Verisk has launched LOCATION® Property Protection Score™ (PPS), a new scoring tool to evaluate fire protection capabilities at individual property addresses.
LOCATION PPS is designed to assist insurers in assessing and underwriting homeowners’ risks more precisely by providing a fire protection score at the address level.
According to Verisk, this scoring system builds on its LOCATION® Public Protection Classification® (PPC), an established standard for evaluating community fire protection efforts used by over 250 insurance providers.
The LOCATION PPS incorporates criteria such as emergency communication systems, fire department readiness, water supply, and community risk reduction.
Additionally, it utilizes localized data, including actual drive times to fire stations and property-specific attributes.
LOCATION PPS is supported by Verisk’s Fire Suppression Rating Schedule (FSRS), further refining its scoring process.
Enhanced inputs include traffic-based drive times between a property and fire stations, granular measurements of distance to water, and unique property characteristics.
Austin Grigsby, associate vice president of personal property solutions at Verisk, explained: “Insurers want stronger predictive performance and informative insights surrounding the properties they insure, and LOCATION PPS delivers.”
He added that communities can improve their scores by maintaining their fire suppression infrastructure.
These enhancements align with the growing demand from insurers for accurate predictive models to manage risks associated with fire damage and suppression capabilities.
According to data from the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), U.S. fire departments responded to 1.5 million fires in 2022, resulting in $18 billion in damages.
Residential structure fires occurred approximately every 88 seconds, highlighting the need for advanced assessment tools like LOCATION PPS.
James Roche, senior vice president of property product management at Verisk, commented: “LOCATION PPS’s innovative efforts can provide insurance carriers greater granularity in fire protection assessment, which is essential for assessing the relationship between fire suppression and related losses.”
LOCATION PPS is currently available in select markets.
It builds on the foundation of the LOCATION PPC program by offering improved granularity and predictive capabilities for insurers.
By leveraging FSRS-based criteria and additional localized data, the system aims to aid insurers and communities in managing fire risks more effectively.
Communities and fire departments can use this feedback to enhance their infrastructure and emergency response systems, contributing to overall resilience.
Verisk has introduced the LOCATION® Property Protection Score™ (PPS) to help insurers assess fire protection at the address level.
The system builds on the LOCATION® Public Protection Classification® (PPC) and incorporates localized data such as traffic-based drive times to fire stations, property-specific attributes, and water proximity.
As noted by Verisk, this tool enables insurers to improve underwriting accuracy and encourages communities to enhance their fire suppression infrastructure.
NFPA data from 2022 underscores the importance of tools like LOCATION PPS, with U.S.
fire departments responding to 1.5 million fires and $18 billion in damages.
The system is available in select markets and aims to support both insurers and communities in managing fire risks.
