A California homeowners policy has been in force for eight months. Under Insurance Code §676, on what basis may the insurer now cancel it mid-term?

Explanation

Section 676 provides that once a policy described in §675 has been in effect for 60 days — or immediately, if the policy is a renewal — no notice of cancellation is effective unless it rests on something that occurred AFTER the effective date and falls within the statute's closed list: nonpayment of premium; conviction of the named insured of a crime having as an element an act increasing an insured hazard; discovery of fraud or material misrepresentation in obtaining the policy or in pursuing a claim; discovery of grossly negligent acts or omissions substantially increasing an insured hazard; or physical changes in the insured property that render it uninsurable. (a) describes the freedom the insurer has only during the first 60 days, which is exactly what §676 withdraws afterwards; (b) invents a consent requirement the statute does not contain; and (d) fails because an underwriting-appetite mismatch is not a physical change occurring after inception.