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I'm about a month and a half from closing, and I'm finding out that most of the insurance companies won't cover my house because it may not have had an earthquake retrofit. They want the house to be bolted to the foundation, and some are saying they want a seismic shut-off for the gas as well. How big of a job is this? The house is being sold as-is so I cannot get US Bank to cover the cost of the retrofit.
The seismic shut off is not that much, but the only smart thing you can do is get a couple bids on the retrofit.
I am surprised that a house in that area has not already been done.
Each house is different so a guess is not what you really need.
Be careful which Insurance Co. you get a policy from as most have shredded their earthquake policies to where the deductables and exclusions are ridiculious.
ASK QUESTIONS UP THE GAZOOO before signing any policy.
The bolting of ones home isn't difficult but it's messy and must be done correctly. While they are in your walls, try to see if everything is properly braced and tied together. The shut off is quick and easy to do. Use liscenced contractors only.
The seismic shut off is not that much, but the only smart thing you can do is get a couple bids on the retrofit.
I am surprised that a house in that area has not already been done.
Each house is different so a guess is not what you really need.
Be careful which Insurance Co. you get a policy from as most have shredded their earthquake policies to where the deductables and exclusions are ridiculious.
ASK QUESTIONS UP THE GAZOOO before signing any policy.
Silverfox
But the insurance companies don't even write earthquake policies!! They're all handled by the California Earthquake Authority, and yes, the deductible is at least 10% and sometimes 25%. That's why I don't understand the logic behind them all hounding me about this.
"Hounding" you, or asking the questions as part of the application for insurance? It may be that they will insure you, but you will be charged a higher rate if you don't have those things done, just like there's a discount for having smoke detectors and a burgalar alarm.
Let's say there's an earthquake while you are away from the house. Your house moves radically because it wasn't bolted, a gas line could jar loose... and since the gas line didn't have an automatic seismic shutoff valve, it leaks... and at some point later in the day a fire starts. The fire would then come under your homeowner's/fire insurance policy. And because of the earthquake, emergency vehicles either will not be able to phsyically get to your location, or they will be too swamped with bigger emergencies, and your house will burn to the ground, maybe taking the whole street with it. So that's why it matters to your insurance company.
Just a guess, mind you. But you are moving to an area of unstable ground near the fault line, with a prediction of "the big one" in the near future, and apparently into an older, pre-code house. Even if it didn't burn down, it probably would be totalled if it vibrated off the foundation. Everything would crack or break. The money spend on securing it is well worth it. In some areas, the gas company will do the shutoff valve for you, for free. Doesn't hurt to call and ask. Anyway, it's all to your benefit to get it done.
"Hounding" you, or asking the questions as part of the application for insurance? It may be that they will insure you, but you will be charged a higher rate if you don't have those things done, just like there's a discount for having smoke detectors and a burgalar alarm.
Let's say there's an earthquake while you are away from the house. Your house moves radically because it wasn't bolted, a gas line could jar loose... and since the gas line didn't have an automatic seismic shutoff valve, it leaks... and at some point later in the day a fire starts. The fire would then come under your homeowner's/fire insurance policy. And because of the earthquake, emergency vehicles either will not be able to phsyically get to your location, or they will be too swamped with bigger emergencies, and your house will burn to the ground, maybe taking the whole street with it. So that's why it matters to your insurance company.
If all they wanted was a seismic shutoff valve, that's fine. $500 at most, I can handle that. But I've had a number of insurers tell me flat out, they will not insure me at all unless I can prove retrofit work was done. That's just absurd.
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Just a guess, mind you. But you are moving to an area of unstable ground near the fault line, with a prediction of "the big one" in the near future, and apparently into an older, pre-code house.
All correct.
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Even if it didn't burn down, it probably would be totalled if it vibrated off the foundation. Everything would crack or break. The money spend on securing it is well worth it. In some areas, the gas company will do the shutoff valve for you, for free. Doesn't hurt to call and ask. Anyway, it's all to your benefit to get it done.
The foundation is a 4-inch crawl space and concrete slab on a flat lot. The house is not going anywhere, and maybe 50% of houses in this area have retrofits according to my agent. Are those 50% all defrauding their insurance companies?
....concrete slab on a flat lot. The house is not going anywhere,
You ain't from around these parts, are ye? Maybe you should watch some old news film of the last SF quake or the Northridge one. "Flat lot and concrete slab" has nothing to do with it... it's, um, the violent shaking of the earth and whether the building has been built or retrofitted to withstand it. I'm not defending the big bad insurance companies, it's just that after living here 30 years, I prefer the "ounce of prevention" route. If I was told my home didn't meet earthquake safety standards, I'd be getting estimates to fix it, regardless of the insurance. Far cheaper than losing everything in a pile of rubble.
However, since you seem dead set against retrofitting your home, why not ask some of those 50%ers in the neighborhood what insurance company they are using? Of course, it could be that none of those houses have sold, or switched carriers, since the tighter standards went into effect. You say "a number" won't insure the house, but, hey, all you need is one, so keep calling around. Good luck to you.
Maybe you should watch some old news film of the last SF quake or the Northridge one. "Flat lot and concrete slab" has nothing to do with it... it's, um, the violent shaking of the earth and whether the building has been built or retrofitted to withstand it. I'm not defending the big bad insurance companies, it's just that after living here 30 years, I prefer the "ounce of prevention" route. If I was told my home didn't meet earthquake safety standards, I'd be getting estimates to fix it, regardless of the insurance. Far cheaper than losing everything in a pile of rubble.
However, since you seem dead set against retrofitting your home, why not ask some of those 50%ers in the neighborhood what insurance company they are using? Of course, it could be that none of those houses have sold, or switched carriers, since the tighter standards went into effect. You say "a number" won't insure the house, but, hey, all you need is one, so keep calling around. Good luck to you.
Thanks. I think I found out what's going on - the carriers I were calling are the ones that don't carry CEA earthquake insurance. Instead they write coverage into all of their policies, and they're too chicken s*** to cover an old house without retrofits. How they could get any business is beyond me, but Liberty Mutual doesn't fall into that category and I'm going to see if I can get an independent company to write a better earthquake policy than CEA's. Arrowhead looks like a good bet.
Eventually I will get the retrofit done, but I have a $7,000 down payment and the prospect of buying new appliances to contend with first.
Only $7k down? In Oakland? You must live right. Get the retrofit done before you move in. You might not get around to spending the money and have the house collapse around you a week from moving in. Maybe you should find a place that has had the work done already. Can you really afford not to have the work done?
BTW - I do not live where the ground shakes like a bowl of jelly but in a place where the ground and anything above it freezes once a year. Insulation for us is a much of an option as earthquake resistance is for you.
Well, if they'll insure me without the retrofits, then yes, I think I can afford to put it off a few months while I build up the war chest again. I'm not the sort of person who is satisfied to have only $500 in the bank account at a time.
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