A holiday season house fire is one of the most heart-wrenching experiences any family could deal with and is unfortunately seen happening by home owners insurance agencies every year, many times due to carelessness with holiday decorations.
Make sure your home is not one of the residences that experience a fire that results in serious damage to your lovely home.
Use these helpful holiday tips brought from home owners insurance agents to have a happy, healthy, and safe holiday season!
Lights and Light Cords
Electrical components like lights and light cords are a key cause of holiday home fires according to many home owners insurance agencies, so follow these safety tips when choosing and using yours:
- UL-Listed - Only buy light strings, light decorations, and extension cords that are UL-Listed to be sure of purchasing well-made, safety-tested items.
- Indoor Vs. Outdoor - Use indoor lights indoors and only lights designed to be outdoors and weather-resistant to ensure total safety and avoid safety issues.
- Inspect All Lights - Whether they are new from the box or just taken out of storage, inspect all light strings and other electric decorations to look for broken or frayed wires and other signs of damage as it only takes just a bent wire that heats up is enough to start a fire causing costly home damage and a home owners insurance claim.
- Avoid Shocks - Unplug lights to inspect before hanging up or changing bulbs or fuses as well as avoid using metal ladders for putting up lights.
- Don’t Overload Outlets and Extension Cords - Check the voltage limitations for any outlets and cords that are used and do not plug in more than what should be safely drawn from these components.
- Check Lights Frequently - Check frequently for warm lights or extension cords which can indicate a problem with the string or the cord.
- Turn Them Off - Home owners insurance agents recommend turning off decorative lights at night or not at home so there is no chance of an accident that causes a fire while away.
Christmas Tree Safety
In addition to light and electrical safety, practice Christmas tree safety to prevent a home fire that will require the help of your homeowners insurance agency for help:
- Buying A Live Tree - Prevent a home owners insurance fire claim by choosing a tree with thicker needles that are still firmly attached, also being certain that the small branches bend, rather than break which indicates a healthier tree that will take longer to dry out and become a bigger fire risk.
- Keep Live Trees Watered - Use a tree stand that holds at least one gallon of water and keep a live tree properly watered to slow down the drying process plus be certain that the tree can absorb water by making a fresh cut on the stump just before placing it in the stand.
- Buying An Artificial Tree - Choose an artificial tree that is flame retardant or fire-resistant to reduce the chance that it could catch fire and necessitate calling your home owners insurance agent with a damage claim.
- Tree Position - Whether your tree is real or artificial, keep it at least 3 feet away from a fireplace, wood stove, or any heat source.
- Ornaments and Lights - Use fire-resistant ornaments and be sure that light strings are UL-Listed and in good condition so there is little chance of a short or wire heating up and starting a fire on the tree.
Other Holiday Fire Safety
With your Christmas tree properly set up with lights and extension cords examined, homeowners insurance agencies remind to practice these other fire safety tips to keep your home safe over the holidays:
- Fireplaces - Take extra care to keep fire screens closed when burning fires and keep all mantle decorations, including any stockings hang by the chimney with care, protected from embers that could ignite them - better yet, remove things from in front of the fireplace before lighting it!
- Candles - Burn candles away from flammable objects and protected in a jar or candle base. Never burn candles on a Christmas tree and never leave a candle burning unattended to avoid making home owners insurance claim.
- Kids and Pets - Always supervise kids and pets around fireplaces, candles, the Christmas tree itself, and any other electrical holiday decorations.
Never Let A Home Fire Ruin The Holidays
Twinkling lights, charming fireplaces, and gently burning candles all create a festive mood at holiday time.
Keep these fire hazards from ruining your holiday and potentially home by following these home owners insurance holiday fire prevention tips.
A little extra time and effort spent on fire safety with Christmas decorations could make the difference between having the family over for that holiday feast or spending the time talking to a home owners insurance agent about a damage claim!
