Is earthquake excluded from Georgia habitational insurance?

Does a standard Georgia habitational policy cover earthquake damage?

No. Earthquake is excluded from nearly every Georgia habitational insurance policy, which covers apartment buildings and other multi-family rentals. Earthquake damage is treated as a separate peril, so a standard property policy will not pay for it unless specific coverage is added.

Why is earthquake an exclusion on habitational policies?

An exclusion is something a policy specifically does not cover. Earthquake is one of the standard exclusions on commercial property and habitational forms across the country, not just in Georgia. The ISO commercial property form, the template most carriers use, lists earthquake among its named exclusions by default.

How can a habitational owner add earthquake protection?

The gap can usually be filled two ways. An earthquake endorsement added to the existing policy extends coverage to earthquake damage for an additional premium. When an endorsement is unavailable, a standalone earthquake policy purchased separately covers just this peril. Either path closes the gap; the right one depends on what the current carrier offers.

Earthquake coverage almost always carries its own deductible, separate from the main policy deductible. That deductible is typically calculated as a percentage of the insured building value, commonly 5 to 15 percent, rather than a flat dollar amount.

For example, a 30-unit apartment building insured at $4 million with a 5 percent earthquake deductible means the owner absorbs the first $200,000 of any earthquake loss before coverage kicks in. At 10 percent, that out-of-pocket exposure doubles to $400,000. Knowing this figure before a claim happens is what drives informed coverage decisions.

How significant is earthquake risk in Georgia?

Georgia is not California, but it is not seismically quiet either. The Rome, Georgia area in the northwest corner of the state sits near the East Tennessee Seismic Zone, one of the more active seismic zones east of the Rockies. Georgia has recorded measurable quakes, and the U.S. Geological Survey maps parts of northwest Georgia with moderate earthquake hazard. Multi-family property owners in those counties carry more risk than owners in, say, coastal Chatham County, where wind is the dominant peril.

What factors affect the cost of earthquake coverage for a Georgia apartment building?

Earthquake premium varies by location, building construction, age, and the deductible the owner chooses. Masonry or unreinforced concrete buildings typically cost more to insure for earthquake than wood-frame structures, because they perform worse in a seismic event.

For example, a masonry apartment building in Floyd County - home to Rome, in the East Tennessee Seismic Zone - will pay a meaningfully higher earthquake premium than a wood-frame building of the same value in a lower-hazard county. A habitational owner weighing earthquake coverage should look at proximity to a seismic zone, building construction type, replacement cost, and what loss amount they can absorb without insurance.

For a coverage review that looks at your specific property location, construction, and deductible options, visit olivecover.com/coverage-review.