A recent review by the Fire Underwriters Survey, a national firm specializing in fire risk analysis, has increased Revelstoke's fire protection grade.
Fire Chief Steven DeRousie informed city council Tuesday, Feb. 25, that the firm raised Revelstoke's dwelling protection grade (DPG) rating from 3A to 2. This means residences within 300 metres of a fire hydrant and within eight kilometres by road of a fire station qualify for this improved DPG within city boundaries.
Scoring a two on the one-to-five scale indicates Revelstoke enjoys nearly the highest-possible level of fire protection.
"A better DPG means that the fire department鈥檚 response capabilities, resources, and preparedness have improved, reducing the risk of damage to homes in case of a fire," the city said in a release. "Overall, this improvement indicates both better safety and potential cost savings for residents."
With homeowners' personal insurance lines affected by this reassessment, DeRousie told Black Press Media that "what this means to the homeowner is they should be shopping their insurance to two or three different providers" for competitive rates.
He explained that a community with a fire department that meets Fire Underwriters Survey performance standards will often save more on insurance than what it costs to maintain the fire department.
As a rule of thumb, DeRousie said residents shouldn't be paying more for their insurance than the difference between what an insured and uninsured homeowner pays. An uninsured resident likely pays between $5,000 and $6,000 per year for "unprotected" insurance coverage, according to DeRousie, and may become eligible for reduced premiums on "fully-protected" coverage.
"Your premiums may become half of that for a semi-protected rate," or even more for a fully-protected property, he estimated. "There's a (cost-benefit) balance between having a fire department serving your community and not having one."
As fire chief, DeRousie said he works to annually update Revelstoke Fire Rescue Services' inventory through the Fire Underwriters Survey's online portal, to ensure both maximum safety for residents and best value for their personal insurance line. He added that it's important for residents to understand how their investment in their fire department can yield a net return or net savings.
Along with reducing risk, "the reason we exist is basically to help people be compliant with the insurance industry," he said, joking that "it used to be there was only two things certain in life: death and taxes." Today, a third certainty is insurance.
Looking forward, he shared that the insurance industry will be introducing a system that recognizes wildfire risk and also the homeowners who "take FireSmart principles under their wing," giving them better results when shopping for home insurance.
Those interested in a FireSmart home assessment may still make a request to Revelstoke Fire Rescue Services' Lauren Marfleet at firesmart@revelstoke.ca.
To learn more about Revelstoke's DPG rating, visit fireunderwriters.ca/grading/dwelling-protection-grade.html.
