Author: Judy Harrington

By Judy Beust Harrington, Co-Chair, Kensington Fire Safe (KFS)

Kensington’s Fire Safe Council will share researched answers to your inquiries here. Send fire-related questions to info@kensingtonfiresafe.org.  Pictures appreciated!

Q:  Are We a “Fire Risk Reduction Community”?

A:  A neighbor recently contacted us about this question on a homeowner insurance application: Is Kensington either a “Fire Risk Reduction Community” or a “Firewise Community?”

Sorry, nope – we’re not either one, but wish we were. 

Attaining a Firewise designation is a very challenging, long-term process requiring a lot of volunteer residential involvement. It’s likely more achievable for condo associations.  According to the Firewise website, some insurance companies do offer discounts to residents residing in Firewise USA sites. (https://www.nfpa.org/)

On the other hand, a “Fire Risk Reduction Community” designation or “FRRC” seems more do-able. It requires local community assessment of fire vulnerabilities and a comprehensive plan to reduce risks.  While San Diego County is on the list of FRRCs, the City of San Diego is not. We reached out to Fire Marshall Anthony Tosca about it, and he said the city plans to apply for this designation next time the opportunity becomes available. Perhaps this designation might mean a possible rate discount in the future for homeowners.

Meanwhile, if you want to see how your insurance costs compare to others, you could check out Bankrate’s website, although our insurance advisor, Scott Caraveo said they only list insurers who pay to be listed, and some aren’t doing business in California.  If you submit your contact info, you’re likely to be bombarded with phone calls and emails from brokers. https://www.bankrate.com/insurance/homeowners-insurance/homeowners-insurance-cost/

BTW, there’s also something called a Comprehensive Loss Underwriting Exchange” (CLUE) report on a homeowners insurance claims history.  Homeowners can request a copy under the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act, toll-free at 1-866-312-8076 or by visiting consumer.risk.lexisnexis.com.  Scott says insurance companies use reports like CLUE all the time, but CLUE reports don’t always include your specific claims history – it could include claims made at the property before you owned it or claims you made at a prior residence. In any case, insurance carriers already know about these events and are taking them into consideration each year.

Is My Home’s Fire Score Online?

Thank you, Sandra Johnson, for pointing out to us that some real estate sites are now including a fire risk score. I checked Realtor.com for a house for sale on Sussex, and here’s what it showed:

Glad to see it says “minimal” although, that seems odd since much of Kensington is designated a Very High Fire Risk Hazard Area. Both Scott and I wonder about the accuracy of these ratings. Realtor.com has a pretty good Q&A on their scoring: https://www.realtor.com/wildfire-risk/.

Other sites also providing fire ratings include:  

• Wildfirerisk.org: Shows risks on a color-coded map when you search by town, county, or state. 
• Riskfactor.com: Shows a fire score for any property in the continental USA. The fire factor scale ranges from 1 to 10, with 1 indicating no modeled exposure to wildfire and 10 indicating a greater than 36% chance of burning over 30 years. 
• FirstStreet.org: Bases wildfire risk on a region’s vegetation, topography, and fire-related weather. 
• ClimateCheck: Provides a free climate risk assessment for any address in the U.S. 
• CoreLogic: Provides a wildfire risk score that evaluates available fuel, as well as the topography of the land.

While these may be good tools for selling a house, they’re unlikely to sway insurance companies on your property’s safety. More accurate may be the Fire Hazard Severity Zone (FHSZ) maps, although I find them a bit hard to work with since they don’t name major roads and highways.  They can be found at: https://osfm.fire.ca.gov/

We wish all those struggling to keep, find or afford their insurance luck – we’ve had our own challenges too!

Fire-safe Materials?

Last note – a reader of our Sept-Oct column on Zone Zero asked if there are any non-flammable cushions one could have on porch wrought iron furniture and still meet the future five-foot-from-the house zero flammability requirement.  Any thoughts on that, folks?

