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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
World
Andrew Gumbel in Los Angeles

‘Delays, lowballs, outright denials’: how the LA wildfires have exposed the US’s broken insurance industry

an aerial view of empty lots
A home under construction surrounded by empty lots, in Altadena, California, on 29 December 2025. Photograph: Patrick T Fallon/AFP/Getty Images

For a few frenetic days last January, after losing their midcentury ranch home to the wildfires that ravaged Los Angeles, Jessica and Matt Conkle thought they could see a glimmer of hope.

Their insurance company, State Farm, had sent emergency response teams to Altadena, where they lived, and they filed a claim right away. It wasn’t long before they received a check that covered four months of living expenses.

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