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FAIR Plan · ZIP-level data

Which California ZIP codes have the highest FAIR Plan exposure?

The California FAIR Plan is the state's insurer-of-last-resort — a syndicate of admitted carriers required by statute to write basic property coverage in ZIP codes the open market has abandoned. FAIR Plan penetration is the share of homeowners in a ZIP whose primary homeowners coverage is written through this plan rather than through a standard admitted carrier like State Farm or Farmers.

High penetration is a leading indicator: it tells you a neighborhood has been redlined by wildfire risk modeling, that admitted-carrier non-renewals have been concentrated there, and that any claim filed under the FAIR Plan will be handled under its narrower coverage forms and stricter scope rules. The directory below indexes every California ZIP we currently track at 5% penetration or above, with a separate page for each one.

84

ZIP codes indexed

31.8%

Avg. FAIR Plan penetration

Los Angeles

Highest-exposure county

112,510

FAIR Plan policies (2024)

Why ZIP-level data matters more than statewide averages

Statewide, the FAIR Plan accounts for roughly 5% of California homeowner policies. Inside the ZIPs below, that share runs from 5% to over 40%. Two homes a mile apart can sit in completely different insurance markets — one with three admitted carriers competing for the policy, the other with the FAIR Plan as the only practical option. When a fire, smoke, or water claim hits, that distinction changes everything: the coverage form, the adjuster pool, the dispute process, and the leverage available to the policyholder.

Each ZIP page below shows the most recent California Department of Insurance figures for that area, year-over-year change, named admitted carriers still writing new policies there, recent disaster activity, and the specific claim disputes our team is seeing on the ground. If you cannot find your ZIP here, browse our broader city directory or read the 2025 Aliff ruling explainer for the legal context now reshaping how FAIR Plan smoke claims must be handled.

Los Angeles County

12 ZIPs · 20,710 FAIR Plan policies

San Diego County

9 ZIPs · 13,278 FAIR Plan policies

San Bernardino County

5 ZIPs · 11,789 FAIR Plan policies

Butte County

3 ZIPs · 10,215 FAIR Plan policies

Riverside County

7 ZIPs · 9,122 FAIR Plan policies

Napa County

6 ZIPs · 7,806 FAIR Plan policies

Orange County

6 ZIPs · 6,304 FAIR Plan policies

Sonoma County

3 ZIPs · 6,212 FAIR Plan policies

Santa Cruz County

5 ZIPs · 4,410 FAIR Plan policies

Santa Clara County

3 ZIPs · 4,154 FAIR Plan policies

Lake County

5 ZIPs · 3,702 FAIR Plan policies

Santa Barbara County

2 ZIPs · 3,504 FAIR Plan policies

Ventura County

1 ZIP · 2,186 FAIR Plan policies

Mariposa County

3 ZIPs · 1,618 FAIR Plan policies

Plumas County

2 ZIPs · 1,452 FAIR Plan policies

Contra Costa County

2 ZIPs · 1,136 FAIR Plan policies

Madera County

1 ZIP · 1,086 FAIR Plan policies

Sacramento County

1 ZIP · 1,086 FAIR Plan policies

El Dorado County

2 ZIPs · 1,024 FAIR Plan policies

San Mateo County

2 ZIPs · 672 FAIR Plan policies

Trinity County

2 ZIPs · 616 FAIR Plan policies

Calaveras County

1 ZIP · 286 FAIR Plan policies

Amador County

1 ZIP · 142 FAIR Plan policies

How we built this directory

The figures here come from the California Department of Insurance's annual FAIR Plan market share filings, cross-referenced against county assessor housing-unit counts to produce the penetration percentage. We update this dataset when the CDI releases new annual numbers and after major disaster declarations that materially shift exposure in a given ZIP. We only publish a dedicated ZIP page when penetration crosses 5% — below that threshold, the page would tell you very little you couldn't get from a generic FAIR Plan explainer.

Penetration is not the same as risk. A ZIP with 30% FAIR Plan penetration is signaling that admitted carriers have stepped back, but plenty of homes inside that ZIP still carry admitted-market policies. The directory is a starting point, not a verdict on your coverage. The fastest way to know what you actually have is to read your declarations page — or send it to us and we'll read it for you.

Related FAIR Plan reading

Don't see your ZIP? FAIR Plan penetration data is published in arrears and we add new ZIPs as the CDI files updated numbers. In the meantime, a free written claim review covers any California ZIP regardless of whether it appears in this index.

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PolicyholderAid is an independent educational publication. We are not a law firm and content here is not legal advice. Free claim reviews will be facilitated through our affiliated California public adjuster firm. Past results do not guarantee future outcomes.