Fire Insurance in California

Learn more about our fire insurance coverages and get a quote from one of our knowledgeable California agents.
Providing coverage to residents across California, Arizona, Nevada, Oregon, Texas, and Washington.

What is Fire Insurance?

Insurance properties against fires in California is a complex matter. Many properties are exposed to substantial risk, but others are classified as high-risk when they’re actually in a lower-risk setting. While purchasing fire insurance is important throughout much of the state, it’s equally important to make sure a chosen policy is well-suited for a particular property.

Fire insurance is highly specialized property insurance that generally offers protection against fires. The coverage can fill in gaps that homeowners, commercial property and dwelling insurance policies have.

Who in California Needs Fire Coverage?

Many California properties should be protected by fire coverage, including both residential and commercial properties. Any building that’s in a high-risk setting likely should be insured, and owners who have property in lower-risk areas might still want protection. In some cases, it’s even advisable to insure undeveloped land.

Thus, most owners who have property in the state should at least consider fire coverage. Homeowners, residents who have summer homes, businesses and real estate investors might all want the coverage for their properties.

What Types of Risks Does Fire Coverage Protect Against?

There are two main types of fire coverage policies, and each is normally designed to protect against a different type of fire:

• Dwelling & Fire Insurance: Usually covers most house fires or other fires originating in a structure
• Wildfire Insurance: Usually covers wildfires and some other fires originating outside of a structure

Property owners may need either of these fire insurances, and many property owners end up with both types of policies.

Does Fire Coverage Protect Against Flood-Caused Fires?

Fire is one of many serious risks during major flooding, for high water levels can short electrical systems and create structural fires.

Although these are structural fires that typically start within a building, flood-caused fires normally aren’t covered by fire coverage policies. Since the fire in these situations is a byproduct of flooding, flood insurance is usually needed to protect against the damage caused.

Do Homeowners Insurance Policies Include Fire Coverage?

Coverage for fires is usually one of the fundamental protections of homeowners policies, and even the most bare-bones homeowners policies likely cover certain types of fires. Despite the included coverage, however, there are situations where additional fire coverage should be procured.

First, the fire coverage included in a homeowners policy may not fully cover the cost of rebuilding a house. While many policies do provide sufficient coverage, a policy’s limit can be below rebuilding costs if a home is especially valuable, is a historic site or has many customizations. Homeowners coverage also might not provide enough coverage if building costs rise quickly.

In this situation, dwelling & fire insurance might provide the additional coverage that’s needed when a homeowners policy’s coverage isn’t high enough.

Second, the fire coverage in a homeowners policy typically doesn’t cover wildfires — which are a major concern in much of the state. Wildfire insurance is often needed to protect against this risk.

How Can Property Owners Save on Fire Coverage?

Premiums for fire coverage can be substantial, especially for wildfire coverage in areas deemed high-risk. Property owners might utilize several different strategies to find the most affordable coverage possible.

First, property owners should work with an independent insurance agent. An independent agent is able to compare policy options from multiple insurance companies, and not just one company like some captive agents are limited to. Being able to compare multiple insurer’s policy offerings makes it easy to find the most affordable option that still provides the necessary coverage.

Second, the agent should also be familiar with fire coverage policies and know how to use helpful software. Software and satellite images can help determine whether a property is in a high- or low-risk area, which normally has a large impact on premiums.

How Can Property Owners in California Get Fire Insurance?

For help insuring a California property against structural fires or wildfires, contact the independent insurance agents at CDF Insurance Services. Our agents will help assess your needs for fire insurance, and we’ll work hard to make sure you end up with a policy that provides robust protection.