FAIR Plan Wildfire Discount Checklist

Last updated September 30, 2026

What the California FAIR Plan and admitted insurers look for when they give a wildfire mitigation discount, and how to document the work you have already done.

If you are insured through the California FAIR Plan, or through an admitted carrier under the state’s Safer from Wildfires framework, some of the work you do to protect your house can reduce what you pay. The discount is rarely automatic. You generally have to know it exists, ask for it, and prove the work was done.

This is a checklist for doing that.

Discount amounts, eligibility and program details vary by insurer and change frequently. Figures quoted on other websites are often out of date. Confirm everything with your own insurer or broker, and cite the FAIR Plan directly for FAIR Plan questions, before you spend money expecting a particular discount.

First, know which system you are in

California has two things running in parallel, and they are easy to confuse.

Safer from Wildfires is a regulation from the California Department of Insurance. It requires admitted insurers — the regular carriers — to recognize specific mitigation actions and offer discounts for them. The list of recognized actions is set by the state, but each insurer decides how much each one is worth.

The California FAIR Plan is the insurer of last resort, for homes that carriers will not write. It offers its own wildfire hardening discounts on Dwelling Fire policies. It is a separate program with separate paperwork.

Many foothill homeowners have a FAIR Plan policy for fire plus a companion policy from another carrier for everything else. If that is you, ask about both. A broker who writes in Butte County regularly will know how each carrier handles this.

The work that counts

Safer from Wildfires groups recognized mitigation into three levels: the structure itself, the immediate surroundings, and the wider community. These are the items most commonly credited.

On the building

• Class A fire-rated roof. The single most valuable item. Untreated wood shake is the worst case and is effectively uninsurable in high-risk areas now.
• Ember-resistant vents, or existing vents screened with 1/16-inch to 1/8-inch noncombustible metal mesh. Attic, eave, crawlspace and foundation vents all count.
• Enclosed eaves rather than open eaves.
• Noncombustible or ignition-resistant siding, with at least six inches of noncombustible material at the base of the wall.
• Dual-pane windows with at least one tempered pane.
• Ignition-resistant or noncombustible decking, and the area beneath the deck either enclosed or kept clear.
• Gutters with metal guards, kept free of needles and leaves.

Around the building

• A clear five-foot perimeter with no combustible mulch, no shrubs against the wall, and nothing stored against the siding.
• Defensible space out to 100 feet, compliant with state requirements and documented by inspection where available.
• No combustible fence in the first five feet where it attaches to the house.
• Firewood, lumber and propane moved at least 30 feet from the structure.
• Tree limbs cleared at least 10 feet from the chimney and away from the roof.

Community

• Firewise USA site recognition for your community.
• Fire Risk Reduction Community designation from the Board of Forestry.

These last two are not something you can do alone, but if your community already has one, make sure your insurer knows.

The Wildfire Prepared Home route

The Institute for Business and Home Safety runs Wildfire Prepared Home, a third-party verified designation with two tiers. An evaluator inspects the property against a published standard and, if it passes, you get documentation that major California insurers recognize.

The advantage over documenting work yourself is that the verification is done by someone whose job it is, in a format insurers already accept. If you are planning significant work anyway, it is worth asking a local evaluator whether your house could realistically reach the standard, and what it would take.

How to document it so it counts

This is where most homeowners lose the discount they earned. Adjusters and underwriters want evidence, not description.

1. Photograph before and after. Every job, from both a distance and up close. Date-stamped if your phone does that.
2. Keep every invoice, with the contractor’s name, license number, the date, and a description of the work in plain terms. “Replaced 14 attic vents with ember-resistant vents” is useful. “Vent work” is not.
3. Get the product details. For roofing, vents and windows, keep the spec sheet or packaging showing the fire rating or listing. Underwriters often ask specifically what was installed.
4. Get a defensible space inspection if one is available in your area, and keep the report. CAL FIRE and some local fire districts do these.
5. Put it in one place. A single folder — physical or a phone album — beats hunting for receipts two years later at renewal.
6. Send it in and ask directly. Contact your insurer or broker, say you have completed mitigation work under Safer from Wildfires, and ask what documentation they need and what discount applies. Ask them to confirm in writing what was applied.
7. Re-ask at renewal. Defensible space is maintenance, not a one-time job. Some carriers want fresh documentation.

Order of work, if money is limited

Nobody does all of this at once. Roughly, in descending value per dollar:

1. Clear the first five feet. Mostly labor, sometimes free, and it is where ember-lit fires start.
2. Screen or replace the vents. Cheap, fast, and named in every program.
3. Clean and guard the gutters, and clear needles off the roof.
4. Clear defensible space out to 100 feet, then keep it cleared.
5. Move the firewood and cut back the branches over the roof.
6. Replace the fence section that touches the house.
7. Deck surface and understory.
8. Roof, when it is due for replacement anyway — and when it is, make it Class A.

An evaluator can tell you how this order changes for your specific house, which is usually worth the cost of the evaluation before you spend money on the work itself.

What to ask your broker

• Which carriers will write my address right now?
• Which Safer from Wildfires items do you credit, and roughly what is each worth?
• If I do one specific job, will my premium actually change, or is my rating driven by something I cannot fix?
• Are my coverage limits enough to rebuild at current local costs?
• If I am on the FAIR Plan, what hardening discount is available and what do you need from me?

That third question matters most. Sometimes the honest answer is that the address is rated on terrain and access rather than on the house, and a specific upgrade will not move the premium much — even though it may still be the thing that saves the building. Better to know that before writing the check.

Find local help

• Wildfire insurance brokers who write in Butte County
• Wildfire home evaluators for a written, photo-documented report
• Ember-resistant vents and gutter guards — usually the cheapest meaningful upgrade
• Zone 0 landscaping for the five-foot perimeter