May 19, 2022 – The El Dorado County Fire Protection District is pleased to share that the Insurance Services Office, Inc. Public Protection Classification (ISO-PPC) Service rating for the fire district was reduced from a four to a three; an improvement of one rating class. This is an achievement that only 16% of all communities in the United States can claim. This new lower rating will be effective August 1, 2022.

ISO is a division of Verisk, a private insurance rating bureau that provides information products to insurance companies regarding property and casualty risk through several programs, one of them being the PPC program. Other examples of Verisk programs commonly encountered by insurers in our area are FireLine and Wildfire Risk, both increasingly used in our area to quantify wildfire risk. The PPC reviews the fire district, water districts (municipal fire hydrant water supply) and dispatch/communication center capabilities.

Studies have shown that the decrease in the PPC rating from a four to a three could result in a 1-2% reduction in insurance premium costs for structures in the affected areas. Since many other risk factors are evaluated when an individual premium is being underwritten this may not result in actual savings for everyone.

The Fire Districts rating reflects improvements specifically in the categories of emergency communications, engine company staffing, training, and community risk reduction. Last year, the Fire District entered into a cooperative agreement with CAL FIRE in the Camino area, allowing existing Camino firefighters to augment staffing on fire engines in Pollock Pines and Pleasant Valley. By increasing staffing to an industry minimum of “3-0”, meaning 3 personnel on each fire engine, The Fire District can deliver a greater weight of response and arrive to each incident with more robust and capable crews. Because of this enhanced response, the Fire District received a higher score in the engine company staffing category.

“Our fire district is continually striving to improve and enhance the level of service provided to our communities and citizens.  The operational changes and partnerships we have enacted have increased our abilities, to ensure our firefighter’s safety,” says Fire Chief Tim Cordero. “We are committed to continuing to pursue avenues that enhance our service delivery to the communities and citizens we are sworn to protect.  As the Fire Chief, I am extremely proud of our fire district and the work of all our members, which has contributed to this reclassification and benefit to our citizens.”

 The El Dorado County Fire Protection District provides fire and EMS in the communities of Placerville, Shingle Springs, Pollock Pines, Camino, Pleasant Valley, Cool, Coloma, Lotus, Pilot Hill, Pleasant Valley, Oak Hill, Strawberry, and Kyburz.

Press Release