High rating should mean better insurance rates for Buffalo Grove residents

Buffalo Grove has received high marks for fire protection from a national rating service, good news for home and business owners who will reap the benefits of better insurance rates as a result.

The Insurance Services Office renewed Buffalo Grove’s Class 2 rating, the second-highest rating possible, Fire Chief Terry Vavra announced this week. The agency grades more than 48,000 communities nationwide, helping insurance companies establish fire insurance rates.

“It’s a validation that we are providing a good service to the residents, Vavra said. “And I think that the important part is that it was a cooperative effort. It’s not the fire department that got this rating. It’s the village. We couldn’t have done it without the help of the other departments.

The rating is based on a 1-10 scale, with a 1 signifying exemplary service. Vavra said there are only five Class 1 communities in Illinois and about 50 in the country.

“(The Class 2 rating is) a tremendous accomplishment for us, he added. “That puts us in the top 2 1/2 percent of communities within the state of Illinois and the top 1 1/4 percent of communities in the United States, as far as our ability to provide fire protection.

The ratings are made in three specific areas related to the delivery of fire protection: fire department capability, community water supply and communications, including the 911 system.

Also significant in the rating, Vavra said, is the relationship between the fire department and water system scores.

“We lost five points because of what’s called divergence, he said.

When asked by village Trustee Jeffrey Braiman, Vavra said having more firefighters would have earned the department a higher rating.

“And of the score, that’s the only place in the entire ISO survey where there is not a top number, he said.

“Because you’re efficient, you’re being penalized, in a way, Braiman responded. And smiling at the chief, he said, “And we appreciate your efficiency.