Placitas residents facing uncertainties about their homeowners’ insurance may be interested in next month’s Placitas Resilience & Emergency Preparedness Alliance (PREP) presentation.
Melissa Robertson and Elouisa Macias of the New Mexico Office of the Superintendent of Insurance will host “Insurance Solutions for Wildfire-Prone Communities” Jan. 20.
Macias is chief of OSI’s Consumer Assistance and Civil Investigations Bureau. Robertson is chief of OSI’s Property and Casualty Bureau. Each worked extensively in the insurance industry before joining the insurance office a few years ago, according to a PREP press release.
The organization says the presentation will be useful for residents concerned about the possibility of losing their homeowners insurance coverage.
PREP leaders earlier told the Sandoval Signpost that many in Placitas have already experienced substantial hikes in their homeowners’ insurance premiums or had their policies canceled.
That’s related to the community’s location, amidst fuel-dense national forest and federal land.
Macias and Robertson are expected to discuss changes and challenges in the New Mexico insurance market, New Mexico’s Fair Access to Insurance Requirements plan and the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety’s Wildfire Prepared Home designation program, which employs science-based methods to reduce wildfire risk homes.
The presentation takes place at 7 p.m. at Las Placitas Presbyterian Church, 7 Paseo De San Antonio Road. Organizers are planning to make the meeting viewable on Zoom, and KUPR will record the presentation and make it available on the station’s website (kupr.org) at a later date.
Details will be posted at prepalliance.org as they become known.
Other PREP community briefing events planned for 2026:
In May, which is “Wildfire Awareness Month,” a wildfire simulation demonstration and a discussion of home hazard assessment.
A June presentation on “sheltering-in-place.”
In September, “National Preparedness Month,” PREP will host a public meeting, intended to be an annual event, to promote public awareness of PREP’s programs and resources and to gather input from Placitas residents about their emergency preparedness needs.
In October, “Fire Prevention Month,” PREP plans to team up with local emergency responders to raise public awareness about fire danger in and around the home and to give residents hands-on practice with a fire extinguisher.