For $3,000 a day, Californians can hire private firefighters to protect their homes from the state’s devastating wildfires.

And many wealthy homeowners are doing just that.

Private firefighting companies are offering “on-call” wildfire protection to well-heeled Californians as the number and intensity of fires increases. Multiple fires burning in the state right now threaten expensive homes in both wine country and areas around Los Angeles.

A majority of the private crews work for insurance companies like Chubb, USAA and Safeco that offer mitigation services to their customers, the New York Times reported, but some contract directly with homeowners or neighborhood associations.

Most insurance-contracted crews don’t actually fight fires — they focus on making homes more fireproof by installing sprinkler systems, fire breaks and fire-blocking gels. But other companies do try to douse flames that are threatening their customers’ homes.

Private firefighting was historically used by government agencies like the National Forest Service, which hires crews to fight and prevent wildfires. But now, some firms see a business opportunity in contracting to homeowners.

The practice, while not new, can be problematic, and not merely because of the income inequality issues it raises. The Los Angeles Times reported last year reported that some private crews fail to coordinate with local agencies. That leaves first responders in the position of having to worry about private crews as well as the residents of areas threatened by fire.

It’s also not clear how effective these crews are. Last year, Kim Kardashian claimed her home in Hidden Hills, California, was saved by private firefighters as the deadly Woolsey fire raged, but that turned out not to be true – the hired crews didn’t show up until a day after a team of homeowners and city security guards ignored evacuation orders to protect homes in the wealthy enclave.