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Before, During and After: What to do in the event of a Wildfire

Denver, Colo., June 15, 2011 – Destructive wildfires are burning in Colorado and New Mexico threatening our State Farm® customers. If there’s a chance of evacuation or if you are already in an evacuation situation, please consider the following tips:

Before a fire:

An accurate inventory and proof of ownership at the time of a loss can make claim settlement easier and faster.

The inventory will take time to compile, but the time and frustration it may save you later will more than make up for it.

• Get a FREE State Farm® Home Inventory Checklist
• Get a FREE State Farm® Personal Property Inventory Checklist
• Check with your insurance agent or company to make sure that your home is insured for at least 100 percent of its estimated replacement cost. Building contractors or professional replacement cost appraisers are good sources for obtaining an estimate.
• Clear and maintain a “survivable space” about 30 feet wide around your home.
• Reduce the number of trees in heavily wooded areas, and plant new trees or shrubs 10 feet apart.
• Remove dead branches and keep close, overhanging branches from the reach of your roof and 10 feet away from your chimney.
• For trees taller than 18 feet, keep lower branches pruned 6 feet above the ground.
• Keep stacked wood at least 30 feet from your home or other buildings, and keep vegetation cleared away from the woodpiles.
• If possible, use fire resistive roofing and siding when remodeling or building in wildfire prone areas.

During a fire:

• Follow the instructions of emergency workers and firefighters.
• Know when to evacuate.

After a fire:

Please contact your insurance agent. If you’ve filed a claim, you may also contact your claims representative.

Contact

Angela Thorpe State Farm Insurance, (303) 264-1560

About State Farm®

State Farm insures more cars and homes than any other insurer in the U.S., is the leading insurer of watercraft and is also a leading insurer in Canada. Our 17,800 agents and more than 66,000 employees serve 81 million policies and accounts – more than 79 million auto, fire, life and health policies in the United States and Canada, and nearly 2 million bank accounts. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company is the parent of the State Farm family of companies. State Farm is ranked No. 34 on the Fortune 500 list of largest companies. For more information, please visit statefarm.com® or in Canada statefarm.ca®.