Insurance Services Office (ISO) 2 and 2Y
The Lake Valley Fire Protection District (District) is proud of our ISO Public Protection Classification (ISO) rating that took effect on September 1, 2014. The community served by the District will have an ISO of 2 in areas with fire hydrants and 2Y for rural portions of the District without fire hydrants. Prior to September 1, 2014, the District ISO rating was a 5. The District was one of only 750 fire departments in the entire country to receive this designation. The ramification of the Public Protection Classification should mean a significant reduction in fire insurance rates for all properties within District boundaries. The District Board of Directors is proud of our hard working men and women who contributed countless hours towards reducing the risk rating for the community we proudly serve.
The Insurance Services Office, Inc. better known as ISO, is a company that serves insurance companies by evaluating communities all over the country and assigning a risk classification ranging from the lowest risk being 1 to the highest being a 10. They rate communities based on three criteria: emergency communications, fire department (including operational considerations), and water supply. In addition, it includes a Community Risk Reduction section that recognizes community efforts to reduce losses through fire prevention, public fire safety education, and fire investigation.
Emergency communications
A maximum of 10 points of a community’s overall score is based on how well the fire department receives and dispatches fire alarms. Our field representatives evaluate:
- the emergency reporting system
- the communications center, including the number of telecommunicators
- computer-aided dispatch (CAD) facilities
- the dispatch circuits and how the center notifies firefighters about the location of the emergency
Fire department
A maximum of 50 points of the overall score is based on the fire department. ISO reviews the distribution of fire companies throughout the area and checks that the fire department tests its pumps regularly and inventories each engine and ladder company’s equipment according to NFPA 1901. ISO also reviews the fire company records to determine factors such as:
- type and extent of training provided to fire company personnel
- number of people who participate in training
- firefighter response to emergencies
- maintenance and testing of the fire department’s equipment
Water supply
A maximum of 40 points of the overall score is based on the community’s water supply. This part of the survey focuses on whether the community has sufficient water supply for fire suppression beyond daily maximum consumption. ISO surveys all components of the water supply system. We also review fire hydrant inspections and frequency of flow testing. Finally, we count the number of fire hydrants that are no more than 1,000 feet from the representative locations.
Community risk reduction
The Community Risk Reduction section of the FSRS offers a maximum of 5.5 points, resulting in 105.5 total points available in the FSRS. The inclusion of this section for “extra points” allows recognition for those communities that employ effective fire prevention practices, without unduly affecting those who have not yet adopted such measures. The addition of Community Risk Reduction gives incentives to those communities who strive proactively to reduce fire severity through a structured program of fire prevention activities.
The areas of community risk reduction evaluated in this section include:
- fire prevention
- fire safety education
- fire investigation
“We value our partnerships with the South Tahoe Public Utility District, South Lake Tahoe Fire Rescue, and the South Lake Tahoe Public Safety Dispatch Center; we could not achieve such a low ISO rating without them.”