Claims against PG&E for California wildfires are piling up again. Here’s the latest tally
Six months after successfully emerging from bankruptcy — a case driven by massive wildfire damages — PG&E Corp. is wrestling with fire-related claims approaching $1 billion.
California’s largest utility has told investors that claims from September’s Zogg Fire could reach $275 million, a figure that doesn’t include any fines or other penalties levied by government agencies. The Zogg Fire burned 56,338 acres, killed four people and destroyed 204 homes and other buildings in Shasta County.
“It is reasonably possible that the loss will be greater than $275 million,” PG&E said in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The utility said it believes insurance will cover much of the loss.
Coupled with previously disclosed potential losses of $625 million from the October 2019 Kincade Fire in Sonoma County, and the utility is facing $900 million in post-bankruptcy wildfire damages.
The losses represent PG&E’s estimates of claims for damages from homeowners and others.
PG&E’s bankruptcy was triggered by claims from a series of devastating fires, including the 2017 wine country fires and the Camp Fire in 2018. The Camp Fire destroyed most of the town of Paradise and killed 85 people, and PG&E pleaded guilty to felony manslaughter charges. It was fined $4 million.
The bankruptcy case ended this summer with PG&E agreeing to pay fire victims a combined $13.5 billion. A trust fund established through the bankruptcy court has begun making initial disbursements.
As for the Zogg Fire, Cal Fire has seized PG&E power equipment from the area near the remote community of Igo, where the fire started, according to PG&E’s disclosures to the Public Utilities Commission.
In court papers this week, PG&E disclosed that it is facing a criminal investigation by Cal Fire in the Zogg Fire, although that doesn’t necessarily mean charges will be filed.
Cal Fire, in a letter to PG&E dated Wednesday, said it hasn’t yet determined whether the case will be referred to the Shasta County district attorney’s office for prosecution, and noted that all of its wildfire investigations are treated as criminal cases.
This story was originally published December 18, 2020 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Claims against PG&E for California wildfires are piling up again. Here’s the latest tally."