Property owners in Gainesville should expect to see a reduction in their fire insurance bill in September.
Gainesville Fire Rescue has improved its classification by the Insurance Service Office. It will go from a Class 3 to a Class 2, effective Sept. 1. The scale is from one to 10, with one being the best public protection in fire-protection capability and 10 indicating that there is no recognized protection.
This could mean more money in the pockets of property owners because insurance agencies use this information to set insurance rates for houses and buildings.
“We’re all very happy,” Mayor Ed Braddy said. “The city commission has supported making improvements so the fire station can perform at an optimal level, and the ISO rating reflects that.”
The insurance office rates on three primary areas: response time, quality of equipment and quality of training.
According to the insurance office’s website, GFR is one of 40 departments with that rating out of 682 in Florida.
“We’re very pleased,” said City Commissioner Lauren Poe. “We’ve been working hard for a number of years to close gaps in fire service. We’re providing a very high level of fire service protection.”
Fire Chief Gene Prince said that numerous factors improved GFR’s rating, but said he thinks the biggest factors were adding Fire Station No. 8 in 2011 and hiring 16 new firefighters. Moreover, ISO changed its rating system, allowing the fire department to receive credit for things that it has been doing all along, he said.
Prince said they are always asking themselves if they are being the best fire department for the investment that they are receiving from citizens.
“We’ve been held up to the light, and we’re doing pretty good,” he said.
Poe advises residents to contact their provider if they don't see a change in rates in September.
Prince said the new rates will reflect the best practices that the fire department uses in its delivery of services.
“At the end of the day, I think that’s what our citizens want to know,” he said.
[A version of this story ran on page 1 on 6/19/2014 under the headline "GNV fire rescue rated higher"]
