference-in-conditions policies, the companion policy a FAIR Plan owner buys elsewhere, went from 6,702 to 17,944 over the same years. You can look up a single ZIP code in the non-renewal lookup on this site.
Your rights when the notice arrives
California Insurance Code section 678 requires a homeowners insurer to deliver or mail a notice of non-renewal at least 75 days before the policy expires, and the notice has to give the specific reason or reasons. If the notice goes out late, the policy stays in force on the same terms for 75 days from the day it was delivered or mailed. The notice must also tell you that the Department of Insurance can review the decision if talking to the insurer gets nowhere, and it must point you to the Department's Home Insurance Finder and to the FAIR Plan.
Separately, section 675.1 bars an insurer from cancelling or non-renewing a residential policy for one year after a declared wildfire emergency, in any ZIP code inside or next to the fire perimeter, when the only reason is that a wildfire happened there. The Commissioner names the ZIP codes in a bulletin. San Diego County has been on that list before: the September 2020 Valley Fire bulletin named sixteen ZIP codes, 91901 and 91935 among them, and the September 2024 Airport Fire bulletin reached 92028 and 92055 at the county's northern edge. Both years have run out, and as of November 2026 the Department's list shows no later order for a San Diego County fire. How the moratorium works.
Wildfire: the map, the history and the discounts
Underwriters remember two fires here. CAL FIRE's record of the Cedar Fire, which started on October 25, 2003, shows 273,246 acres, 2,820 structures destroyed and 14 civilian deaths. The Witch Fire started on October 21, 2007 in the Witch Creek area east of Ramona and burned 197,990 acres and 1,711 structures. Both started in late October, and they are why a home's distance to open canyon matters more to a carrier than its ZIP code.
The State Fire Marshal issued new recommended Fire Hazard Severity Zone maps for the City of San Diego on March 24, 2025, and the city's updated map took effect on August 30, 2025. A city may add to the state's zones but may not lower them. The Fire Marshal is plain that these maps measure hazard, not risk, and ignore home hardening and brush work; insurers use their own models, so being outside the zone is not a promise of an easy renewal, and being inside is not an automatic decline.
What you can change is the house. Under California's Safer from Wildfires framework, the Department lists the measures that earn a discount: a Class A roof, a five-foot ember-resistant zone including the fence where it meets the house, ember-resistant vents, six inches of noncombustible material at the base of the walls, enclosed eaves, multi-paned windows, a cleared area under decks, sheds moved thirty feet away, defensible space, and a Firewise USA community. The FAIR Plan gives mitigation discounts too.
FAIR Plan plus a difference-in-conditions policy
The California FAIR Plan calls itself an insurer of last resort and a temporary solution for owners who cannot buy from a traditional insurer. Its dwelling policy takes owner-occupied homes of one to four units, rentals and condominium unit owners. It is a named-peril policy:
- CoveredFire and lightning, internal explosion and smoke. Vandalism can be added.
- Not coveredWater damage, theft and liability. Those come from a difference-in-conditions policy, which the FAIR Plan does not sell.
- LimitA Commissioner's order raised the combined dwelling policy limit to three million in 2020. A home that costs more to rebuild needs an excess layer above it.
My job is to try the standard market first, then line up the FAIR Plan, the DIC policy and any excess so the dates and limits match and the lender gets one clean evidence of insurance.
Rose Canyon fault, bluffs and the 2024 flood
Earthquake. The California Geological Survey issued revised Alquist-Priolo fault zone maps in September 2021 for the Rose Canyon Fault, which comes onshore at Coronado, crosses the San Diego area to the northwest and goes back offshore near La Jolla. Being in a zone must be disclosed when a home is sold. A homeowners policy does not pay for earthquake damage; state law requires your insurer to offer the coverage, often as a California Earthquake Authority policy, which is sold only through CEA's participating insurers, with deductibles from 5 to 25 percent of the dwelling limit. Earthquake insurance in California.
Coastal bluffs. The city's municipal code sets new buildings and additions back at least 40 feet from the coastal bluff edge, or 25 to 40 feet where a geology report supports it. Insurance treats bluff retreat as earth movement, which homeowners forms exclude, so a bluff-top home needs that gap addressed on its own. Landslide and mudflow coverage.
Flood. On January 22, 2024 the city recorded 2.72 inches of rain at the airport, which the National Weather Service ranked as the fourth wettest day on record, and hundreds of people were rescued from homes in Mountain View and Southcrest. Flood is not in a homeowners policy or a FAIR Plan policy. It is a separate policy, from the National Flood Insurance Program or a private insurer, and an NFIP policy normally starts 30 days after you buy it.
What I need to quote
The address, year built, square footage, roof material and the year it was replaced, any updates to wiring, plumbing and heating, claims in the last five years, how title is held, and the date coverage has to start. Send the non-renewal notice or renewal offer with the current declarations page; the stated reason tells me which carriers to approach first. Photos of the roof, vents and the first five feet around the house help when wildfire is the issue.
Common questions
Who insures homes in San Diego after a non-renewal?
Admitted carriers still write many San Diego homes, surplus lines insurers take some they decline, and the California FAIR Plan with a difference-in-conditions policy is the fallback. Which one fits depends on the parcel's wildfire exposure, the roof and the claims history.
How much notice does an insurer have to give before non-renewing a home policy in California?
At least 75 days before the policy expires, in writing, with the specific reason. If the notice is late, the policy continues unchanged for 75 days from the date it was sent.
Is my San Diego ZIP code under a wildfire non-renewal moratorium?
As of November 2026 the Department of Insurance list shows no order in force for a San Diego County fire; the 2020 Valley Fire and 2024 Airport Fire orders have expired. Check the Department's moratorium page after any new declared fire.
Does the FAIR Plan cover theft or a burst pipe?
No. The FAIR Plan dwelling policy covers fire, lightning, internal explosion and smoke. Water damage, theft and liability come from a separate difference-in-conditions policy from another insurer.
Do I need earthquake insurance in San Diego?
It is your choice, not a legal requirement, but a homeowners policy will not pay for earthquake damage. The Rose Canyon Fault runs through the city from Coronado to La Jolla, and your insurer must offer you the coverage.
Does homeowners insurance cover flooding like the January 2024 storm?
No. Flood needs its own policy from the National Flood Insurance Program or a private flood insurer, and NFIP coverage usually has a 30-day wait before it starts.
Will hardening my home get my insurance back?
It can help. California's Safer from Wildfires list earns a discount for each measure completed, and a home that was declined before the work may be acceptable to a carrier after it.
General information about home insurance in San Diego city and county as of November 2026, not legal advice. Department of Insurance figures are county counts for 2020 to 2023; fire figures are CAL FIRE incident records. Moratorium orders, fire hazard maps and carrier appetite change, and your policy wording controls what is covered. Coverage depends on underwriting and the terms, conditions and exclusions of the policy actually issued.