Mercury General has provided an update regarding the recent wildfires in Southern California, specifically the Palisades and Eaton fires, along with details on their reinsurance program. As of Monday, the company has disbursed $80 million to policyholders, mainly covering living expenses and the contents of homes, and has begun settling housing claims at the Coverage A limit for verified total losses. Mercury states it maintains adequate liquidity to handle the increased payment demands.
The company has not yet decided whether to treat the wildfires as two distinct events. If considered separately, Mercury might opt to utilize reinsurance limits of up to $1.29 billion for the first event, with reinstated limits of up to $1.238 billion available for the second event.
