Tyler Perry Slams Insurance Companies’ ‘Pure Greed’ Amid LA Wildfires

Tyler Perry slammed insurance companies who implemented policy changes ahead of the wildfires that have devastated the greater Los Angeles area.

“Watching a daughter use a garden hose to try and protect her 90-year-old parents’ home because their insurance was canceled was just gut-wrenching to me,” Perry wrote via Instagram on Sunday, January 12.

“Does anyone else find it appalling that insurance companies can take billions of dollars out of communities for years and then, all of a sudden, be allowed to cancel millions of policies for the very people they became rich on?” the filmmaker continued. “People who have paid premiums all of their lives are left with nothing because of pure greed.”

He concluded, “As I am in the process of trying to figure out what steps to take to do all I can to help as many as I can, I am keeping everyone in my prayers.”

According to the Los Angeles Times, State Farm General, the largest home insurer in California, announced in March 2024 it would not be renewing 30,000 home and condominium policies when they expired — 1,600 of which were located in the Pacific Palisades.

Per the Times, insurance company Chubb stopped writing new policies for high-value homes designated to be at high risk for wildfires, while Allstate also stopped writing new policies.

Tens of thousands of people have been displaced by the wildfires that began a path of destruction through Los Angeles the morning of Tuesday, January 7, when high winds sparked fast-moving brush fires through the Pacific Palisades. The fires have since spread to surrounding neighborhoods, including Malibu and the Hollywood Hills.

According to local authorities, the death toll has reached at least 16 people and is expected to rise as search and rescue efforts continue. NBC News reports that the blaze has burned through 37,000 acres and destroyed over 12,000 structures.

Over 150,000 people have been placed under mandatory evacuation orders, including stars like Mark Hamill, Jennie Garth and Mandy Moore. A number of celebrities, however, were not so lucky, as their homes were completely destroyed by the fires, including Paris Hilton, Anna Faris, Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt, Billy Crystal, Mel Gibson and Milo Ventimiglia.

According to AccuWeather, the wildfires could be the costliest in U.S. history, with the total economic loss currently estimated to be between $135 billion and $150 billion as of Thursday, January 9.

Check the LAFD website for local wildfire alerts and click here for resources on how to help those affected.