Risky Science Podcast

In this week’s episode we are digging into California's insurance market — and specifically, into the fight over who actually owns wildfire risk. Is it the insurers pulling back from high-risk areas? The utilities whose equipment sparks some of these fires? Or the ratepayers and taxpayers left holding the bag when the bill comes due?

To help sort through it, I sat down with California State Senator Ben Allen, who's running for Insurance Commissioner. We got into reinsurance costs, catastrophe models, the FAIR Plan, capital requirements — and where the state's private-market approach diverges from the public alternative his opponent is proposing.

Creators and Guests

Host
Christopher Westfall
Editor, Owner Risk Market News
Guest
Ben Allen
Ben Allen has served as a member of the California State Senate from the 24th district since 2022 and is running for the state's Insurance Commissioner.

What is Risky Science Podcast?

The Risky Science Podcast features conversations with scientists, insurers, investors, portfolio managers, and others about the evolving science of predicting and modeling risk across both natural and man-made perils.