SB 495 has already changed California home policies: Chapter 542 was approved on October 10, 2025, the law has applied since January 1, 2026, and policy forms issued or renewed on and after July 1, 2026 must comply. SB 876, Chapter 656, was approved on September 27, 2026, and its new rules become operative January 1, 2028, including for policies originated or renewed on or after that date. This page states what each statute actually says, and what to look for on a renewal.
Some insurers are sending policyholders notices about these changes. The notice is not the statute. The two bills below are the source, and the quotations are taken from the chaptered text on California Legislative Information. Questions about a renewal you already have in hand can go to 209-670-1556.
Source: SB 495, Chapter 542 and SB 876, Chapter 656, on leginfo.legislature.ca.gov.
| Topic | SB 495 (in effect now) | SB 876 (starting 2028) |
|---|---|---|
| When it applies | Approved October 10, 2025. In effect since January 1, 2026. Policy forms issued or renewed on and after July 1, 2026 must comply. Ins. Code §2051.5(e), §10103.7(c). | Approved September 27, 2026. Provisions operative January 1, 2028. §2071(e) governs policies originated or renewed on or after that date. |
| Contents after an emergency total loss | If a furnished primary home is a covered total loss in a declared state of emergency, the insurer must offer at least 60 percent of the personal-property limit, up to $350,000, without an itemized claim. §10103.7(b)(1). | SB 876 does not rewrite that contents offer. |
| Itemizing for more | The insured can still file for amounts above that payment, up to the contents limit. The insurer must explain both options and may require a signed attestation. §10103.7(b)(2), (b)(3), (b)(5). | Not a new SB 876 rule. |
| Proof of loss | After an emergency loss, proof of loss cannot be required sooner than 100 days, with extensions of three months for good cause. §2051.5(b)(3). | The operative 2028 text of §2051.5 keeps that 100-day rule. |
| Additional living expenses | Not the subject of SB 495's amendments. | A written ALE list (electronic delivery allowed). After an emergency loss, ALE of at least 24 months, with an extension up to 36 months, plus 15 calendar days after the home is habitable. §2060. |
| Extended replacement cost | Not a new SB 495 offer rule. | Required offer of at least 50 percent above the primary dwelling limit, if the property is eligible. A decline is noted on the declarations page. §10103.2. |
| Code upgrades if you rebuild elsewhere | Earlier law already barred a form from denying code-upgrade or replacement cost solely because you rebuild or buy elsewhere. | For a policy issued, amended, or renewed on or after January 1, 2028, code-upgrade pay when rebuilding elsewhere includes the costs that would have applied if the home had been rebuilt at the original location. §2051.5(c)(1). |
| Rebuild-cost estimate | Not expanded by SB 495. | Every other year at renewal, and the duty now includes a California FAIR Plan policy when replacement cost is available and the limit is under the program maximum. §10103.4. |
| Who you call on an emergency claim | Not a new SB 495 contact rule. | A primary point of contact within 30 calendar days after notice of the claim. §14047. A toll-free number within 15 calendar days. §10103.8. |
| Penalties and reporting | Adds Insurance Code §§937 through 937.5: admitted insurers report reinsurance placement and catastrophe-model use to the Department of Insurance. The commissioner posts an aggregated report. Company-level reports stay confidential. | Higher civil penalties for unfair practices tied to a state of emergency. §790.035. |
The chaptered heading on the SB 495 page reads “Senate Bill No. 495 CHAPTER 542,” and the enacting line says the bill was approved by the Governor on October 10, 2025, and filed with the Secretary of State the same day. The consumer rules are in Insurance Code §2051.5 and §10103.7. Sections 937 through 937.5 are a separate reporting duty aimed at the Department of Insurance, not a line on your declarations page.
“On and after July 1, 2026, all policy forms issued or renewed by an insurer shall comply with this section in its entirety, including the changes made to this section by the act that added this paragraph.”
Insurance Code §2051.5(e) and §10103.7(c), SB 495 (Ch. 542, Stats. 2025)After a covered total loss of a furnished primary dwelling in a state of emergency, as defined in Government Code §8558, the contents rule is in §10103.7(b).
“the insurer shall offer a payment under the contents (personal property) coverage in an amount no less than 60 percent of the policy limit applicable to the personal property covered under the policy, up to a maximum of three hundred fifty thousand dollars ($350,000), without requiring the insured to file an itemized claim.”
