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State Farm Releases New Home, Auto Insurance Claim Numbers From Fires

NORTH BAY (CBS SF) -- Almost 1,900 homeowner insurance claims and more than 700 auto insurance claims have been made by residents to State Farm because of the Northern California wildfires, company officials said Thursday.

Most of the claims are from people living in the North Bay where numerous fires are burning in Napa, Sonoma and Solano counties.

Tens of thousands of acres have burned in the fires that have destroyed more than 2,000 structures, Cal Fire officials said.

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The number of homeowner insurance claims State Farm reported from the fires has risen by about 500 since Wednesday, when more than 1,400 claims had been made. On Tuesday, 850 auto insurance claims had been made.

State Farm spokesman Sevag Sarkissian said the numbers will probably rise again.

State Farm officials said they will be deploying catastrophe claims teams to the areas affected by fires. Sarkissian could not say when those teams would be deployed or how many teams would be deployed.

Agents are now assisting customers at some evacuation centers such as the Finley Community Center in Santa Rosa, a busy and somewhat central location.

Agents are out meeting people in person because, among other reasons, communication is difficult in areas affected by the fires.

"We're trying to meet them where they're at," Sarkissian said.

But however a customer wants to meet with a representative, they're available, he said.

Policyholders can file claims by getting in touch with their agent, by calling (800) SF-CLAIM, by submitting a claim through the Pocket Agent mobile app or through the website www.statefarm.com/claims.

State Farm is advising anyone affected by a mandatory evacuation to keep receipts for their living expenses, which may be reimbursable after policyholders meet their deductible.

State Farm officials also advise people to back up photos, documents and financial information, as well as create an "evacuation package" consisting of important items gathered in one place so it's ready to go should an evacuation be ordered.

© Copyright 2017 by CBS San Francisco and Bay City News Service. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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