Personal insurance
Insurance for the life you've built
Auto, home, renters, umbrella, life, earthquake, and flood coverage. Based in SLO County, writing personal lines across California. Built around how you actually live, not a default template.
You don't buy insurance because you want to. You buy it because one phone call can change your month. A fender bender. A kitchen fire. A non-renewal notice. Our job is to make sure that call goes the way it should: covered, fair, handled.
Most of our personal lines clients are local: San Luis Obispo, Arroyo Grande, Pismo Beach, Morro Bay, Atascadero, Paso Robles, Los Osos, Nipomo, and the smaller communities in between. Our license also covers the rest of California, so SLO residents with property elsewhere in the state, and clients anywhere in California, can work with us too. Most clients bundle several of the coverages on this page, so the policies talk to each other and the discounts add up.
Coverage
Auto
California makes auto insurance mandatory. It doesn't make it good. The state minimums (30/60/15 since January 2025, up from 15/30/5) still won't cover most serious accidents on a routine commute to work.
Here's what we typically recommend, and why:
- Liability of at least 100/300/100, so a serious accident doesn't reach your assets.
- Uninsured / underinsured motorist matched to your liability. Roughly 1 in 7 California drivers is uninsured.
- Collision and comprehensive deductibles sized to what you could actually cover out of pocket, not a default $500.
- Rental reimbursement and roadside for the inconvenience claims that happen more often than the big ones.
Multi-car households, teen drivers, classic cars, and high-mileage commuters all price differently. We'll walk through it.
Coverage
Home
Homeowners insurance on the Central Coast has gotten harder. Wildfire exposure, shifting carrier appetite, and the California FAIR Plan reality have all reshaped what's available. New clients regularly come to us after a non-renewal notice from a national carrier.
What we write:
- Standard homeowners (HO-3, HO-5) through Farmers and brokered markets.
- California FAIR Plan placements for high-risk properties, paired with a wraparound DIC policy to fill the gaps FAIR Plan doesn't cover.
- Dwelling fire policies for long-term rental properties.
- Short-term rental endorsements (or standalone STR policies).
- Condo (HO-6), renters (HO-4), mobile home, and seasonal home coverage.
The right answer depends on your property, your ZIP's wildfire risk tier, and which carriers are taking new business the week you need coverage. We quote it straight.
Coverage
Earthquake
Earthquake coverage isn't included in standard homeowners insurance. Most California homeowners don't realize that until after a tremor reminds them.
We place earthquake either through the California Earthquake Authority (CEA) or via private market carriers, depending on your property type, building structure, and proximity to the fault lines that cross SLO County. Premiums vary widely; a stucco-frame single family near a fault line is priced very differently from a modern build further inland.
One thing worth knowing: bundling earthquake with auto often unlocks a Farmers discount that can offset most of the earthquake premium itself. We'll show you both numbers if it applies to your situation.
Coverage
Flood
Flood is also excluded from standard homeowners. If your property sits in a FEMA flood zone, near the Salinas River or Arroyo Grande Creek, or in any of the coastal estuary areas, flood is worth pricing.
We place through the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) and through private flood carriers. The private flood market has matured in the last few years; for some properties it's a better product fit than NFIP. We'll explain the differences when we quote.
Coverage
Umbrella
If you own a home, have teenage drivers, or have assets worth protecting beyond your auto and home liability limits, an umbrella policy adds $1M to $5M of additional liability coverage for a few hundred dollars a year.
Most people who should have one don't. The most common reason we end up writing one is a client adding their teenage driver to the policy and looking at the new exposure clearly for the first time.
Coverage
Renters
Renters insurance is probably the best dollar-for-dollar coverage in the business. Roughly $15 to $25 a month covers your belongings, your personal liability, and temporary housing if your rental becomes unlivable.
If you rent anywhere in SLO County, we'll usually recommend it even if your landlord doesn't require it.
One thing worth knowing: bundle renters with your auto policy and Farmers' multi-policy discount on the auto often offsets most of the renters premium. We'll show you both numbers if it applies to your situation.
Coverage
Life
Term life for young families. Permanent policies for estate planning. Review of employer group coverage (which is usually not enough on its own).
Life insurance has its own page since the conversations get specific to your situation, your dependents, and your timeline. Read more on the Life page or include it in your quote request below.
Let's put a policy together
Share a few details and we'll come back with a real quote. No placeholders, no bait pricing, nothing you didn't ask for.