Insurance Code §10103.7(b)(1), SB 495That payment is an offer, not a ceiling on the claim. Paragraph (b)(2) says that after receiving it, “the insured may recover additional amounts up to the policy limit for contents coverage by filing a claim.” Paragraph (b)(3) says the insurer “shall notify the insured of the option to receive payment for loss of contents pursuant to paragraph (1) and of the insured’s option to subsequently file a full itemized claim pursuant to paragraph (2).” Paragraph (b)(5) says that “as a condition of receiving the advance payment,” the insurer “may require the insured sign an attestation form” acknowledging that the residence was furnished and that the insured reasonably believes the damaged or destroyed personal property had a value that equates to or exceeded the advance. Scheduled personal property is untouched by subdivision (b)(4).
“In the event of a loss relating to a state of emergency, as defined in Section 8558 of the Government Code, an insurer shall not require the insured to provide proof of loss less than 100 days after the loss.”
Insurance Code §2051.5(b)(3)(A), SB 495Subdivision (b)(3)(B) then requires “one or more additional extensions of three months for submission of proof of loss for good cause” when the insured, acting in good faith and with reasonable diligence, hits a delay beyond the insured’s control. The statute lists examples, including insurer delay in acknowledging the claim, a contents inventory that is premature because construction of the primary structure has not started, unavailable contractors, disability of the insured, and inability to access the property because of government action or hazardous materials.
Sections 937 to 937.5 require an admitted insurer, in a group that meets the bill’s written-premium threshold for the listed property lines, to submit a reinsurance and catastrophe-model report to the commissioner on or before March 1, 2026, and each March 1 after that (§937.1). The commissioner posts an aggregated report that does not identify an individual insurer (§937.3). The underlying company reports are confidential (§937.2).
The SB 876 page is headed “Senate Bill No. 876 CHAPTER 656” and says the bill was approved by the Governor on September 27, 2026. The Legislative Counsel’s digest states: “This bill would make its provisions operative on January 1, 2028.”
“The amendments to this section made by Senate Bill 876 of the 2025–26 Regular Session shall govern a policy utilizing the form provided in subdivision (a) when that policy is originated or renewed on or after January 1, 2028.”
Insurance Code §2071(e), SB 876 (Ch. 656)The added sections use the same date in their own words: “This section shall become operative on January 1, 2028.” That sentence appears on the new text of §2060, §10103.2, §10103.4, §10103.8, §14047, §790.035, and §2051.5.
The operative text of §2060(a)(1) requires a written list of items the insurer believes may be covered as additional living expenses, and it may be sent as an electronic document. After a covered loss relating to a state of emergency, §2060(b)(1) says coverage for additional living expenses, loss of use, fair rental value, or similar coverage “shall be for a period of no less than 24 months from the inception of the loss,” and the insurer “shall grant an extension of up to 12 additional months, for a total of 36 months,” when reconstruction is delayed by circumstances beyond the insured’s control. Subdivision (b)(3) adds the move-back window:
“shall extend 15 calendar days beyond the date upon which the premises is deemed habitable for the insured to make the necessary arrangements to move back into the premises.”
Insurance Code §2060(b)(3), SB 876Section 2060(d) also says a homeowners policy with a dollar limit on additional living expenses shall not be issued or renewed unless the applicant is offered extended additional living expense coverage “in an amount of no less than 50 percent of coverage above the underlying policy limits for additional living expenses,” with the premium charge for that extra coverage. Subdivision (e) limits the section to the insured’s primary dwelling.
“A residential property insurance policy shall not be issued or renewed in this state unless the applicant or insured is offered extended replacement cost coverage, as defined in Section 10102, in an amount of no less than 50 percent of coverage above the policy limits for the primary dwelling.”
Insurance Code §10103.2(a), SB 876If you decline, §10103.2(b) says the insurer “shall record acknowledgment of the declination and identify the declination on the declaration page of the policy that extended replacement cost coverage of at least 50 percent was offered and is being declined.” Subdivision (d) limits the duty to properties eligible for replacement cost coverage. The section is operative January 1, 2028.
Section 2051.5(c)(1) in the text that becomes operative January 1, 2028 says that, notwithstanding a provision in a policy issued, amended, or renewed on or after that date, if you rebuild at a new location or buy an already built home at a new location, “the building code upgrade cost payable shall include all costs that would have been incurred if the insured structure been completely rebuilt at its original location.” The measure of indemnity still cannot exceed what it would have cost to rebuild at the original location, up to the policy limits.
