Amador County – The Upcountry Community Council last week discussed fire insurance issues and impacts.

Lynn Morgan, chairwoman of the Upcountry Community Council said about About 20 people attended the regular UCC meeting Monday, June 11, and most of the people came to talk about fire insurance.

Guest speaker, Amador Fire Protection District Battalion 10 Chief Dave Bellerive talked about the Insurance Service Office, or ISO rating system and potential affects on fire insurance rates. He said the independent office was set up to do analyses of fire risk factors.

Morgan said one of the conclusions of the evening was that the ISO is not even used by some insurance companys in determining fire insurance costs. Morgan said State Farm Insurance is one such company. Guest speaker, Anne Lintz, an agent with State Farm Insurance did not say what specific criteria State Farm uses to determine fire insurance costs. She said it is up to individual companies to determine their own criteria.

The last ISO update for the Upcountry area was in 2004, Morgan said. Bellerive said the fire department itself updates the ISO ratings every two years.

The UCC’s fire committee head, Rich Farrington invited insurance agent Robert Manassero to report on the industry. Morgan said he talked about the Amador Water Agency and some debts they have, and said they are still hoping to get moving forward with the Gravity Supply Line.

Morgan said it was discussed frankly that the ratings have to do with how close your home sits to a fire hydrant or a fire station. They also discussed looking at an increase in the number of hydrants, and how it could change insurance. Lintz said it is only one of several factors, and costs are pretty stable right now, but it is not a good time to be shopping for fire insurance.

The Upcountry Community Council last week also talked about a plan to report to the Amador County Supervisors in regard to the proposed Buckhorn Town Center, which is now part of the drafted amended county General Plan. Morgan said the Council invited all 64 property owners within the boundaries of the proposed Buckhorn Town Center to come to a potluck dinner at the July UCC meeting. She said most important thing about community input is getting people involved.

That potluck meeting is 6-8 p.m. Monday, July 9 at the Veteran’s Memorial Hall on Buckhorn Ridge Road in Pioneer.

Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.