As the world gets hotter and unstable climate patterns worsen, wildfires are getting more common and severe. In response, many insurers are dropping their coverage for at-risk homes, creating a crisis for owners who need to protect their assets.
Idaho homeowners are being encouraged to "harden" their homes against fires to help them maintain insurance coverage, KTVB7 reported.
What's happening?
Out of 91 homeowners insurance providers that were available in Idaho in 2023, 22 to 25 have left the state as of April. Those that remain may still drop clients from their insurance plans with little warning.
Twenty-six states offer FAIR Plans, insurance policies that the state makes available to those who would otherwise not be able to get coverage. But Idaho is not one of those states.
Instead, the Idaho Department of Insurance is encouraging homeowners to take proactive steps to ensure that ordinary companies will insure them by making their homes less vulnerable to fire.
"Insurance companies rate based on the risks that they see," said Dean Cameron, director of the Idaho Department of Insurance, per KTVB7. "If you can show that you're less risky, then that does reflect in how they would rate you."
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Why is this shift in insurance availability important?
A home is the largest asset that most American families will ever have. With the increasing risk of wildfires, it's more important than ever to have insurance coverage to protect that investment — just when that coverage is hardest to get. Homeowners are spending hundreds of dollars more, or being priced out altogether.
Ultimately, this risk is unlikely to be reduced until we manage to lower the temperature of the planet again — and that could be a long time coming.
What's being done about insurance availability?
The Idaho Department of Insurance is focused on practical tips to get residents coverage. Specific tips include cleaning the gutters, swapping out wooden fences for metal ones, and maintaining a wet, green zone around the house that's free of dry brush.
Two Idaho firefighters created a program called Ember Safe to promote these fire prevention habits and provide certifications for homes that meet the requirements.
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Definitely 🙁 "We now work with homeowners hand in hand by doing a home inspection, taking a look around their home and providing them the steps that they can do to create a home hardened area," said Zach Mason, co-founder of the program, per KTVB7. "Some homeowners have gone full coverage again because of it."
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