Climate and property risk analytics provider ZestyAI has announced that its advanced wildfire risk model, Z-FIRE, is now filing-ready in California.
The model can be filed for rate segmentation and underwriting without additional review under the pre-application required information determination (PRID) process.
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This development follows Z-FIRE’s inclusion in an approved California rate filing in 2024.
Z-FIRE uses AI to analyse more than 2,000 historical wildfires, combining satellite and aerial imagery, topography and property-level characteristics to deliver risk assessments.
This methodology is said to be supported by decades of scientific research, including work by the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety.
The model covers nearly 100% of US properties and is employed by the California FAIR Plan and others to enhance underwriting and risk segmentation, ensuring premiums reflect wildfire exposure.
ZestyAI CEO and founder Attila Toth said: “For years, leading insurers have trusted ZestyAI to manage wildfire exposure in California and refine pricing segmentation with precision. Now, insurers can continue to confidently integrate it into their rate filings.”
Following the recent Los Angeles wildfires, the company claimed that Z-FIRE’s “highest-risk ratings” matched the most affected areas, with a percentage of the areas impacted by the Palisades and Eaton fires rated as “high or very high risk”.
Z-FIRE reveals property-specific characteristics affecting damage patterns, enabling insurers to move beyond binary “insure or drop” decisions.
The model also demonstrated the influence of property-specific characteristics on damage patterns within the same fire perimeter.
Z-FIRE also offers insights into more than 1.5 million structures in California at high or very high risk of wildfire damage.
These insights are said to enable insurers to advise policyholders on reducing vulnerability through various mitigation efforts, improving risk segmentation and market stability.
ZestyAI has maintained a dialogue with the California Department of Insurance, leading to the approval of multiple carrier rate and underwriting filings that leverage Z-FIRE.
Last month, the company’s Severe Convective Storm suite received regulatory approval from the Minnesota Department of Commerce.
