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A recent Moody’s report found that long-term droughts and early snowmelts extended the fire season from four months to eight to as many as eight months, increasing the risk of wildfires in areas that once rarely saw flames. As of March 2025, the US had already experienced more than 7,100 wildfires, an average of around 37% over the same period on a 10-year average.
With the high risk of wildfires across the country and wider and more risky, it is important to know whether your home insurance covers forest fires and how wildfire insurance works.
Does your home insurance cover wildfires?
Homeowner insurance contracts usually cover damage caused by fires, including wildfires. No matter what type of homeowner’s policy you have, fire damage is almost always covered. That said, some airlines may restrict or suspend posting of news in states and regions that are vulnerable to wildfires. For example, seven of California’s 12 largest home insurance companies have suspended or significantly restricted writing new home insurance in the state due to the high risk of wildfires.
Wildfire-related claims can be very expensive for an insurance company to pay. Economic and losses from the Los Angeles fire alone in 2025 are estimated to be between $250 billion and $275 billion, with insurance losses between about $25 billion and $45 billion. If too many airlines don’t want to take on the risk, high-risk fire zone homeowners may have trouble finding insurance from private insurance companies.
What do wildfire home insurance protections include?
Unless there are specific exclusions in the insurance policy, home insurance covers wildfires. Coverage is usually extended beyond the home structure dwellings.
- Separate structure: A structure that is not permanently attached to your home is considered a separate structure, such as a fence, shed, garage, swimming pool, or gazebo. Other structural parts of your home policy typically cover up to 10% of residential areas in separate structures. For example, if your home has $400,000 insured, the isolated structure may be covered by up to $40,000. This limit can usually be increased if necessary.
- Personal property: Homeowner insurance typically includes personal property coverage. This will help you exchange items such as furniture, electronics, clothing, and home appliances. Your home policy does not cover your vehicle – you need comprehensive coverage of your car insurance for wildfire coverage.
- Additional living expenses: Also known as loss of use, compensation for additional living expenses can help cover the costs that arise if a wildfire forces you to evacuate, or if your home is unable to live from the fire. Covered costs include pet boarding, laundry service, hotel stays, temporary rentals and additional cooking costs.
When does homeowner insurance not cover wildfire damage?
Homeowners in the US at high risk of wildfire damage can have more difficulty in covering wildfire damage and overall homeowner coverage. Homeowner insurance companies may not want to rule out wildfire losses from standard insurance contracts or write coverage in these high fire areas.
If that’s what you live in, you may need to pursue a national insurance option. Fair access to insurance requirements plans, or fair plans, is provided by 33 states and Washington, DC, to help homeowners in high-risk areas get coverage if they are denied coverage by a civil airline. California and Oregon offer fair plans sponsored by states and taxpayers, but not in other states with high wildfire risk, such as Nevada and Arizona.
How to prevent damage to your home due to wildfires
Finding homeowner insurance may be the best course of action to protect your home financially from wildfire damage, but reducing your home’s exposure to fires can prevent damage in the first place. The following steps may help you avoid wildfire damage to your home, and you may even get mitigation discounts with some carriers. The following steps may help reduce the risk of wildfires in your home:
- Create a defensible space. By removing flammable materials from the boundaries of your home, you can prevent wildfire flames from reaching the structure of your home. This includes removing vegetation and debris from around the house, and regularly cleaning dead vegetation from your property to eliminate wildfire fuel.
- Ensure water access to your property: Regularly place visible hoses around your property will allow firefighters to quickly access the water to protect their property and extinguish the embers in the event of a wildfire.
- Clearly mark the address: It may seem trivial, but making sure firefighters can clearly see the address marked from the road can help them more quickly identify the structures they will protect in the event of a wildfire.
- Consider the risk of fire during landscaping or renovations. Certain construction and landscaping materials are much more fire resistant than other constructions. If you live in a high-risk wildfire area, choosing concrete and stone over wood may help reduce the risk of burns. A fire-resistant roof can prevent embers from setting your home on fire. Planting native and drought-resistant plants and adopting landscaping fires may also help reduce exposure to garden fire damage.
