U.S. states have set up insurers to provide protection in disaster-prone areas that private insurance has avoided. They are taking on more risks as calamities become widespread.

The FAIR Plan, California’s last-resort insurance program for homeowners needing fire coverage, is seeking approval for steep rate hikes averaging 35.8%, though some policyholders could actually see ...

The FAIR Plan is California’s “insurer of last resort,” a state-mandated syndicated insurance plan that offers basic property insurance to those who cannot obtain insurance from a traditional carrier.

In the closing days of the legislative year, California lawmakers sent Gov. Gavin Newsom a bill that is meant to toughen scrutiny of the state’s embattled fire insurer of last resort by insisting that ...