The Insurance Services Office (ISO) helps establish industry standards used by most insurance companies to determine fire premiums. Though all insurance companies who utilize ISO are required to recognize the improved ratings by February 1, 2018, some may provide discounts sooner.

Property owners should talk with their insurance provider to determine which rate is applied to their property.

• On a 10-point scale with Class 1 being the best, TVF&R is now considered a Class 2 in all areas within five miles of a fire station. Previously, parts of the district without fire hydrants were considered a Class 8 or 10. This could mean big savings for people in North Plains, Midway, Stafford, Sherwood, Newberg and some of the rural parts of the District.
• Properties located more than five miles from a fire station are considered a Class 10. TVF&R has very few of these areas. 
• Some properties located five to seven miles from a fire station might be considered a Class 10w, depending on the features of the property, giving customers a 5 to 10 percent discount.  
• TVF&R is among the top 3 percent of the 46,042 fire departments evaluated by ISO.

“We are so pleased with our improved rating. It has the potential to save the people we serve money on their insurance premiums,” states Fire Chief Mike Duyck. “We also appreciate the comprehensive analysis of our operations and prevention capabilities by an objective third party.”    

ISO considered TVF&R’s staffing, equipment, training, fire station distribution, incident reporting, data collection and community-risk-reduction efforts. They also evaluated water infrastructure, shuttling abilities and emergency communications. Washington County Consolidated Communications Agency and TVF&R’s fire prevention program earned the highest marks in all categories.