The measures and the money

Do the work, prove it, and the discounts follow

California built the incentives: admitted carriers must credit Safer from Wildfires measures under Insurance Code §2644.9, and the FAIR Plan publishes hardening discounts worth up to 16.4 percent combined. What most homeowners are missing is not the work. It is the verified proof. Here are the common measures, shown from real assessments, and what each one earns.

Safer from WildfiresFAIR Plan discount

Class A roof, maintained and sealed

A Class A fire-rated roof covering, composition shingle, metal, or tile, kept in sound condition: penetrations sealed, flashing intact, skylights closed and in good repair, and the roof surface free of debris. The roof is the largest ember-catching surface on the home, which is why both programs anchor on it.

Earns:The Class A roof is the anchor measure of Safer from Wildfires and a FAIR Plan discount item. Many carriers will not write a WUI home without one.

Rooftop view of a shingle roof with dome skylights and freshly sealed pipe penetrations — Documented from the roof: sealed penetrations, intact flashing, skylights inspected. Condition matters as much as rating.

Illustration of a home with a standing seam metal roof — Illustration: standing seam metal, the gold standard. Class A, noncombustible, and shed-clean at the edges.

Safer from WildfiresFAIR Plan discount

Ember-resistant vents

Every attic, eave, and foundation vent screened with metal mesh at one-sixteenth inch, or replaced with ember-rated vents. Embers, not flames, ignite most homes, and vents are their front door.

Earns:A FAIR Plan discount item and part of the Safer from Wildfires structure measures carriers must credit under §2644.9.

Plastic grid foundation vent being measured with a tape measure — Fails twice: plastic melts in ember exposure and the grid openings are far too coarse. Measured here to spec the metal replacement.

Three round frieze block vents with fine mesh, a tape measure documenting their spacing — Documented, not eyeballed: each screened vent measured and photographed for the compliance record.

Foundation vent covered with fine metal mesh — The standard: fine metal mesh across the full opening. This passes.

Illustration of glowing embers stopped on fine metal vent mesh — Illustration: embers land on the mesh and die there instead of entering the crawlspace. That is the whole job of a vent retrofit.

Safer from WildfiresFAIR Plan discount

Enclosed eaves and clean roof edges

Open eaves enclosed with noncombustible soffits, gutters kept free of debris or fitted with noncombustible gutter guards, and overhanging limbs trimmed back from the roofline.

Earns:Enclosed eaves and Class A roof condition are credited under both programs; gutter guards are a named FAIR Plan discount item.

Open-beam eaves with exposed rafter tails — Open-beam eaves give embers pockets to work into.

Needle debris collected at a shingle roof edge — Before: needle litter at the roof edge is pre-staged fuel.

Micro-mesh gutter guard along a shingle roof edge — After: micro-mesh gutter cover. Embers find metal instead of dry needles. A named FAIR Plan discount item.

Safer from WildfiresFAIR Plan discount

Zone 0: the first five feet

Nothing combustible within five feet of the structure: no vegetation, bark mulch, stored items, or attached wood fencing. Hardscape, gravel, or bare soil instead.

Earns:The ember-resistant zone is a headline measure in Safer from Wildfires and a FAIR Plan discount item, and Zone 0 regulation is coming to state law under AB 3074.

Shrubs, ferns and bark mulch planted against wood shake siding — Plantings and bark mulch against wood shake siding: stored fuel touching a combustible wall.

Hedge grown up the wall of a cottage beside a noncombustible stamped concrete patio — The patio is exactly right. The hedge on the wall hands the win back. Zone 0 is about the wall line, not just the ground.

Tall grass against siding near a propane tank — Grass to the siding with propane in the path. Priority fix.

Flagstone hardscape wrapping a stucco home — Hardscape at the foundation is the standard. Keep plantings out of the five-foot zone.

Safer from WildfiresFAIR Plan discount

Decks and under-deck clearance

No combustible storage under decks, skirting screened or solid, and deck boards sound. On slopes this matters double: fire pre-heats everything above it.

Earns:Deck and under-deck condition is assessed under both programs' immediate-surroundings measures.

Generator and equipment stored beneath a wood deck — Stored fuel under the deck becomes the ignition source.

Wood lattice skirting with open storage behind it — Before: lattice reads as skirting, performs as kindling.

Framed fine metal mesh skirting under an elevated deck — After: framed fine-mesh panels. Same airflow, none of the kindling. This is what passes.

FAIR Plan discount

Noncombustible fence connections

Any fence or gate that touches the structure should be noncombustible for at least the last five feet. A wood fence is a fuse line running straight to your wall.

Earns:A named FAIR Plan hardening discount item, and flagged in Safer from Wildfires immediate-surroundings guidance.

Gravel ground cover with a wood lattice gate attached to the structure — The gravel is right; the attached combustible gate hands the win back.

Safer from Wildfires

Zones 1 and 2: defensible space

Five to thirty feet: spaced plantings, no ladder fuels, deadwood removed. Thirty to one hundred feet: grass mowed to four inches, tree canopies separated. Compliance with PRC 4291 defensible space law.

Earns:Credited through Safer from Wildfires community and property measures; most carriers require documented defensible space for preferred rates.

Home among redwoods with dense understory on the slope below — Managing ladder fuels on the slope protects the deck line above.

Tall grass in a corridor between structures — Corridors between structures channel wind and flame. Cleared first.

The discount only counts when it is verified

Carriers do not take your word for it. A Certified Wildfire Mitigation Specialist documents every measure on your compliance record, verifies the completed work, and WUI Clear packages it in the standardized format your insurer and the FAIR Plan can act on. That is how the work above turns into the savings.

Start your compliance record Run a free ClearScan first

Discount amounts vary by carrier and policy. FAIR Plan discounts apply to policies per its published schedule.