East Ridge Improves Fire Rating, Lowering Insurance Rates For Residents

Firefighters do what they do to save lives and property.  But, the work of these crews from East Ridge also saves money.  "To get a little break, to get a discount, you know every dollar help," says City Manager William Whitson.

The Insurance Services Organization recently looked at the inner workings of East Ridge's fire department... reviewing things like manpower, equipment, training, response times, and water supply.  Fire Chief Eddie Phillips says "really its an important thing for fire departments cause it helps us measure where we're at and the type of service we're providing."

The ISO dropped its rating for the city from a 4 to a 3.  Companies that insure homes and businesses use the ISO rating to determine rates, meaning the lower the rating the lower your bill.  Phillips says "citizens are actually saving more money in their insurance premiums than they have to pay in taxes for their fire protection."

To give you an idea of how far the department's come, when the city took over fire protection from private entities about 15 years ago, the ISO rating was a 5.

East Ridge hopes the new ISO rating will help with economic development.  For example, Chattanooga sports a 2, a rating that gave it an edge over competitors for Volkswagen.  "You better bet one of our bullet points is going to be the lower insurance rates, because businesses and homeowners look for those types of items cause it's a nice bonus," says Whitson.

Depending on insurance provider, the new rating will save property owners between 10% and 20% on their next premium.

The new rating puts East Ridge in the top 4% of departments nationwide.

It will be locked in for about 10-years.