How Economy Is Challenging Fire Protection Services

In this article, Mike Waters, vice president, ISO Risk Decision Services, discusses the challenges faced by our nation’s fire departments and the significance of ISO’s PPC™ program.

Fire department challenges
All types of departments — volunteer, combination, and career, as well as rural, suburban and urban — face challenges as a result of the economic recession. Those challenges can be hiring freezes, layoffs, postponing infrastructure projects, delaying apparatus purchases, and attracting enough volunteers.

ISO’s PPC program
ISO uses its Fire Suppression Rating Schedule (FSRS) to review a community’s fire-suppression capabilities. The FSRS helps insurers evaluate those communities using Public Protection Classifications (PPCs). ISO’s PPC program helps insurers keep up with changes in communities’ fire-suppression capabilities to more accurately price and underwrite policies. » Read complete article

Customized reports

Customized PPC and BCEGS® reports for your community are available by mail from ISO:

• PPC report — needed fire flows for the commercial buildings in your community and details of your PPC grading survey (Available free to your community’s fire chief or chief administrative official)
• BCEGS report — details of your latest BCEGS grading survey (Available free to your community’s building official or chief administrative official)

Mail your request on fire department or building department letterhead, as appropriate, or on your chief administrative official’s letterhead to your ISO Regional Processing Center.