By Judy Beust Harrington, Co-Chair, Kensington Fire Safe (KFS)

Kensington’s fire safe council will share researched answers to inquiries from community members here – if you send your fire-related questions to info@kensingtonfiresafe.org.  Pictures appreciated!

Q.  Is there a measurement showing how San Diego’s fire department stacks up to other fire departments?

A: This time the answer came before the question. Recently Kensington Fire Safe Council member, John Pringle, chatted with me while walking his dog.  John happened to mention that our San Diego Fire Department has an “ISO” rating. 

Here’s what we learned: the “Insurance Services Office,” is a subsidiary of Verisk Analytics, which provides statistical data for insurance companies. They assign an ISO “Public Protection Class (PPC)” from 1 to 10, based on an evaluation of a community’s ability to protect the public from fires.” ^{(1) (2)}

That evaluation involves an assigned value to the following  categories and weights:⁽³⁾

• 50%: issues like staffing levels, training, firehouse proximity.
• 40%: availability of water and fire hydrants.
• 10%: emergency communication systems.

Extra points may be earned based on community outreach, like fire prevention and safety courses.  On the other hand, having areas that exceed five driving miles from the nearest fire station also affects scoring.

How do we rate?  Drum roll please… As of the last rating assessment in 2017, San Diego’s was a “2″ — with “1″ being the best. This is very impressive considering only 45 out of 854 California fire departments nationwide achieved a “1” – per the chart and article below.  Apparently ISO evaluations are typically done every 10 years, so we’re probably not yet due for another one. ^{(4) (5)}

Of course, the next obvious question is – does that rating help when it comes to our homeowner insurance costs and availability?

Does the rate matter?

Based on discussions with John and KFS insurance advisor, Scott Caraveo, the ISO rating may or may not be used by insurance companies in their complex process for determining community rates.

“Insurers don’t really provide discounts for lower PPC scores…safer areas just cost less.” Scott clarified.  “Most California carriers work off a combination of both FireLine, parcel-based modeling and PPC, which is community-based risk modeling. Overall, community-based modeling is safer for companies because they can apply a broader rate to a general area, as opposed to setting different rates for each individual household in that same area.

“Consumers might appreciate parcel modeling quite a bit, but that would also be a LOT more tedious for companies (and agents/brokers!), and consumers would likely see a lot more variance on their insurance rates from house-to-house as a result.”

The FireLine data Scott mentioned is also provided by the risk assessment company, Verisk, in collaboration with the National Fire Protection Association.  Its FireLine analysis includes property-specific mitigation efforts like defensible space and other home hardening measures, as well as fuel, slope, wind patterns and other factors.  

For a past column, KFS asked Verisk about the extent to which density is considered, and a spokesperson confirmed that it is a factor although how much it influences their fire risk scoring is unclear.  We are talking to Verisk about a possible presentation to our community —  tell us if that’s something you might be interested it. (info@kensingtonfiresafe.org). 

Meanwhile, there’s comfort in knowing our fire department is among the few in the top two ISO performance classifications. One website I visited for another California area with a high ISO recommended homeowners remind their insurance company of that good rating. 

Seems like it couldn’t hurt — unlike the rate increases or cancellations unfortunately neighbors are seeing these days.

###

(1) https://www.philomathfire.com/insurance-services-office-iso-information#:~:text=ISO%20is%20the%20principle%20provider,industry%20in%20the%20United%20States

(2) https://einhorninsurance.com/insurance-advice/fire/high-brush-home-insurance-public-protection-class/#:~:text=What%20does%20Protection%20Class%20or,the%20worst)%20to%20a%20home.

(3) https://mcesd8.org/class1iso/#:~:text=More%20than%2050%2C000%20fire%20departments,earned%20a%20Class%201%20rating.

