The homeowner in this case lived outside of, and paid no taxes to, the town which has the fire department. The town contracts with individual homeowners for fire protection. They charge a paltry $75 for the year for the service. If they did not they would not be able to offer the service. The homeowners in his neighborhood chose not to include a tax for government services but rather to contract on their own for these services. The homeowner in this instance did not choose to avail himself of that insurance. It would be the same as expecting an insurance company to pay a claim you didn’t purchase insurance for.
Having not taken advantage of the fire protection he may well have voided the insurance on his house as well.