B.C. smoke alarm campaign proposes required fire alarm tests to renew insurance

B.C. Minister of Justice and Attorney General Shirley Bond and the president of the Fire Chiefs’ Association of B.C., Surrey Fire Chief Len Garis, have launched a smoke alarm campaign that includes a proposal linking annual insurance renewals to fire alarm tests.

The new campaign is a sustained, coordinated approach to make sure B.C. homes have a functioning smoke alarm. Research done by Surrey Fire Services, in partnership with the University of the Fraser Valley, shows that almost 70% of houses that caught fire did not have a functioning smoke alarm.

One component of the campaign involves “exploring the potential to utilize the [B.C.] Insurance Act to compel annual testing of smoke alarms upon policy renewal,” according to a statement posted on the B.C. attorney general’s website.

Further details about the campaign will be publicized as it rolls out during 2012. Information about the campaign will be available at: www.fcabc.ca