(4) https://www.newportbeachca.gov/government/departments/fire/iso-class-i-rating

(5) https://www.princeton-il.com/departments/fire___ems/iso_public_protection_class_rating.php#:~:text=The%20Public%20Protection%20Classification%20(PPC,to%20the%20related%20evaluation%20criteria

By Judy Beust Harrington, Co-Chair, Kensington Fire Safe (KFS)

Kensington’s fire safe council will share researched answers to inquiries from community members here – if you send your fire-related questions to info@kensingtonfiresafe.org.  Pictures appreciated! 

Here’s a follow-up to previous Firey Questions:

Q #1.  When is the city going to trim our canyons?

Come pose that question to Deputy Chief Marshal Anthon Tosca, Senior Code Compliance Supervisor Marci Garcia plus other representatives from the Parks and Recreation Open Space Division, and also from the Fire Rescue Department, when they join us for a presentation at Kensington Community Church, Wednesday, June 12^th at 6:30 PM, in Lander Hall. 

Learn about vegetation thinning on certain city property adjacent to privately-owned lots, the “Ember Resistant Zone,” real estate defensible space inspections and other local wildfire prevention efforts.  Please let us know if you’re coming so we can be sure to have enough chairs.  RSVP at kensingtonfiresafe.org.

Q #2.  Can I find out how fire safe my house really is?

A: Yes!  Check out the FREE home assessment program being offered by the Fire Safe Council of San Diego County.   The assessments include inspecting your house and property to determine vulnerabilities to potential flying embers in the event of a wildfire, as well as other fire dangers.  Staff conducting the 30-to-45-minute, confidential assessment will make recommendations for improvements to harden your home against potential fires and provide other resources.

Two program phases are being rolled out by geographic zones.   The first phase is the home assessments.  For Kensington/Zone 6 the second round will take place August 5^th to the 7^th.  They already completed about half a dozen in our area during the first March round.

There’s a second “service” phase when chipping and defensible space efforts are available to homeowners in high-risk areas that have physical, economic, or other barriers to doing the work themselves.    These services will be available August 12^th to 16^th  for our area.  For more details, go to https://firesafesdcounty.org/hap/

This program is made possible by funding from CAL FIRE, through the California Fire Safe Council’s Defensible Space Assistance Grant Program.

Q#3: When is the next KFS Dumpathon?

A:  Well, not this Spring as originally planned. We’ve been told that we should not hold this fuel-thinning support during the March through August gnatcatcher breeding season. We started holding late Spring events several years ago, based on resident’s feedback on the best time for trimming excess brush, after learning of a County and State agreement to allow fire fuel reduction efforts during this season.  However, we were recently informed that the City’s Municipal Code restricting this activity overrides this agreement.  So, our Spring Dumpathon was canceled.

By Judy Beust Harrington, Co-Chair, Kensington Fire Safe (KFS)

Kensington’s fire safe council will share researched answers to inquiries from community members in this column.  Send your fire-related questions to info@kensingtonfiresafe.org.  Pictures appreciated! 

Q:  Over a recent delicious lunch at Clem’s Station on Monroe,  we talked with Tony – manager, bartender, waiter, and part of the owing family – about problems residents are having getting, keeping, or affording homeowner insurance. He asked how the California FAIR Plan worked.

A:  Good timing, Tony.  We recently sat in on a conference call that gave us some insights into the  “Fair Access to Insurance Requirements” program, aka the California FAIR Plan (CFP).

First of all, it’s not a government entity, as a lot of folks think.  Although established by a California statue in 1968, CFP is run by a consortium of California property and casualty insurers. They’re required to participate if they want to do business here, and they share in the plan’s overhead, profits and most significantly – losses, in direct proportion to their market share in our state. ⁽¹⁾  

So that means the bigger their sales, the greater their CFP plan liabilities, on top of whatever they’re paying out for their own insured. Is it any wonder you may find it hard to get a policy with the biggest insurers like State Farm, The Hartford and USAA?

