Fire Insurance and 5 Steps to Take after a House Fire

The National Fire Protection Agency reports that, on average, Americans experience a fire in their homes about once every five years. This number includes all accidental house fires, no matter how small. When fires get out of control, the resulting damage can be both devastating and costly.

Fortunately, an independent insurance agent can help you find the right fire insurance for your needs. They'll help you get equipped with ample protection for all your property, including your home and vehicle. But first, here's a deep dive into fire insurance, plus which steps to take after a house fire.

What Is Fire Insurance?

According to insurance expert Paul Martin, fire insurance is available as a separate product, but fire coverage is already included in standard homeowners insurance, business insurance, and car insurance. Stand-alone fire policies guard against fire and lightning damage as a priority. But fire coverage is included in so many policies because it’s one of the most common and costly threats to insurance customers of all kinds. In fact, fire is the original peril that certain types of insurance, including homeowners insurance, were designed to protect against. 

Fire coverage may be required by your mortgage lender if you don’t already have it. Also, in certain areas that are prone to wildfires, such as California, residents may be required to purchase additional fire policies. An independent insurance agent can help you review your existing coverage to make sure you have enough fire protection.

Property Fire Stats

Fires may be more common and costly than you might expect. Check out some recent US home fire stats and see for yourself.

• About 358,500 US homes experience a fire every year.
• More than 3,000 US residents are killed by fires every year.
• Reportedly, at least one child dies due to a house fire every single day in the US.
• Cooking, heating equipment, and electrical malfunctions are the three leading causes of home fires, according to FEMA. 

Noting just how big of a threat fires are, it's easy to see why it's critical to be prepared with the right coverage. An independent insurance agent can help.

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How Does Home Insurance Cover Fire?

Fire coverage is included as part of your standard homeowners insurance already, though you can also buy it as a separate product. Unless you live in an especially fire-prone area, the coverage included in your home insurance may already be enough.

Home insurance covers fire in the following ways:

• Dwelling coverage: Fire protection in a home insurance policy protects the structure of the home against damage or destruction by fire. Dwelling coverage also applies to built-in appliances, flooring, and attached garages and decks.
• Additional structures coverage: Depending on your policy, you're likely to also have coverage for detached structures like sheds.
• Personal property or contents coverage: Your personal property, like clothing, furniture, silverware, etc., is also covered by your home insurance against fire damage and destruction. Contents coverage is usually 50% to 75% of your home's total insured value. Some policies will pay for the original replacement cost of items, while others only reimburse for the current value.
• Loss of use coverage: Homeowners insurance also provides coverage for temporary housing if you're forced to live elsewhere while awaiting repairs after a fire. Hotel stays, additional gas mileage, meal takeout, and more are often covered. Coverage in this section is often limited to 20% of your dwelling coverage.

Your homeowners policy also typically pays for debris cleanup after a fire, as well as water damage that occurred from putting the fire out. An independent insurance agent can review your homeowners insurance policy with you to make sure you’re satisfied with the level of fire damage coverage it provides.

What Kinds of Fires Are Covered under Homeowners Insurance?

Several types of fire can be covered by home insurance. A few examples of fires covered by fire insurance include:

• Grease fires
• Electrical fires
• Wildfires
• Forest fires
• Fires caused by war or certain explosions
• Fires caused by arson

Certain homeowners insurance policies will cover arson if you can prove that the fire was started by a third party. However, you'll want to review your specific coverage with the help of your independent insurance agent to be sure.

What Doesn't Fire Insurance Cover?

Fire insurance does not provide coverage for any other type of disaster beyond fire and lightning damage, including:

• Flood damage
• Hail or wind damage
• Theft and vandalism
• Mysterious disappearance
• Owner negligence
• Liability

Your independent insurance agent can further explain what’s not covered by fire insurance, and make sure you get equipped with any protection you feel you may be missing.

When You Should Add More Fire Coverage

Homeowners insurance does provide generous coverage for fire damage, but there are certain cases in which you might want to consider adding a stand-alone fire policy or increasing your policy's limits. These include:

• If you have expensive property: If you have a lot of expensive items like jewelry, collectibles, fancy electronics, furs, etc., you may want to consider adding riders or endorsements to increase your personal property fire coverage limits.
• If you have an older home: If your home is older and more susceptible to fire damage, you might want to look into ordinance or law coverage to protect against building code changes over the years.
• If your home is customized: If your home has undergone a lot of custom upgrades, you might want to look into adding extended replacement cost coverage to your policy to cover the cost of custom materials and extra labor for repairs.
• If you have a large family: If you have a large family, the built-in loss of use coverage included in your home insurance might not be sufficient for your needs. You may want to work with your independent insurance agent to increase these limits.

An independent insurance agent can discuss your needs with you and help you determine if increasing your policy's limits or adding an extra fire insurance policy is the right choice.

5 Steps to Take after a House Fire

If your home gets damaged or destroyed by a fire of any kind, you'll want to contact your independent insurance agent right away. They can help you file a claim through your homeowners insurance and get the reimbursement you need. But there are a few steps to this process to be familiar with, first.

1. Protect all inhabitants: Call 911 immediately to report any injuries and seek medical attention. Don't return to your home if you were ordered to evacuate until authorities declare it's safe to do so. If your home was damaged by fire, be sure to get it professionally inspected before reentering. Avoid any fallen power lines and wear a mask to avoid inhaling dust. Do not use your kitchen until it's been thoroughly cleaned. 
2. Protect your property: Shut off your home's gas or propane immediately. Don't turn your home's power back on until the power company declares it's safe to do so after an inspection. Cover damaged windows and roofs with tarps or plastic sheeting to keep rain and dust out.
3. Document any damage: As soon as it’s safe and practical to do so, take photos of your property, your belongings, and the damage. This will help ensure that you’re able to recover the full insurance proceeds available to you, and it will support tax write-offs for any uninsured losses.
4. Reach out to family and friends: Next, reach out to your friends and family and let them know you’re safe. Phones and internet service may be down or overloaded after a major event, so save phone calls for emergencies. Text messages or posting to social media may be better options.
5. File an insurance claim: Your independent insurance agent can file your claim for you if you provide them with all the information they need, such as any documentation of damage you prepared. Your insurance company will likely need to schedule a visit from an adjuster to evaluate your property's damage in person. During the claims process, keep copies of bids and estimates, repairs made, notes about discussions with contractors and the insurance company, and photos of damage and repairs in progress.

The claims process after a house fire can be made much simpler when you have the help of an independent insurance agent. They can contact your home insurance company and file claims directly for you. Of course, your family's safety is your top priority after a house fire, so make sure all living home inhabitants are safe and accounted for before tending to insurance matters. 

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Why Work with an Independent Insurance Agent?

Independent insurance agents are experts in finding you the right kind of fire insurance and any other type of coverage you need. They can shop and compare policies from many different insurance companies for you, then present you with only the best quotes together in one place. Also, they're available down the road to help you file claims if you ever need to.