Rapid Wildfire Risk Assessments
West Region Wildfire Council conducts curbside assessments of properties located in the Wildland Urban interface (WUI) in partnership with, and using criteria designed by, the Wildfire Research Center (WiRē). The property-level wildfire risk assessments are based on attributes related to building materials, vegetation near the home, background fuels, topography as well as access for first responders.
The Rapid Wildfire Risk Assessment Rating is intended to provide a risk value relative to neighboring properties. The risk score does not guarantee prevention of home or property damage, nor does it guarantee home survivability during a wildfire event. The West Region Wildfire Council makes no guarantees of any kind with respect to the effectiveness of any mitigation efforts you undertake.
Rapid Wildfire Risk Assessment Map
Will my homeowner’s insurance provider raise my rates based on the risk rating found on the map?
The homeowner’s insurance industry utilizes a variety of sources of data to determine their overall exposure to potential future claims associated with a variety of natural hazards and other types of risk. As we understand, most of the data that is utilized by the insurance industry is either purchased or directly collected by the insurance provider and/or one of its contracted. For example, it is commonly understood that many insurance companies provide purchase data from Corelogic and use products like their Wildfire Risk Score to help them make decisions . The information presented on WRWC’s map does not provide any more information than what is already available to regional insurance providers.
Can my risk rating be reduced?
Yes! This map, and the Rapid Wildfire Risk Assessment ratings associated with each point on the map, represent a snapshot in time based on the information that was available to the assessor at the time the data was collected. Oftentimes, the data is collected from the vantage point of a nearby public road and is done rapidly. If a homeowner tries to reduce their risk through hazard mitigation or hardening of their structure(s), WRWC is available to re-evaluate the structure and/or property and, as necessary, update the risk rating based upon new or better information. WRWC will also update a risk rating score after conducting a detailed risk assessment of a property if greater or clearer information is gathered than what was seen from the initial assessment. To request more information about the risk rating for your property, please email info@cowildfire.org. For a more detailed assessment of your property, please schedule a Site Visit.
