Monday, February 24, 2014

Walnut Cove Fire Department Achieves A Better Protection Class Code


The hard working fire department folks of the Walnut Cove Fire Department have successfully improved their fire districts official protection class rating.  And they have achieved this just a few years after they were placed probation for one year as a result of failing to meet state requirements.  Residents and property owners in the Walnut Cove Fire District should enjoy improved safety and perhaps lower property insurance rates as a result of this change.  The new class rating took effect Jan 1st, 2014.

Several factors go into the development of property insurance rates like the construction materials, the age and what is inside the property.  But a huge part of the rating puzzle comes from the protection class rating.  This applies to all types of property insurance from homeowners insurance to dwelling fire insurance and even business insurance policies like commercial fire insurance and businessowners insurance.  Fire districts are all assigned a protection class rating number between 1 and 10.  The lower numbers indicate better fire protection and will help reduce property insurance rates while the higher numbers indicate poorer protection and thus generate higher insurance prices.   These protection class ratings are certified by the state.  In the process of evaluating these ratings, the state studies the fire department’s ability to respond quickly, whether or not they have water available at hydrants or if they have to carry the water on their trucks.  The quality of the supporting fire departments in surrounding districts can also have an impact on their protection class ratings.

In the case of the Walnut Cove Fire District, they were able to make huge strides in a relatively short period of time to reduce their protection class rating.  For owners of property located inside the city of Walnut Cove their new protection class rating will drop from an 8 to a 5.  For those in a 5 mile district surrounding the town limits, their new class rating has dropped from a 9 to a 6.  The people of Walnut Cove and in particular their fire department should be proud of this accomplishment and what it means for the safety and protection the people and property in the Walnut Cove Fire District.

If you are an owner of property located in the Walnut Cove Fire District, carefully check your next property insurance renewal policy.  If you are unable to determine your property’s protection class from the renewal policy then I suggest you contact your insurance agent to be sure that the policy renewed with the new protection class code applied to the rate.  It would not be unusual for an insurance company to miss these changes and I wouldn’t want you to miss out on the savings that your fire department has earned for you.

Clinard Insurance Group, is an independent insurance agency located in Winston Salem, NC.  One of our missions is to help all insurance buyers to be informed consumers.  We insure thousands of households and businesses all across North Carolina, Georgia, South Carolina and Tennessee.  If you would like help with your auto insurance or home insurance, or your business insurance or even your life insurance, please feel free to call us, toll free, at 877-687-7557.

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