By By Lisa Tindell
Atmore residents may see a change in the rates of their homeowner’s policy since a change in the city’s Insurance Services Office (ISO) ratings has been noted.
Atmore Mayor Howard Shell said the change came recently after inspection of city services by ISO agents.
Shell said some of the reasons included training for firemen with the department and placement of fire hydrants in the city.
Shell blamed growth in the city over the years as a reason for hydrant deficiencies.
Shell said other deficiencies are also being corrected with ISO agents already responding to that work.
Shell said the change in the rating for the city is the first change in several years.
Shell said although several areas in the city need attention, work is being done to bring those deficiencies into compliance.
ISO began in 1971 with a staff dedicated to collecting information about municipal fire-protection efforts in communities throughout the United States. In each of those communities, ISO analyzes the relevant data and assigns a Public Protection Classification (PPCTM) — a number from 1 to 10.
Class 1 generally represents superior property fire protection, and Class 10 indicates that the area’s fire-suppression program does not meet ISO’s minimum criteria.
Virtually all U.S. insurers of homes and business property use ISO’s Public Protection Classification in calculating premiums. In general, the price of fire insurance in a community with a good PPC is substantially lower than in a community with a poor PPC, assuming all other factors are equal.