Home › Forums › Open Discussion › Do You Have Earthquake Insurance?
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January 24, 2010 at 4:15 am #593643
andasaiParticipantThe Haiti earthquake plus the fact Seattle (particularly West Seattle)is vulnerable to earthquakes, has made me consider earthquake insurance. The big one we had here years ago destroyed our chimney. Pros and cons? Cost?
January 24, 2010 at 4:33 am #686974
bluebirdMemberHere’s a few comments last time it was brought up.
https://westseattleblog.com/forum/topic/earthquake-insurance
January 24, 2010 at 7:40 am #686975
BonnieParticipantWe had earthquake insurance for many years until Allstate decided to stop offering it. I checked around (at the time) and found it was really expensive. (about 4x what we were originally paying) I may check around again.
January 27, 2010 at 3:35 pm #686976
raminoParticipantI always have earthquake insurance and find that it is not terribly expensive. Older houses may have to be retrofitted for earthquake protection (bolted to the foundation) which can be costly. Amica Insurance does offer earthquake coverage with 10% deductable. They have a great reputation.
January 29, 2010 at 3:40 am #686977
on boardParticipantWe have it with a company called Geovera. Wouldn’t consider not having it to be honest.
February 1, 2010 at 8:58 pm #686978
anonymeParticipantI have a post and pier foundation and therefore not eligible for earthquake insurance. The Big One will leave me in a pile of rubble.
February 2, 2010 at 4:11 am #686979
snaParticipantIf you have an older house try:
Ameriprise (can buy through costco)
Homesite
MetLife
I believe all three have reasonable rates and don’t require a retrofit
February 2, 2010 at 4:43 pm #686980
KBearParticipantOne thing about retrofits: They can mean the difference between repairing and rebuilding your house if there’s a major earthquake. When you realize that the deductible for earthquake insurance is usually 10% to 20%, it makes the cost of a retrofit look like quite a bargain.
February 2, 2010 at 4:50 pm #686981
HomerParticipantVery true KBear, about retrofitting but here’s my question. If your older house is retrofitted, and you buy earthquake insurance with a 10-20% deductible, then your house is less apt to completely fall down and be eligible for the other 80% from insurance. So, we might be paying $500-$1000 a year for the premium and when the big one hits, our house is heavily damaged but because of the retrofitting, it doesn’t require more than the 20% that insurance makes us pay first to fix…what do you think? Quite a conundrum for me!
February 2, 2010 at 5:23 pm #686982
KBearParticipantIf a retrofit prevents the house from falling off its foundation, the damage is usually substantially less. Hopefully much less than the deductible for earthquake insurance. It’s not a guarantee, that’s true, but would you really rather suffer a major loss, just so the insurance company has to pay more?
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