Brenda Caloca, representing the California Department of Insurance, told Villa Park residents they should document personal property, check hazard-specific coverages and keep insurance-agent contact information current to speed recovery after a disaster.

Caloca emphasized three pre-disaster steps: (1) understand policy exclusions and whether you need separate flood or earthquake insurance (noting a 30-day waiting period for new flood policies); (2) create and maintain a contents inventory with receipts, serial numbers and photos or video; and (3) obtain an updated rebuild (replacement) cost estimate rather than relying solely on market property value. She recommended storing a digital copy of records, for example by emailing receipts and photos to a dedicated account so documents remain accessible if local copies are lost.

Caloca summarized an administrative change that raised the default immediate contents payout insurers must make: regulators previously required a 30% advance of contents coverage and have recently adopted a requirement of 60% as an interim minimum; she said policyholders still receive 100% of contents if they provide a full inventory. She also said an insurance moratorium that prevents cancellation or nonrenewal for disaster victims is triggered by a gubernatorial state of emergency and now can apply to homeowners, commercial and nonprofit policies after the recent legislative updates referenced in the presentation.

On filing claims and complaints, Caloca instructed residents to document damages, keep damaged property where feasible until an insurer inspects it, and file claims promptly. If policyholders have questions or believe a claim is mishandled, the Department of Insurance assigns a compliance officer who can open an inquiry; the insurer typically has about 21 days to respond to that inquiry. The department also deploys Disaster Assistance Response Teams (DART) after major incidents to warn of fraud and provide in-person assistance and to host insurance-support workshops where insurers and consumers may meet.

Caloca provided department contact routes: insurance.ca.gov, a request-for-assistance form that assigns a compliance officer, consumer alerts for updates on grants and programs, and community presentations the department offers for groups of 25 or more.