Section 10103.4(a) requires an insurer that provides replacement cost coverage to give, every other year at renewal, “an estimate of the cost necessary to rebuild or replace the insured structure.” Subdivision (c) is the FAIR Plan sentence:
“This section also applies to a residential property insurance policy provided by the California FAIR Plan Association if replacement cost coverage is available under the policy and the policy limit being offered or provided is less than the maximum combined policy limit available under this program.”
Insurance Code §10103.4(c), SB 876How the FAIR Plan and a difference-in-conditions policy fit together is covered in California FAIR Plan for homeowners and home insurance in a wildfire zone.
Section 14047(a) says that if a residential property claim relates to a state of emergency, “the insurer shall assign a primary point of contact within 30 calendar days from the date the notice of claim is provided to the insurer.” If a later point of contact is assigned, a written status report is due within 15 calendar days of that assignment.
Section 10103.8(d)(1) says that no later than 15 calendar days from the date the insurer received notice of the claim, the insurer provides the claimant with a copy of the most recent notice described in §14046 and “a toll-free telephone number that an affected claimant may call for answers to questions, including questions about the claim and coverage under the policy.”
The version of §790.035 that becomes operative January 1, 2028 keeps the ordinary ceiling and adds a higher range when the act relates to a state of emergency. Subdivision (b) says a person who engages in an unfair method or an unfair or deceptive act “relating to a state of emergency” is liable for a civil penalty “of no less than five thousand dollars ($5,000) for each act, not to exceed ten thousand dollars ($10,000) for each act, or, if the act or practice was willful, a civil penalty of no less than ten thousand dollars ($10,000) for each act, not to exceed twenty thousand dollars ($20,000) for each act.” Those penalties run to the state. The section does not create a private right of action.
Source: the same two chaptered bills, SB 495 bill text and SB 876 bill text.
A renewal notice is easier to read next to the declarations page. Call and we will walk through the limits, the extended replacement cost line, and whether a FAIR Plan estimate is part of the file.
Get a Quote Call 209-670-1556La misma explicación, en español, con las citas de la SB 495 y la SB 876: aseguranza de casa y seguro de hogar.
Senate Bill 495 is Chapter 542 of the Statutes of 2025. The chaptered bill says it was approved by the Governor on October 10, 2025, and filed with the Secretary of State the same day. It has applied since January 1, 2026. A later date is written into the statute for the paperwork. Insurance Code §2051.5(e) and §10103.7(c) each say: “On and after July 1, 2026, all policy forms issued or renewed by an insurer shall comply with this section in its entirety, including the changes made to this section by the act that added this paragraph.”
Section 10103.7(b)(1), as amended by SB 495, says that after a covered total loss of a primary dwelling resulting from a state of emergency, if the residence was furnished, the insurer shall offer a contents payment of no less than 60 percent of the personal-property limit, up to a maximum of $350,000, without an itemized claim. You can still itemize for more, up to the contents limit (§10103.7(b)(2)). The insurer must tell you about both options (§10103.7(b)(3)) and may require a signed attestation (§10103.7(b)(5)).
Section 2051.5(b)(3)(A) says that in the event of a loss relating to a state of emergency, an insurer shall not require proof of loss less than 100 days after the loss. Subdivision (b)(3)(B) requires one or more additional extensions of three months for good cause if you, acting in good faith and with reasonable diligence, encounter a delay beyond your control.
SB 876, Chapter 656, was approved on September 27, 2026. The digest says its provisions are operative on January 1, 2028. Section 2071(e) says those standard-form amendments govern a policy originated or renewed on or after January 1, 2028. The new text of §§2060, 10103.2, 10103.4, 10103.8, 14047, 790.035, and 2051.5 each says the section becomes operative on January 1, 2028.
Section 10103.2(a), operative January 1, 2028, says a residential property policy shall not be issued or renewed unless you are offered extended replacement cost coverage of no less than 50 percent above the policy limits for the primary dwelling, together with the premium charge for that coverage. If you decline, §10103.2(b) requires the insurer to record the declination and identify it on the declarations page. The duty applies only if the property is eligible for replacement cost coverage (§10103.2(d)).
Yes, when the statute’s conditions are met. Section 10103.4, operative January 1, 2028, requires a rebuild or replace estimate every other year at renewal for an insurer that provides replacement cost coverage. Subdivision (c) says the section also applies to a California FAIR Plan policy if replacement cost coverage is available and the limit being offered or provided is less than the maximum combined policy limit available under the program.
Licensed staff at our Stockton, San Jose, and San Rafael offices can walk through a declarations page by phone.
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