Earthquake damage isn't just uncovered by standard homeowners policies — it's explicitly excluded. For clients in seismic zones, which cover a larger portion of the country than most people assume, a major earthquake can mean losing a home with no insurance to rebuild it.
Earthquake damage is one of the few perils explicitly excluded from standard homeowners policies — not just absent, but specifically named as something the policy will not cover. For clients in seismic zones, that distinction matters. A major earthquake can destroy a home entirely, and without a separate earthquake policy or endorsement, there's no coverage to rebuild from.
A Larger Map Than Clients Expect
California gets most of the attention. But significant seismic activity occurs across a much wider area: Utah, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, Alaska, Hawaii, and a large swath of the Midwest along the New Madrid Seismic Zone — Missouri, Tennessee, Illinois, Arkansas, Kentucky, and Indiana. Parts of the South Carolina coast and the Pacific Northwest have long-term risk that rarely makes headlines.
Clients outside California often assume they don't need earthquake coverage. A meaningful number of them are in recognized seismic zones and don't know it.
What a Separate Earthquake Policy Covers
A standalone earthquake policy or endorsement typically covers structural damage to the dwelling and other structures, personal property damaged in the earthquake, and additional living expenses while the home is uninhabitable.
One feature that surprises clients: earthquake deductibles are commonly percentage-based rather than flat dollar amounts. That means the deductible scales with the home's insured value — and on a higher-value home, it can represent a substantial out-of-pocket amount before the policy begins to pay. Worth walking clients through what that looks like in their specific situation.
The Conversation Worth Having
For any client in a recognized seismic area — and many aren't sure whether they qualify — earthquake coverage is worth raising directly. Most clients have never been asked about it, and most assume their homeowners policy handles it.
The question isn't just whether they have it. It's whether they understand what a percentage-based deductible means for their specific home value, and whether the coverage they'd need to actually rebuild would be there when they need it.