Residential fires affect over 400,000 Americans each year. To make matters worse, many homeowners are not taking the necessary precautions to safeguard their property and their loved ones or to prevent the fire from occurring in the first place.

To minimize the physical, emotional and financial damage of a residential fire, Mitch Silver, Sr. Vice President of NIA’s personal services division, advises that you take the following precautions:

• Check smoke detectors regularly. Change the batteries in your detectors at least twice a year. Working smoke detectors can save lives and prevent the destruction of your home.
• Purchase an electronic alarm system. In the event of a fire, this system will quickly notify your local fire department. A timely response could mean the difference between the partial or total loss of your home.
• Install an automatic sprinkler system. Not only will it reduce damages, but you can also get a premium discount on your homeowners insurance if you have a sprinkler system.
• Prepare a household inventory. This can be as easy as using a camcorder or digital camera to take film or pictures of rooms and their contents. You only need to provide detail on individual items that are unusual or expensive. Then, secure the disk in a safe deposit box or other secure place outside of your home.
• Keep a copy of your homeowners policy in a safe deposit box. Don't leave your only copy at home, where it might be destroyed.
• Strengthen your homeowner policy. Don’t simply get a policy that will pay you only the ''actual cash value'' of your building and its contents at the time of the fire. Make sure you get ''replacement cost'' coverage, which will allow you to replace your destroyed property and personal possessions without a deduction for depreciation.

If you have questions or would like more information on minimizing the damage of residential fire, please contact Rick Bingham at rbingham@niagroup.com or 212.850.0107 ext. 4060.