BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) — In a visit to Bakersfield, current State Senator Ben Allen \u2013 who is running for insurance commissioner \u2013 said that although he’s vying for a statewide job, he’ll be fighting for the Central Valley.\u00a0<\/p>\n
“I want to make sure that folks here in Bakersfield and all over know that I’m here listening. I’m paying attention,” Allen said in a one-on-one interview with 17 News. “I want to work with them on solutions because I see how much lack of insurance, insurance affordability (is) starting to squeeze the economy here too.”\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Allen’s visit to Bakersfield comes at the November Midterm Election is just days away and Kern County, along with much of the Central Valley, will be faced with rising insurance premiums due to ongoing elevated wildlife risks in the region.\u00a0<\/p>\n
According to a study by the Coalition for the Insurable Future, some inland California counties\u00a0 will see the highest premium hikes by 2035, Kern County is anticipated to see home insurance premium rates rise between 44 and 94% annually. That means that Kern County residents could end up paying between $796 to $1,694 more annually in their home insurance premiums in just nine years.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u00a0Watch 17 News, After Sunrise and more local news free on your smart TV. Click to learn more about KGET+\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n Not only have private insurance agencies raised the price of insurance across California, but more insurers are pulling back from or stopped writing new policies to Californians due to regulatory barriers, the expense of reinsurance costs and pricey premiums across the board.\u00a0<\/p>\n Allen, a Democrat from Los Angeles who represents the Santa Monica area, said California “needs to incentivize” and make the insurance sector in the state “more competitive.”\u00a0<\/p>\n “It’s everything from improving practices within the department, speeding up the rate review process, beefing up the enforcement division, opening up an Office of New Business to attract more business in the state, speed up the approvals of allowing tried and true insurance products that have worked well in other states to come into our state, but also getting us aligning better with regards to risk reduction,” Allen said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Despite the hurdles of soaring costs, Allen said there is “a lot of really good work happening” to combat the issue statewide.\u00a0<\/p>\n “It’s about really trying to make sure we’re rowing in the same direction that the insurance industry is actually rewarding and incentivizing real investments in communities and as individuals, and farms and commercial entities to reduce their risk,” he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Allen said a main reason he wants to step away from the State Senate and run for the insurance commissioner role is because he saw not only the destruction of the Los Angeles wildfires from January 2025 that scorched thousands of acres in his district, but he also saw how his constituents were impacted by the lack of insurance and being underinsured as a result.\u00a0<\/p>\n During that time, he said there were “some pretty lousy business practices by the insurance industry” and saw “the dysfunction of the system up close.”\u00a0<\/p>\n Allen had spent several days in the Central Valley, namely Fresno, before coming to Bakersfield to help bolster his campaign and tell residents why they should vote for him, over his Democratic opponent, Jane Kim.\u00a0<\/p>\n