Fire Insurance Are You Ready?

With the California fires taking place in Sonoma County in Northern California with the Kincade fire, and in Southern California with the Getty Fire taking up the brunt of the news headlines in the last week or so of October.  I thought it would be good to give you some detail into Fire insurance, and if you need it.  Flagstaff is located in one of the largest Ponderosa pine forests in North America, with this comes the danger of Forest Fire.  In July we saw first-hand the fear and destruction that a forest fire can cause with the Museum fire.  In the short term after the fire, Flagstaff had dodged a major bullet with no Housing structures being destroyed from the fire, only Forest in some of the most desirable hiking locations in and around Flagstaff.  I’ve heard people say, what would have happened if the fire had moved southwest instead of northeast?  This potentially could have been a life or death instant for most of the Northwest Flagstaff neighborhoods like Cheshire, Schultz pass, Crestview, Coconino Estates and the famous museums such as the Museum of Northern Arizona, and the Pioneer Museum would have been right in the middle of a fire path of destruction.

What type of Fire Insurance can you get?  Fire Insurance is property insurance that covers damages and losses caused by fire, This insurance is part of your Home Owners insurance.  Most insurance policies have Fire included in the bundle of Homeowners Insurance If it is not, I would recommend reaching out to your insurance provider to see if you can obtain it or add it to your Insurance Policy.  Most policies provide coverage regardless of whether the fire originates from insides or outside the home.  The limit of coverage depends on the cause of the fire.  If the home is considered a total loss, the insurance company might reimburse the owner of the house’s current market value.  Typically the Insurance will provide a market value compensation for lost possessions, with the total payout capped based on the home’s overall value.  For example, if a policy insures a house for 350,000, the contents are usually covered for at least 50-70% of the policy value or a range of $175,000 to $245,000.  Many policies limit how much reimbursement covers luxury items such as art paintings, jewelry, gold, and fur coats.  You as the policyholder should check your home’s value each year or have your insurance provider to determine if there is a need to increase the coverage amount.  A policyholder cannot get insurance for more than a home’s actual value.  Insurance companies may offer stand-alone policies for rare, expensive, and irreplaceable items that are otherwise not covered in standard Fire Insurance.

This is just a template to follow regarding finding more information out on Fire Insurance.  There are many different Insurance providers out there and they are all different, reach out and find the answers from your own insurance companies.  It is better to be prepared than to pick up the pieces in a terrible situation such as wildfire, but time now may save you in the future.  I hope this may help you in your future Insurance choices.


As always, if you or someone you know are thinking about buying or selling. Give us a call, email or text!

Stay Up To Date

Contact Us

120 N Beaver St. | Suite 100
Flagstaff, AZ 86001
(928) 714-0001
[email protected]

Skip to content