Deadline for Pacific Gas and Electric California Fire Claims Passes

The deadline for victims to make Pacific Gas and Electric California fire claims has now gone by, and tens of thousands may not have filed in time. Some may have even been unaware of their right to claim—or the Oct. 21 deadline, which was on Monday.

The reason the deadline came so soon? PG&E has filed for bankruptcy, and it is required to cover a slew of losses related to the fires it has been connected with as part of its plan for bankruptcy.

PG&E is a California-based natural gas and electricity company that has for decades provided utility services to millions of consumers. Unfortunately, PG&E transmission lines have been outed as the cause of several recent, severe wildfires in California, including the Camp Fire. In the Camp Fire, 85 people were killed. More than 150,000 acres burned.

PG&E faced billions of dollars of damages from the many wildfires across California which have collectively destroyed thousands of homes and killed scores of people. The energy company set aside $16.9 billion for fire-related bankruptcy payouts and let people know about their eligibility to make claims by sending millions of claim forms to potential victims, posting about it on social media and websites, and running ads on television and radio.

Notice Fails to Reach Many Potential Claimants

Unfortunately, many of these survivors may still be shaken, traumatized, and struggling in the wake of the fire. Before the deadline, attorneys filed court papers to let the bankruptcy judge know that many of the victims eligible for compensation were not yet aware of their eligibility to file a claim.

“People really are overwhelmed and don’t understand what they need to do,” said one attorney appointed by the court to represent all of the wildfire victims through the bankruptcy process. “Renters, lower-income people were simply too exhausted by their day-to-day circumstances to deal with it,” she said.

In some cases, people didn’t receive the legal notice because they’ve been displaced from their homes—arguably some of the people most in need of compensation.

Some may have misunderstood the consequences of PG&E filing for bankruptcy, and assumed that this meant there wouldn’t be any money to make payments. Others may have thought they couldn’t make a claim without a lawyer. Some may even not have understood what the term “victim” means in a legal context and realized they were eligible.

“I thought I wasn’t a victim because I got out alive,” 91-year-old Elizabeth Davis, a victim who lost her mobile home in the Paradise fire last year, told ABC News. “I never received any information that PG&E has billions of dollars available. I thought I was not qualified to make a claim.”

If you were affected by one of the recent California wildfires, the deadline for making Pacific Gas and Electric California fire claims has now passed, but there may still be legal options going forward. Consulting an attorney can help you determine if you have a claim, navigate the complexities of litigation, and maximize your potential compensation.

This article is not legal advice. It is presented
for informational purposes only.