The Institute for Catastrophic Loss Reduction (ICLR) has announced its best practices plan for home design to reduce the risk of loss and damage caused by several natural hazards, including wildfire. The forest fires in Alberta have damaged over one million acres and forced hundreds of thousands of residents to evacuate.
This move is part of ICLR’s 'Insurers Rebuild Better Homes' program. The plan is actively encouraged whenever a total loss event occurs. It should also be considered in case of a partial loss event. The anti-wildfire guidelines recommend the use of non-flammable materials and design strategies to arrest the spread of fire throughout the property.
The program provides three essential elements for each hazard that provide the best risk reduction, as well as several optional elements that will improve resilience if there are funds to spare.
The ICLR 'Insurers Rebuild Better Homes' campaign is the first-ever program that sets out actions that insurance companies can undertake to improve homeowners’ disaster preparedness. Majority of funds to support the recovery, rehabilitation, and reconstruction of Canadian homes affected by natural hazards are sourced from the insurance industry. The recovery and rebuilding process is a critical opportunity to build back better, making Canadian homes more resilient to future hazards at little or no additional cost.
