Vermont wildfire risk
Vermont sits in the lower half of US states for wildfire hazard, but lower does not mean none — hazard concentrates locally regardless of the statewide picture. This page covers current activity and how to check your own address.
Active fires in Vermont
Vermont's recorded fire history
Federal perimeter records show only 0 mapped wildfires in Vermont since 2000. That is a genuinely low figure, and it is the main reason the state sits where it does in the national ranking. It is worth being careful with what it means, though: the record captures fires large enough to have a perimeter mapped by a federal agency, so smaller incidents handled locally do not appear.
Where hazard concentrates in Vermont
Wildfire hazard is not spread evenly across a state. These are the 5 counties in Vermont with the highest wildfire risk scores in FEMA's National Risk Index, with the building value each has sitting in exposed areas.
| County | Hazard score | Building exposure |
|---|---|---|
| Windsor County | 26.9 | $10.8B |
| Chittenden County | 25.4 | $4.4B |
| Rutland County | 23.0 | $6.9B |
| Addison County | 21.4 | $1.8B |
| Windham County | 20.9 | $5.7B |
Windsor County carries the highest score in the state at 26.9. If your address is there, or in any of the counties above, the statewide average understates your situation considerably — which is the reason to check the parcel rather than the state.
How Vermont ranks nationally
FEMA's National Risk Index scores every US county for expected annual wildfire loss. Across Vermont's 14 assessed counties the average wildfire hazard score is 17.6, which places the state 48th of the 50 states. The most exposed county in Vermont scores 26.9.
Against a 50-state average of 52.7, Vermont sits 35.1 points below it. Rank 48 of 50. The National Risk Index blends how often wildfire is expected with how much is standing in the way, so a state can post a moderate score with severe local hazard wherever development has pushed into the wildland-urban interface.
Roughly $71.6B of building value sits inside Vermont's wildfire-exposed areas. That figure is what drives carrier behaviour: insurers manage concentration of exposure, so a state can have modest average hazard and still see availability problems wherever that value clusters in the wildland-urban interface.
Vermont wildfire season
Vermont sees most wildfire activity during dry spells in spring and autumn, when cured vegetation and low humidity coincide. Activity is generally episodic rather than a sustained multi-month season.
Insurance in Vermont
Vermont does not operate a FAIR Plan in the way the western fire states do, which in practice means the surplus lines market is the fallback for a parcel the admitted market declines. An independent broker is more useful here than a captive agent, because only they can access those carriers.
Residual-market availability and the rules governing it change. Confirm the current position with the Vermont Department of Insurance before you rely on it.
Whatever the market looks like in your area, the sequence is the same: document mitigation before your renewal date, work with an independent broker who can access surplus lines, and ask directly whether the carrier credits wildfire mitigation. The full fire insurance guide covers non-renewal, FAIR Plans and difference-in-conditions wraps in detail.
Lowering your risk in Vermont
The two changes with the best return anywhere in the country are clearing the first five feet around the structure to non-combustible material, and screening vents against ember entry. Both are cheap, both address the mechanism that destroys most homes, and both are visible to an underwriter if you photograph and invoice them. What qualifies and how to document it.