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 Home Municipal Support Fire Underwriters Survey Information Sheet Fire Underwriters Survey (FUS) is a national organization administered by CGI Insurance Business Services (formerly the IAO). FUS provides data on public fire protection for fire insurance statistical work and underwriting on behalf of most of the member companies of the Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC). The other primary function of the FUS is to provide advice to municipalities on deficiencies in their fire protection capabilities, and to make recommendation on improvements to enable them to better deal with fire protection problems. As part of the FUS, qualified surveyors conduct full field surveys of the fire defenses maintained in municipalities across Canada. The results of the surveys are then used to establish the Public Fire Protection Classification (PFPC) of a community. The PFPC is also used by underwriters to determine the amount of risk they are willing to assume in a given community or section of a community. The FUS also uses PFPC information to develop the IBC Dwelling Protection Grade (DPG), which applies to single-family residences. The overall intent of the grading system is to provide a measure of the ability of the protective facilities of a community to prevent and control the major fires that may be expected to occur by evaluating in detail the adequacy, reliability, strength and efficiency of these protective facilities. The schedule used does not consider past fire loss records but, rather, fire potential based on the physical structure and makeup of the community. In the application of the schedule, the fire protection capabilities within a municipality are measured against a recognized standard of fire protection. The essential features of a community’s fire defenses are assessed, including community water supply, fire department operations, fire prevention program, emergency communications systems, building construction controls and hazards within the community. The following elements of the municipal fire department operations are reviewed as part of the survey:
Of particular interest to the municipalities that have a limited water distribution capability within the town or rural area, is the ability to demonstrate the fire department or mutual aid districts ability to perform “Tanker Shuttle Operations” to support fire fighting operations in areas of the town or municipality where fire hydrant service is not available or flow is limited. This operation would need to be demonstrated in the presence of a FUS representative, and a minimum of 900 litres/min maintained for two hours. Specific to fire apparatus, FUS requires fire apparatus to meet either the ULC-S515 or the NFPA 1901 Standard for Firefighting Apparatus Construction, Equipment and Testing. The following schedule is used as a guideline for apparatus replacement as part of the survey:
The IBC covers the cost of the survey every 15 – 20 years. This will include either a short or long grade survey. This may include a visit to a community and conduction of fire flow testing. Once the above survey is concluded a grade is assigned and entered into a data base subscription which is accessed by over 85% of insurance companies across Canada. Municipalities do have the option of arranging for a survey at any time, however may be responsible for the costs of the survey. This is worth considering if there have been significant advances to the community fire protection program including the water distribution capability in recent years. Further information on the Fire Underwriters Survey (FUS) is available by contacting The CGI Group directly at the address and contact number listed below, or by viewing their website at http://portal.cgi-ibs.com/en-ca. CGI - Insurance Business Services 7015 MacLeod Trail SW Calgary, AB T2H 2K6
Attn: Cindy Payne Specialist – Fire Protection Ph 1-800-465-4264 Manitoba Emergency Services College Codes & Standards Investigations Municipal Support Emergency Response Administration top
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