State Farm has made a notable decision to pull its planned advertisement from Super Bowl LIX, citing a shift in priorities toward aiding wildfire recovery efforts in Southern California. As Los Angeles grapples with devastating wildfires that have claimed at least 25 lives and destroyed or damaged more than 5,000 structures, the insurance giant has redirected its focus to providing support for affected communities rather than participating in the nation’s most-watched sporting event.
“Our focus is firmly on providing support to the people of Los Angeles,” a State Farm spokesperson told FOX Business. “We will not be advertising during the game as originally planned.” While Super Bowl commercials are a coveted opportunity for brands to capture national attention, State Farm’s decision underscores the scale of the disaster unfolding in California and the company’s commitment to aiding its customers.
With more than 8 million customers in California—more than any other insurer—State Farm is at the epicenter of the wildfire recovery process. As of Thursday, the company had fielded more than 7,850 home and auto claims related to the fires, putting approximately $50 million back into customers’ hands. That number is expected to climb as residents return to assess the full scope of the damage.
The largest blaze, the Palisades Fire, has consumed much of Los Angeles County, burning thousands of homes and displacing residents. Two other significant fires, the Eaton and Hurst fires, have also ravaged the area, with only partial containment achieved. In total, nearly 38,700 acres have burned in Southern California, with Cal Fire continuing to battle the flames on multiple fronts.
State Farm’s response has been comprehensive. The company’s catastrophe response teams, the largest in the industry, are on the ground assisting customers. While State Farm had announced in March 2024 its intention to discontinue 72,000 home and apartment policies in California due to rising regulatory costs, inflation, and the increasing risk of natural disasters, the company is now offering a temporary reprieve.
It has pledged to renew policies for Los Angeles-area homeowners impacted by the fires, pausing its notification process on non-renewals for those in flame-stricken regions. This move offers some relief for customers facing overwhelming challenges.
The decision not to advertise during the Super Bowl comes as part of a broader shift in corporate priorities. Super Bowl ad spots are among the most expensive and sought-after real estate in marketing, with companies often paying millions of dollars for mere seconds of airtime.
For State Farm, however, the optics of spending big on flashy advertising while their customers endure a crisis would have been, to put it lightly, problematic. Instead, the company’s decision to allocate resources to wildfire recovery sends a clear message: helping customers rebuild comes first.
This crisis also highlights the broader issues plaguing California’s insurance market. State Farm’s earlier decision to stop accepting new policies in the state and its planned discontinuation of tens of thousands of existing ones are emblematic of the growing tension between insurers and California’s strict regulatory environment.
For years, insurance companies have warned that escalating risks tied to wildfires, combined with restrictions on their ability to adjust premiums, make the state an increasingly difficult place to do business. These challenges are compounded by inflation and the higher costs of rebuilding homes and replacing vehicles after disasters.