Home › Forums › Open Discussion › Earthquake Insurance – worth it?
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April 16, 2013 at 6:36 pm #607183
wakefloodParticipantAnyone added earthquake insurance to their home? I have Pemco and they don’t offer it.
My quote would essentially double my home insurance costs for less than what I think it would take to rebuild if serious damage occurs.
Does anyone know if it’s just a better idea to do the foundation tie-down retrofit and hope that I can get a better deal after a quake with some gov’t backed low rate rebuilding mortgage? What does the bank do that holds my current mortgage if the house is essentially unlivable?
Anyone been through a quake and know how this all works?
April 16, 2013 at 7:24 pm #788346
snaParticipantI have earthquake coverage on my 100 year old home. For me, its worth the costs even though it doubles my insurance premium. I’d rather not live in a FEMA trailer hoping for a government loan to rebuild.
April 16, 2013 at 7:31 pm #788347
wakefloodParticipantI appreciate the response, sna. Can you tell me if you were able to secure insurance that would actually rebuild your home to it’s current specification? My quote certainly wasn’t going to cut it. I needed to ask them to increase that limit. Still not sure if they will.
April 16, 2013 at 7:40 pm #788348
skeeterParticipantI serve on the board of a condominium complex in West Seattle. We did opt for earthquake coverage. It is very expensive. I think it just about doubles the price of insurance.
We do have adequate coverage to pay the actual replacement cost.
Good question about the lender. I’ve often wondered what would happen if a mortgaged and uninsured property was seriously damaged in an earthquake. My guess is the lender would have to take the loss seeing as how the borrower would be unable to continue making payments on a house that couldn’t be lived in.
April 16, 2013 at 7:54 pm #788349
snaParticipantThe two companies that I know of that would give my house EQ coverage are Homesite and Ameriprise. Both have online quoting. You should be able to select a high limit if its justifiable. With Ameriprise, it will go up to 125% of the limit. If you use Costco, i think you get a 10% discount (Ameriprise only).
April 16, 2013 at 11:31 pm #788350
Michael WaldoParticipantAwhile back, a landslide knocked a couples house off the foundation and it was red tagged. The bank did not care, they had to make thier monthly morgage payment even though the house was inhabital. They ended up paying monthly payments to the bank and to a rental landlord. The expense of having the house tied to the foundation might be cheaper then earthquake insuance. I have heard it works in all but the most awesome quake.
April 17, 2013 at 12:51 am #788351
birdrescuerParticipantI have it with State Farm and have had it for years. Not sure if they still have it but I would never be without.
April 17, 2013 at 2:12 am #788352
shed22ParticipantTo wit: only if there’s an earthquake.
April 17, 2013 at 3:53 am #788353
Spring ChickenMemberI would call the insurance company and ask if the premium would be lower after you had a seismic retrofit done.
April 17, 2013 at 2:00 pm #788354
kayoParticipantWe have earthquake coverage through Liberty Mutual that adds quite a bit to our premium. Does not double it though (i think adds about $300 a year on). However, we have a newer (90’s era) home that does not need retrofitting and the coverage has a huge deductible (they offer various levels of deductible as a percentage of your homes value depending on how much you want to pay.). We wanted to switch to USAA at one point as we are members, but their earthquake coverage was pricey and provided by a secondary vendor so we stuck with LM. We will see if it is worth it if/when there is a big quake. Does give me a little more peace of mind to have it though.
April 17, 2013 at 4:27 pm #788355
LisaMParticipantIf you have, or qualify for, USAA, they took great care of me and my home in the 2001 earthquake.
April 17, 2013 at 9:28 pm #788356
jdurocherMemberI got my insurance renewal and was shocked to see the earthquake premium had jumped to $1,000 per year – that is over what I already pay for homeowners insurance. I canceled it. The rider had a $50,000 deductible, and I figure if an earthquake is big enough to cost more than that then thousands of uninsured people will be suffering the same fate with me. And as long as we have a Democratic Senate delegation and a Democratic president, we are safe in knowing we will be bailed out – just like Katrina, Sandy, etc. etc. Sorry folks but you are no longer rewarded for personal responsibility. You’re already paying for insurance from Uncle Sam via your taxes and deficit spending.
April 17, 2013 at 10:06 pm #788357
wakefloodParticipantYou had me until you made the jump to politics, jd. Insurance companies have no masters, they carry no flag but their own. They make their bed and are happy to lie in it.
But thanks for sharing…
April 18, 2013 at 1:53 pm #788358
webshafParticipantAfter paying the expensive premium for over 15 years with our Mutual of Enumclaw home insurance policy, they dropped earthquake insurance a couple of years ago. (we cancelled our policy and bundled with our car for a discount, but couldn’t get EQ coverage because our house was built in 1042 and not retrofitted.) I believe Geovera offers EQ insurance but haven’t gotten quotes…thanks for the leads on the other 2 companies to check out.
