Frustration and insults against the victims of the Palisades and Eaton fires have been ongoing for four months, especially those who are still fighting insurance companies.

On Saturday, I watched over 200 people attend a Zoom conference where a parade of a group of homeowners involved horror stories involving claims on state farms and California’s Fair Plan insurance policy that have been postponed, controversial or dismissed.

“The fire is just the beginning of their trauma,” said Altadena resident Joy Chen. "I have panic attacks every day. Since January 7, my hair has fallen 20 pounds. My hair has fallen off and I'm scared," one homeowner said in a complaints compilation.

Fire victims say the dispute involves inspections and repairs of pollutants in homes and properties, delayed coverage of temporary accommodation costs, and loss expenditures that many believe are low.

Now is another blow.

On Tuesday, state insurance commissioner Ricardo Lara proposed a state farm general's emergency tax rate of 17%. This happened a few hours after the Administrative Law judge recognized the rate hike, kicking the matter to Lala.

Lara, who zoomed in that Saturday, heard the homeowner begging him not to rule the tax rate rises until his department investigated whether the state farms were in compliance with their legal obligations to deal with policyholder claims.

Lara said at the time that the so-called "market behavior" exam was "not on the table" and "we don't necessarily object to this."

This is a gentle response and I am generous. The Insurance Hall is a unit in California and you want the state insurance specialist to act like a watchdog, not a lapdog. Especially in this shocking time of fire danger, this brings new risks to insurance companies and property owners.

Lara's critics point out that in the past, he has accepted campaign donations from the insurance industry because he said he would not. As a colleague of mine Laurence Darmiento wroteLara's attempt to make insurance more affordable and available involves a "close door meeting" with insurance companies "hashing".

Now, in the words of Carmen Balber, executive director of the consumer watchdog, Lara "insulted the harm" for customers who will see a double-digit rate hike.

Chen is just as straightforward:

“We are very disappointed with the decision to approve state-run farms that Lara has approved and approved state-run farms – not even investigating hundreds of first-hand reports of illegal delays, denials and low ball offers we submitted.”

Lara said in a statement Tuesday that he hopes state farms provide “the highest level of service” and “fulfill its promise.” He said the company must now "prove its financial status and give a detailed description of its recovery plan" in a full exchange rate hearing before a neutral judge and experts from my department.

Laura said the company must receive $400 million in cash injection from its parent company to resolve its financial problems. Perhaps the CEO of National Farm can earn a few dollars of their own salary and earn $24 million in salary and bonuses in 2022.

The Administrative Law Judge said that interest rate hikes are fair and necessary, and for the benefit of consumers, they "act effectively as a rescue task." State Farm calls it a “critical first step” and allows the company to “continue to serve our California customers.”

Continue to serve? Many customers say they are not served because the state farm is not a good neighbor. A guy named Jake pops up everywhere in company TV commercials, but he is not found in Altadena or Palisades.

The unhappy California Fair Plan client worked with the state farm client on Saturday, and after getting a breath, Lara asked Chen to forward her login complaint.

She sent 381 on Monday.

A Palisades resident whose home was destroyed said that despite 50 years of business with state farms, “we have eight regulators so far and are inresponsive.”

Another said: "We're losing all the time, they're still dragging everything away."

"We paid premiums and believed that when the crisis happened, we would be protected," another complaint said. "Instead, we were delayed, deflected and denied - pushing families to the brink of financial destruction, housing instability and emotional collapse."

During the meeting, Sierra Madre resident Wendy Davis, a retired attorney whose house was spared by the Eaton Fire but suffered smoke damage, read the exact description of her national farm policy:

“This policy is one of the widest forms available today and provides you with excellent value for insurance dollars.”

But that's not true, Davis asked, and Lara said, "Isn't that fraud?"

“I know how to read the contract,” she said. Her contract says, “If these pollutants are caused by fire and smoke, it will cover your home’s testing of pollutants.”

However, she was denied reports of the hygienist she hired, and she did not immediately receive expenses for temporary accommodation in Alhambra, Davis said.

"They delayed from the beginning," Davis told me that when I met her and her husband Mike Noll at their home in Sierra Madre, they still cleared the contaminants. “We didn’t have meaningful conditioning for a month, he was my fifth.”

This is a common complaint among firefighter survivors - regulator random bulk. Davis said the State Farm finally settled her complaint, but only after months of durability and a better collaboration of the seventh adjuster.

"We can fight them and defend ourselves, but she's worried about "older people, single mothers" and anyone without a legal background. "It's a full-time job, fighting them, and people can't defend themselves." ”

After all, they have endured it and it doesn't have to be that difficult.

steve.lopez@latimes.com