Insurance Service Office Rating 

What is the Insurance Service Office (ISO)?

ISO" stands for the Insurance Services Office, a private corporation that evaluates industries for insurance rating purposes. For the fire service, the ISO uses the Public Protection Classification (PPCTM) program, in which the ISO conducts periodic audits of every fire department in the United States on a constantly rotating basis, usually about every 10 years.

The Insurance Service Office is a, for profit, organization that provides statistical information on risk. For many years the "ISO Rating" had a large impact on most fire departments. The ISO (PPC) rating is from 10 - 1. With "1" being the best. At one time, almost, all insurance companies calculated rates based upon the ISO rating. ISO would come to your city and assess a Public Protection Classification. They would then sell this data to the insurance companies. Just about every aspect of a city and a fire department was evaluated in determining the ISO rating. They would give points for everything from the training aids a fire department owned to the distance between fire hydrants. ISO wanted fire departments to conduct 20 hours of training per man, each month, in order to maximize points for every training aid. Historically, very few cities ever received a "Class 1" rating. There have been times where only one city, out of the nation, would receive a "1". Presently there may be as many as 40+ cities with a "1" rating in the U.S. This is still a small percentage when one considers the thousands of communities nationwide. There is little incentive for a community to strive for a "1" rating since the step from a "Class 2" to a "Class 1" results in little or no difference in homeowner rates. When a city does get a "Class 1" rating they will often proudly display it on their patches, apparatus or website.

What is Southlake Fire Departments rating?

As of September 1, 2014 Southlake businesses and residents will begin reaping the benefits of the Fire Departments exceptionally high score and rating they officially received from the Insurance Service Office (ISO) and the State Fire Marshal’s office. The Southlake Fire Department reached a "Class 1 status up from a Class 4" - the highest rating possible - following a comprehensive audit and evaluation. The ranking is based on a nationwide classification system that reflects the community's fire protection capability for property insurance rating purposes. This means residents and businesses could see a savings on their insurance premiums of 11% to 13%.