In Colorado's mountains and foothills, the question is no longer just "will my home survive a fire?", it's "can I keep insurance at all?" The good news: documented mitigation is becoming the single biggest lever you control, both for survival and for staying insurable.
Total Colorado homeowner premium grew roughly 2.7× from 2014 to 2024.
Reported increase in homeowner non-renewals between 2018 and 2023, and still climbing.
Colorado properties at moderate-or-greater wildfire risk, #2 in the West (Cotality, 2025).
Why it's happening: a string of unprofitable years from wildfire and hail pushed many carriers to raise rates and pull back from the wildland-urban interface. In the highest-risk foothill and mountain zones, homeowners report increases of 150–300% and some non-renewals with little warning. Figures here are drawn from industry and news reporting and are directional, your situation depends on your carrier, location, and home.
Created by HB23-1288 and offering policies since January 2025, the FAIR Plan exists so that homeowners who can't find coverage anywhere else aren't left with nothing. It's a backstop, not a substitute for a full policy.
| Detail | What to know |
|---|---|
| Who qualifies | Property owners who can show roughly three admitted carriers declined to insure the home. |
| How to apply | Only through a licensed insurance agent/broker, at coloradofairplan.com or (833) 554-5425. |
| Coverage limit | Up to $750,000 for residential property ($5M commercial). Confirm with your agent how the dwelling/contents cap applies to you. |
| What it covers | Base fire & lightning on an actual-cash-value (depreciated) basis, with optional contents and extended perils (wind, hail, smoke, vandalism). |
| What it does NOT cover | No replacement cost, no liability, no loss of use / living expenses, no theft, no flood. Many pair it with a separate "DIC" policy to fill gaps. |
Bottom line: because the FAIR Plan pays actual cash value (replacement cost minus depreciation) and excludes liability and loss of use, a total loss can pay out far less than it costs to rebuild. Use it to stay covered while you keep shopping the standard market, and lower your risk so you can return to it.
Signed in May 2025 and effective July 1, 2026, Colorado's risk-model law changes the relationship between you and your insurer. If a carrier uses a wildfire risk model, it must now:
Give you an annual written notice of your wildfire risk score or classification.
Build mitigation into the model, or give discounts for documented defensible space & hardening.
Accept an appeal if your score is wrong (e.g. it misses completed mitigation) and respond.
Post available mitigation discounts and the appeal process publicly on its website.
Related: HB23-1174 already extended your non-renewal notice from 30 to 60 days, giving you more time to find new coverage. (A 2025 bill, HB25-1302, that would have added a state home-hardening grant and reinsurance pool did not pass.)
Documented defensible space and home hardening do two things at once: they make your home far more likely to survive a fire, and they're increasingly what keeps you insurable and lowers your premium.
Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety
A science-based certification several insurers reward with discounts, or will use to write a home they'd otherwise decline. Lasts 3 years.
wildfireprepared.orgBoulder County
A free assessment and certificate that Allstate, State Farm and USAA (among others) accept as evidence your home is mitigated.
wildfirepartners.orgFire Mitigation Experts
We match you with a vetted crew and hand you the photos and standards-aligned report insurers and the appeal process ask for.
See defensible spaceStart before a non-renewal hits. Use an independent agent who writes multiple high-risk carriers, and never let coverage lapse.
Defensible space, Class A roof, ember-resistant vents, with dated photos, receipts and a certificate or completed-work report.
Request your wildfire risk score, check it for errors (missed mitigation, wrong vegetation/slope), and appeal if it's wrong.
Aim for extended or guaranteed replacement cost and a dwelling limit that reflects today's rebuild price, use the FAIR Plan only as a backstop.
File a complaint or get help with a non-renewal, rate, or claim dispute.
doi.colorado.govCoverage of last resort if you've been declined by the standard market.
coloradofairplan.comFree assessment + insurer-recognized certificate (Boulder County).
wildfirepartners.orgAfter years of severe wildfire and hail losses, many insurers have raised rates sharply or stopped writing and renewing policies in high-risk wildland-urban interface areas. Statewide premiums grew from about $1.9 billion in 2014 to $5.2 billion in 2024, and non-renewals rose significantly between 2018 and 2023. Colorado now ranks among the highest-risk wildfire states in the West.
Created by HB23-1288 and offering policies since January 2025, it's an insurer of last resort for owners who can't find coverage in the standard market (generally after three carriers decline). It provides basic fire-and-lightning coverage up to a $750,000 residential limit on an actual-cash-value basis, applied for through a licensed agent. It does not cover liability, loss of use, or theft, a backstop, not a full policy.
Yes. Under HB25-1182, effective July 1, 2026, insurers using a wildfire risk model must give you an annual written notice of your score or classification, disclose available mitigation discounts, and let you appeal a score you believe is wrong. They must also either build mitigation into the model or discount for documented mitigation.
Increasingly, yes. Many insurers already offer discounts or will write homes they'd otherwise decline if you complete and document mitigation, especially with an IBHS Wildfire Prepared Home or Wildfire Partners certification. From July 1, 2026, Colorado law effectively requires insurers to recognize documented mitigation.
Don't wait, you get 60 days' notice (HB23-1174). Shop immediately with an independent agent who writes multiple high-risk carriers, complete and document mitigation, request and correct your risk score, and keep coverage from lapsing. Treat the FAIR Plan as a last resort while you keep looking, and contact the Division of Insurance for help.
Disclaimer: This guide is general information, not insurance, legal, or financial advice. Programs, laws, figures and dates change, always confirm current details with the Colorado Division of Insurance, the FAIR Plan, and a licensed insurance professional before acting.