I tend to agree with jdurocher’s sentiments, sadly.
April 18, 2013 at 2:45 pm #788359
wakefloodParticipantAgain, thanks for your information, webshaf. But I gotta’ wonder why you and jd are jumping to conclusions unfounded by any data?? It’s like the line in The Holy Grail when the king asks his wise man to describe again how sheep’s bladders can be used to prevent earthquakes!
I’ve been looking at some research and here’s what I’m finding.
A) Research is coming to light that 90% of Americans live in potential earthquake zones. It used to just be the coasts – and particularly the west coast.
B) Earthquake damage is some of the most expensive to repair – similar to hurricanes – whose insurance is also very expensive, and becoming less available in the areas that need it most.
C) Insurance companies are ONLY interested in maximizing profits. They do everything based on probabilities. Earthquakes especially – and Hurricanes – are notoriously difficult to predict and damage is highly variable. Do you know who was at the forefront of the lobbying movement to institute the new home earthquake building standards? Insurance companies. Just like seatbelts and motorcycle helmet laws. They want to reduce the likelihood of claims. If their numbers tell them that WAY more homes are at risk now than they used to think, and that repair damage costs more to fix than it used to – yes, you don’t rebuild at $40/sq.ft. anymore folks – then you get adjustments in premiums.
Obviously, some companies have determined that they can’t make enough profit margin on EQ policies to make their shareholders happy. It’s risk and they minimize it. Easiest way is to not offer it.
If you have some other fact-driven explanation that is tied to Democrats or FEMA or gubment regulation, feel free to offer it. My ears are open.
April 18, 2013 at 3:08 pm #788360
wakefloodParticipant…and I forgot to add that all first tier insurance companies are THEMSELVES insured. They use reinsurance to cover their own risk. This is factored into premiums as well. And can run to 40% of the cost of the premium. Know what REinsurers #1 priority is? That’s right, profit.
April 18, 2013 at 3:12 pm #788361
wakefloodParticipantAnother data point. EQ insurance is 3 to 6 times more expensive in WA as it is in the east coast and even more in other less risky zones…
April 18, 2013 at 3:20 pm #788362
wakefloodParticipantAnd as with all risk mitigating activities, if you spread the risk across a greater number, you reduce the cost to all individuals. To wit: If EVERYONE had to buy EQ insurance, it would be priced higher than what is supported by the local risk factor in low risk areas and priced lower for the risk factor in high risk areas.
As it is now, insurance companies are pushing high cost onto the high risk areas where it’s more likely people will buy it. And obviously, people are torn. Denial ain’t just a river in Egypt.
April 18, 2013 at 3:51 pm #788363
wakefloodParticipantAll of which is to say, jd and webshaf, YOU and anyone who DOES buy EQ insurance are paying the price for those of us also in high risk areas who chose not to.
April 18, 2013 at 5:58 pm #788364
jdurocherMemberI think that’s exactly right. Ameriprise wants $1000 per year to insure my $600,000 house, but only after I pay $50,000 for any EQ damage. Most of my neighbors don’t carry it. So yes the insurers want high premiums because there’s not enough of a market. Ergo, when the big one hits and hundreds of thousands of voters are crying on television “Why isn’t anyone helping us?”, our congressional delegation will do what every other congressional delegation does and bring in taxpayer funds from the treasury to bail everyone out. It’s sick, it’s sad, but it’s been proven time and time again.
April 18, 2013 at 6:19 pm #788365
DBPMemberEarthquake insurance worth it?
Really?! How can you even ask this?
I bought me some insurance right after the Nisqually Quake, and we haven’t had an earthquake since.
Damn straight it’s worth it.
April 18, 2013 at 7:09 pm #788366
skeeterParticipantI can share this based off memory. My folks live in SoCal. Insurance companies started dropping earthquake coverage. The more that dropped it, the more switched to those that continued to offer it. But then the remaining companies offering it were over-exposed. So eventually no company offered it. My recollection is the legislature stepped in and forced insurance companies to offer it. I don’t have the specifics but that’s what I recall hearing.
April 18, 2013 at 8:05 pm #788367
wakefloodParticipantYup, skeeter, that’s what started happening. Since only around 10% of folks in the high risk areas were getting it, over the course of time companies couldn’t price it at levels that worked for them so they started dropping it.
The CA Earthquake Authority (CEA) goes into the open market and provides options for those that don’t qualify through normal companies. They’re looking at ways to offer lower premiums and deductibles by offering bonds to back up any catastrophic losses. Essentially CEA functions like a reinsurer or broker. And the CEA is also reinsured. No such thing as a free lunch.
April 19, 2013 at 5:14 am #788368
snaParticipantIf you want a glimpse of the gov bailout you might get if a big earthquake hit, google hurricane Sandy assistance. Despite the huge price tag, it hardly solves the problem for most. Not something I’d want to rely on.
EQ insurance isnt cheap, but probably less than most pay for cable, Starbucks, etc..
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