FAIR plans, which exist in 26 states, weren’t intended for long term coverage, but rather as a temporary safety net until traditional insurance could be secured. In other words, it’s the insurance of last resort when no other insurer will take you on. But with our fire losses, CFP covers over 320,000 policies – about 3% of Californians.  (By contrast, Washington State’s CFP Plan only covers about 130 policies.) ⁽²⁾

CFP doesn’t take all comers. Brokers must answer questions about why they’re placing the risk with it, and confirm they’ve been declined by other carriers. As a result, CFP’s growing share of high-risk properties results in more expense for insurers and higher premiums for the insured.^.(3)

But…there are other problems.  According to a June article in the San Francisco Standard, critics say the CFP is underfunded and mismanaged.  Perhaps not surprising since, as the article says, “The very companies that refuse to insure properties in high-risk areas are still insuring them through the “back door” of CFP, and it doesn’t always pay out when it ought to.’

The article goes on to cite a Department of Insurance four-year study that found numerous issues, including that the CFP on occasion failed to provide standard fire insurance coverage, particularly regarding smoke damage claims. ^.(4)

Kensington Fire Safe’s insurance advisor, Scott Caraveo, says the process can be slow. “As homeowners buy in areas with higher fire risk, they’re ending up with five or more insurance quotes from several brokers, which may all be from the CFP. So now CFP has five different applications from five different brokers, all for the same address, creating a gigantic backlog.  The three or four days it used to take for a CFP quote to be returned have become three weeks or more.”

Scott Caraveo, Insurance Advisor to Kensington Fire Safe

Higher Prices & Less Coverage

Scott pointed out there was a 15 percent increase this past December, but it’s not spread evenly. According to a November ABC report, “Some people in the most wildfire-prone, high-risk areas could see their rates as much as double.”  And CFP covers less than traditional insurance plans.⁽⁵⁾   Of course, some of our neighbors have already seen their homeowner insurance double if it’s renewed at all.

So, that’s the bad CFP news.  The good news is we at least have a backup   insurance option.  If interested, your insurance broker can help with the plan’s application process, which requires information on your home’s replacement costs and date-stamped photos.  You’re supposed to get a quote that’s good for 30 days.

Another option is an excess and surplus (E&S) carrier specializing in insuring high-risk properties.  These policies are not backed by the California Insurance Guarantee Association, although they likely have other fail safes, such as reinsurance. Check with your broker or the Surplus Line Association of California website for more information.

Meanwhile, make your home more attractive to insurers by hardening it against fire embers. A good time to trim excess green fuel and dump it for free is during the KFS Spring Dumpathon,  Thursday, April 25 to Monday, May 6^th.  Check for location announcements at kensingtonfiresafe.org and on Nextdoor. And please, no non-greens. We can be fined for that!

Watch for announcements about our April 25^th to May, 6^th Dumpathon!

By the Fire Safe Way… we’re hoping to arrange two presentations this Spring: 

• Efforts to Keep Our Canyons Safe by representatives from San Diego Open Space Brush Management and the San Diego Fire Department.
• Assessing Fire Risk by representatives from Verisk on how they report on risk for insurance companies. 
• Watch for date announcements on Nextdoor and KFS’s Facebook page.  To receive this info directly, send your email address to info@kensingtonfiresafe.org

Notes:

1. https://www.cfpnet.com/about-fair-plan/#:~:text=The%20California%20FAIR%20Plan%20was,from%20a%20traditional%20insurance%20carrier.
2. https://content.naic.org/cipr-topics/fair-access-insurance-requirements-fair-plans#:~:text=The%20states%20that%20have%20their,similar%20purpose%20to%20FAIR%20plans.
3. https://sfstandard.com/2023/10/19/california-insurance-crisis-CFP-plan-1000-applications-rate-increase/
4. https://sfstandard.com/2023/06/05/as-insurers-retreat-california-homeowners-may-need-the-CFP-plan-so-what-is-it/
5. https://www.cfpnet.com/