Firefighters looking for compensation before putting out a house fire

[91stealthrt2]

You are mistaken. The FD did not respond to watch so they could laugh and point fingers. The neighbor had paid for protection so the FD was there to protect his property as the fire was spreading towards his place.

Is it sad...yes. Could it have been avoided if the cheap ass would have paid his $75...yes. What do you think would happen if they put fires out for everyone and then collect the $75 at the time of the fire? I am sure the majority of this rural FD's budget consist of these payments. If word got out they would put fires out regardless if you paid or not, what do you think their budget would drop to? What you are suggesting is similar to only paying for insurance when you had a wreck...how would that work?

Exactly... PAY YOUR TAXES or INSURANCE.

This reminds me of a local restaurant/brewery that didn't pay their taxes. So what the county did was revoke their liquor license. Of course that was going to hurt their business. It sucks because they are now out of business and they had the best pulled pork I've ever had.

If you don't drive with car insurance and get caught your fine is over $600, which is probably much cheaper to just buy your policy.

[CoreyB]

I still say you put the fire out, and you then bill the guy for the full cost to due so. If he doesn't pay then its just like non payment of taxes and they take his house. What the chief chose to do his heartless and wrong. I read that this guy has paid the fee for the past 20 years and hadn't yet paid this year, he supposedly was not refusing to pay, just hadn't yet.
Lesson learned is simple, pay your fee or you will owe the $20k or so it costs to put your house out.

[NickS VR4]

The $75 is probably more than made up for in your home owners insurance too compared to no fire dept coverage.

[MightyMouse]

Maybe they should make a fire department bill where the departments have to help even if the home owner didn't pay some form of fire insurance. This way, people with pre-existing home fires can sign up for the insurance while the house is burning..

[MightyMouse]

Here's the thing that I find even more entertaining. The comments section you have people talking about the firefighters "moral obligation" to take care of the burning house, yet no one speaks of the neighbors moral obligation to help extinguish the fire before it got to the house or anything of the sort.
There is no moral obligation. There's a fee that has to be paid and that's that.. It'd be the same thing as someone signing up for auto insurance after their car is wrecked... Not really fair to people who maintain insurance at all times now is it?

[beepbeep]

I read that this guy has paid the fee for the past 20 years and hadn't yet paid this year, he supposedly was not refusing to pay, just hadn't yet.

I saw him on the news and the comment he made was that he knew there was a yearly fee, but he didn't pay it and figured the fire department would still put out the fire, if it ever happened.
Fire department was in the right. Home owner was in the wrong. Sucks, but that's the way it is.