Los Angeles County, California

Class A Fire-Rated Roofs in the Los Angeles Fire Zones

Re-roofing or rebuilding in a Los Angeles fire zone? The Class A rating has to cover the whole roof assembly, and a Class A shingle over the wrong underlayment does not pass. Send the address and we will look at what is on the roof now and quote the assembly in writing, free.

Tell us about your roof Call (310) 857-2520

Free roof inspection
We come out, get on the roof, and tell you what we find.
The price in writing
A written quote before anyone starts, with nothing to sign on the spot.
Licensed roofers
Our roofer who comes out holds a current California license.
Across Los Angeles County
From the Valley and the foothills to the Westside and the South Bay.

In a high or very high fire hazard severity zone the roof has to be a Class A assembly, tested as a whole build-up. The rating belongs to the deck, the underlayment and the covering together, not to the shingle on its own, and the vents, gutters, valleys and eaves are separate items in the same chapter.

The rules moved on January 1, 2026. Chapter 7A came out of the California Building Code and into the California Wildland-Urban Interface Code, Title 24 Part 7. Everybody still calls it Chapter 7A. Your plans should say CWUIC.

There is no price band for a fire zone roof here, because the number lives in the assembly and not in the covering. What the code package adds on a rebuild is on the costs page.

Where it appliesHigh and very high fire hazard severity zones, including the Palisades, Altadena, Malibu and the foothills
What it is nowThe California Wildland-Urban Interface Code, Title 24 Part 7, since January 1, 2026
What it coversThe covering, the underlayment, vents, gutters, valleys and eaves
Watch forA Class A shingle over the wrong underlayment is not a Class A assembly

The covering is only part of it. A vent like this one, the gutter, the valley metal and the way the eave is closed in are separate items in the same code chapter, and an inspector looks at all of them.

What changed, and what didn't

Class A in the fire zones was required before the January 2025 fires, and it is required now.

The State Fire Marshal released updated local responsibility area maps in February and March 2025, after Executive Order N-18-25. CWUIC 101.3.1 now reaches High zones in local responsibility areas, not only Very High. On state responsibility area land, where the state carries wildland fire protection, every zone is in scope, Moderate included.

Check the address first

The State Fire Marshal's zone viewer takes an address, and the Los Angeles Fire Department points at the same map. Houses that sat outside the zones before the 2025 maps are inside them now.

Re-roofing an existing house triggers it

CWUIC 507.1. Replace the roof covering, or 50 percent or more of it inside 12 months, and it has to meet what new construction meets. Anything laid during an addition, alteration or repair has to be at least Class A.

Where it appliesHigh and very high fire hazard severity zones, including the Palisades, Altadena, Malibu and the foothillsThe inspection is free, and the price for your roof comes in writing.

Get a price for your roof

Ask for the assembly by name

A Class A assembly passes a series of exterior fire exposure tests, and the UL listing names the components it was tested with.

The listing.Which tested Class A assembly the quote is built on, and the deck, underlayment and covering it names.
The underlayment.A listed Class A underlayment under CWUIC 504.2.1.2, or the 72 lb ASTM D3909 cap sheet route under 504.2.1.1.
The plans.Plan check reads the submitted set, not the quote. If the quote names one listed assembly and the plans name another, the correction comes back after the roof is on.

Tile and metal on a wood deck

CWUIC 504.2 exempts some coverings from testing. Clay and concrete tile, slate and metal count as Class A on non-combustible decks. Plenty of Los Angeles houses have a wood deck, and on wood the exemption does not carry.

Then 504.2.1 applies, because a tile profile leaves a void under it. Two ways through. A 72 lb cap sheet over the deck, with bird stops at the eaves and the hip and ridge caps mudded in. Or a listed Class A underlayment tested as part of the assembly, detailed the same way.

Bird stopping is easy to leave out, and the code does not treat it as optional. Gaps at the ridge and the edge fill with nesting material, embers light it, and the flame reaches the framing past a rated covering.

The rest of the roof is in the code too

Gutters and downspouts.CWUIC 504.4. Non-combustible, with a means of keeping debris out.
Valleys.CWUIC 504.2.2. Corrosion-resistant metal, minimum 0.019 inch, over a 36 inch wide 72 lb mineral-surfaced cap sheet, full length.
Vents.CWUIC 504.10. Listed ember-resistant vents tested to ASTM E2886, or on sloped roofs non-combustible corrosion-resistant mesh between 1/16 and 1/8 inch. Gable and dormer vents sit 10 feet off the lot line.
Eaves, soffits and fascia.CWUIC 504.3. Non-combustible or ignition-resistant material on the exposed underside, and a fascia is required.
Wood shakes.LA County allows treated shakes listed by the State Fire Marshal. The City of LA amends that away, and its ordinance rules out wood shake and shingle. Check the section your department is working from.
Paint.CWUIC 503.2.5 says coatings and stains are not an approved method of protection.

Common questions

I'm only doing an addition. Does this apply?

The state code has an exception for buildings built before July 1, 2008. Local agencies can amend that exception away, and in the City of LA and LA County additions and alterations are generally pulled in. Ask your building department which version applies.

Does hardening a roof do anything?

IBHS assessed more than 250 properties after the Palisades and Eaton fires. Houses with four hardening features had a 54 percent likelihood of avoiding damage, against 36 percent for houses with one. The four were a Class A roof, non-combustible siding, double-pane windows and enclosed eaves.

Will it help my insurance?

The Department of Insurance publishes a consumer alert saying the CAL FIRE hazard maps do not affect insurance rates or availability. What a carrier does with a hardened house is between you and your agent, and the assembly listing is the document they will ask for.

Send the address and what is on the roof now, and we will come look. Rebuild work in Altadena and Pacific Palisades has its own page, and roof replacement covers a straight re-roof.

The offer

$500 off a new roof, 10% off any repair

Send your request online from this page and the offer is attached, with nothing to remember.

We get on the roof, and into the attic if that is where the answer is
You get photographs of whatever we find
The price in writing, with nothing to sign on the spot

Claim it on a free inspection

The edge detailWhere the assembly is made or lost, and the part an inspector looks at first.
A listed assemblyThe classification belongs to a tested combination, not to any one layer of it.
Gutters and eavesEmbers land in a gutter of dry leaves, so the code reaches these too.