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Lessons from Colorado - Underinsurance, Rates, and Mitigation
This is a follow-up to last month’s discussion of underinsurance. In Jan-2026, Rocky Mountain PBS published an excellent 27-min video with several topics pertinent to Portola Valley. First, they cover a couple who lost their home in the 2021 Marshall Fire near Boulder, Colorado. It took 5 years to rebuild, and they were underinsured by $1M.
Next, the video explains why Colorado insurance rates have climbed so fast. Colorado is a dual-hazard state: they have increasing occurrences of wildfires and extreme hailstorms. As in California, insurers are exiting the Rocky Mountain state so quickly that legislators created a Colorado FAIR plan. Their FAIR plan maxes out at $750,000.
Finally, the video interviews a couple in Boulder County that worked with their fire district’s Wildfire Partners to mitigate their ridge-top home. Not only did their insurance get renewed, but a few months later, the 2024 Stone Canyon Fire died out when it reached their defensible space. The 1,553 acre fire had originated in a house on a parallel ridge about a mile from their home. All 13 homes that had mitigated survived the fire, and the 5 that did not mitigate were destroyed.
There are many good lessons in this PBS episode; please watch it to learn about underinsurance, climbing insurance rates, and mitigation that worked.
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