Did you know that kitchen fires are the leading cause of home fires that result in a claim to homeowners insurance?
Cooking fires are common, especially during the holiday season when celebrating and cooking go hand in hand.
With Fire Prevention Day on October 9th right around the corner, here are some kitchen safety tips from your homeowners insurance agency to prevent fires .
Keep the kitchen safe and avoid any damage or a call to your home owners insurance company to file a claim!
1. Stay Close and Pay Attention
Most kitchen fires that result in a claim to a homeowners insurance policy happen while backs are turned.
When using the oven or stove, pay attention to what’s going on and stay close enough to intervene quickly if there’s a problem.
If taking medication that makes you drowsy, pay extra attention to what you’re doing in the kitchen or wait to cook.
2. Use A Timer
Timers do more than just serve as a reminder to not let your food overcook.
Homeowners insurance agencies find that they also prevent fires that can happen if it does.
Left to burn, food in an oven or a pot on the stove can easily ignite and start a kitchen fire.
3. Keep All Combustibles Away
To prevent damaging fires and resulting claims to your home owners insurance, keep anything that could burn away from hot appliances.
This includes dish towels, pot holders, kitchen curtains, food packaging, cooking utensils, and any other material that could burn or melt when in contact with hot appliances.
In addition, don’t cook with loose-fitting clothing that could dangle in the way and catch on fire.
4. Keep Surfaces Clean
Homeowners insurance companies find that grease fires are especially dangerous in the kitchen and can cause a great amount of damage.
Avoid them by keeping stoves and ovens clean of any dripped or splattered grease and wiping down all the surfaces near them regularly.
5. Keep Kids and Pets Away
Kids and pets in the kitchen are a big no-no, as the distraction they create can be dangerous.
Kids touching things on the stove or pets causing you to trip while holding hot things can contribute to accidents that result in a fire.
Keeping the kids and pets away is also much safer for them.
6. Turn Handles Toward the Back
Knocking things over is yet another common cause of dangerous kitchen fires that involve home owners insurance.
Prevent that from happening by always turning pan and pot handles inward on the stovetop so they can’t get knocked or caught by someone working in the kitchen as they pass by the stove.
7. Turn Things Off
Be meticulous about turning off stove burners, ovens, and other appliances that can start fires.
Homeowners insurance agencies deal with many fires caused simply by someone forgetting to turn off a stove burner that can become cause whatever is on top of it to eventually ignite and burn.
8. Be Prepared
Practice steps 1 through 7 whenever working in the kitchen; however, always be prepared for a kitchen fire because accidents do still happen, even when we plan for the best.
- Keep a general-purpose ABC fire extinguisher close by to put out stove fires.
- If something ignites in the oven, turn off the heat and leave the door closed until the fire burns itself out and the oven cools.
If you think the fire is more serious or attempts to put it out fail, call the fire department right away.
Prevent Kitchen Fires Every Day!
Kitchen fires are one of the more common causes of home damage that involves a claim to your homeowners insurance.
These small fires can quickly burn out of control and destroy an entire house.
Take the advice of homeowners insurance agencies and keep that from happening by following these helpful fire prevention tips on October 6th and every day!
