Hawaii Homes at High Risk for Lava Flows Can Now Get Insurance

The state’s Insurance Division issued a statement this week advising Big Island residents that the Hawaii Property Insurance Association (HPIA) is now accepting all new business applications and coverage increase requests.

“This is an opportunity to safeguard against unexpected property damage,” said Hawaii Insurance Commissioner Gordon Ito. “We want to thank our lawmakers for taking steps to pass legislation to lift the moratorium.”

Act 32, which was signed into law on May 5, 2015, requires HPIA to lift any moratorium on the issuance of residential property insurance within lava zones declared to be under a lava flow-related state of emergency by the Mayor of the County of Hawaii.

According to Ito, the lifting of the moratorium is an opportunity to access property insurance, which was previously restricted due to the Puna lava flow.

Source: Hawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs