California earthquake insurance in short
Homeowners, renters and condo policies in California do not cover damage from earthquakes, the Department of Insurance says, with one major exception: fire caused by an earthquake is covered by your homeowners policy. If you have a mortgage you must carry homeowners insurance, but earthquake insurance is your choice.
Your home insurer must offer you earthquake coverage in writing every other year, stating the limits, deductible and premium. You have 30 days from the date the offer is mailed to accept it, and not replying counts as declining. You do not have to wait for the offer: a CEA policy can be added at any time before an earthquake, not only at renewal.
The CEA's partner Residential Mitigation Program cites the third Uniform California Earthquake Rupture Forecast (UCERF3): a 99% chance that a major earthquake strikes California within the next 30 years. Whether to insure is a question of how much damage you could pay for yourself, which the deductible example below helps you size.
How the California Earthquake Authority works
Why the CEA exists: the 1994 Northridge earthquake
The magnitude 6.7 Northridge earthquake on January 17, 1994 caused an estimated $20 billion in residential damage, and only about half was insured, according to the CEA citing the Seismic Safety Commission. The CEA says the quake showed the residential insurance industry had greatly underestimated the cost of even a moderate earthquake. In 1995 the Legislature created a basic earthquake policy any insurer could sell to meet the mandatory offer law, and in 1996 it created the CEA.
Funding and claim-paying capacity
The CEA says it has about $19 billion in claim-paying ability and about $900 million in annual premium. By law, only 6% of its premium income can go to operating expenses, and its assets are available only to pay claims to its policyholders. The CEA describes itself as privately funded and publicly managed.
Sold only through participating insurers
The CEA has no stand-alone policies. You buy it from the company that writes your homeowners, condo, mobilehome or renters policy, and that company bills you, services the policy and handles claims. Participating insurers listed by the CEA include Allstate, Amica, ASI, AAA South, CSAA (AAA Northern California), Farmers, Foremost, Liberty Mutual, MAPFRE, Mercury and the California FAIR Plan, among others. If your insurer is not on the list, ask it about its own earthquake policy or a stand-alone policy from a private company.
Private earthquake policies
A few companies sell earthquake policies that are not CEA policies and can be bought without your homeowners policy. The Department of Insurance calls these stand-alone or monoline policies. Compare their deductibles, limits and exclusions line by line with a CEA quote before you choose.
CEA homeowners coverages, limits and deductibles
Coverage A and B: dwelling and extensions
The dwelling limit must match the Coverage A (dwelling) limit on your homeowners policy. Deductibles are 5%, 10%, 15%, 20% or 25% of that limit. The 5% and 10% options are not available if the dwelling limit is above $1,000,000, or for a frame house built before 1980 that is not on a slab foundation and has no verified retrofit; those homes start at 15%.
Coverage C: personal property
With the Standard Homeowners policy, personal property is included but paid only after the dwelling deductible is met. With the Homeowners Choice policy it is optional, with limits of $5,000 or $25,000 and its own 5% to 25% deductible, which is waived if the dwelling deductible is met. Both include $500 for some breakable items.
Coverage D: loss of use
Loss of use pays extra living costs while your home is repaired or the area is evacuated: rent, hotel, restaurant meals, moving and storage. CEA loss of use never has a deductible. Homeowners Choice limits run from $1,500 up to $100,000.
Emergency repairs
The first $1,500 of emergency repairs to prevent further damage is paid with no deductible. Amounts above $1,500 are paid once the deductible is met, up to 5% of the dwelling or personal property limit.
Building code upgrade
Every policy includes $10,000 to bring a damaged home up to the building codes in force on the date of the loss, paid once damage exceeds the dwelling deductible. You can buy $20,000 or $30,000 instead.
Standard Homeowners or Homeowners Choice
The Standard policy bundles all coverages under one deductible. Homeowners Choice lets you set separate dwelling and personal property deductibles, or buy dwelling coverage only to lower the premium. The Department of Insurance notes that both deductibles are never applied to the same claim.
What CEA policies do not cover
The Department of Insurance lists the main exclusions: landscaping, pools, fences, masonry and separate buildings; damage to land; vehicles; and water damage from outside the home such as flood, tsunami or sewer backup. Fire after an earthquake is covered by the homeowners policy instead.
Earthquake insurance for condo owners and renters
Condo unit owners: building property and loss assessment
A CEA condo policy offers optional building property coverage of $25,000 to $100,000 for the parts of the unit you own, plus optional loss assessment coverage of $25,000 to $100,000 for your share of an assessment the association levies after an earthquake. The $25,000 loss assessment limit is only available if the unit's fair market value is $135,000 or less. Each has a 5% to 25% deductible, and building code upgrade adds $10,000.
Why condo owners should check the master policy
The association's master policy may not cover earthquake damage to the common areas and exterior structure, and the association may pass repair costs or its own deductible to owners through a special assessment. Ask the manager whether the association carries earthquake coverage and how large its deductible is. The California HOA laws guide explains when an emergency assessment can exceed the usual limits.
Renters
Renters can buy CEA coverage for belongings and for loss of use while the rental is repaired. The building itself is the landlord's responsibility.
Worked example: how a CEA deductible works
Zillow's typical California home value was $761,538 in September 2026, but your earthquake dwelling limit is not based on that figure: it must equal the dwelling (Coverage A) limit on your homeowners policy, so ask your agent how that limit was set. Take a hypothetical home with a $600,000 dwelling limit and $150,000 of covered earthquake damage.
| Deductible | Deductible in dollars | Policy pays toward $150,000 of dwelling damage | You pay |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5% | $30,000 | $120,000 | $30,000 |
| 10% | $60,000 | $90,000 | $60,000 |
| 15% | $90,000 | $60,000 | $90,000 |
| 20% | $120,000 | $30,000 | $120,000 |
| 25% | $150,000 | $0 | $150,000 |
Two points stand out. First, even with a 25% deductible and no dwelling payment, loss of use is paid with no deductible, so a family that has to move out still gets help with rent up to the loss of use limit. Second, the first $1,500 of emergency repairs is paid without a deductible. The CEA premium calculator lets you slide between deductibles to see how much each step saves; compare that saving with the extra amount you would pay after a loss.
Retrofit discounts and grants
CEA hazard reduction discount
Homes that qualify can get up to 25% off a CEA premium. The home must be a one-to-four unit, wood-framed dwelling built before 1980 on a raised or other non-slab foundation, with the water heater secured, and properly retrofitted to California standards.
| Foundation | Built 1940 to 1979 | Built 1939 or earlier |
|---|---|---|
| Raised foundation (crawl space) | 20% discount | 25% discount |
| Other non-slab foundation (basements, mixed) | 10% discount | 15% discount |
Earthquake Brace + Bolt grants
The California Residential Mitigation Program, run by the CEA and the Governor's Office of Emergency Services, launched Earthquake Brace + Bolt in 2013. It offers grants of up to $3,000 to bolt a raised-foundation house to its foundation and brace the cripple walls, and since 2021 supplemental grants that can cover up to 100% of the cost for income-eligible homeowners. Eligibility is by ZIP code in higher-risk areas; check yours on the program site.
Earthquake Soft-Story grants
Launched in February 2023 in selected Bay Area and Southern California cities, Earthquake Soft-Story offers grants of up to $13,000, per the CEA's history page, to retrofit houses with living space over a garage. Check the current amount and cities on the program site.
Multi-unit retrofit grants
The program's newest grant, Earthquake Multi-Unit Retrofit, covers buildings with 5 to 10 units. The program says it has provided more than $100 million for more than 40,000 retrofits.
How to buy a CEA policy
- Read the coverages. Decide between Standard and Homeowners Choice, and whether you want personal property and loss of use limits above the minimum.
- Get an estimate. Use the CEA premium calculator or ask your agent. The price depends on location, age and construction of the home, and the coverages and deductible you choose.
- Call your current insurer. If it is a participating insurer, it writes and services the CEA policy alongside your homeowners policy.
- Ask about the retrofit discount. If the house was built before 1980 on a raised foundation, a verified retrofit can open the 5% and 10% deductibles and cut the premium.
- Review it with your home purchase. Buyers can add a CEA policy when they bind homeowners insurance before closing; see the California homeowners insurance guide and the FAIR Plan guide if you are insured through the FAIR Plan.
Is earthquake insurance worth it in California?
There is no one answer. The Department of Insurance notes that a mortgage requires homeowners insurance but you do not have to buy earthquake insurance. Questions that help you decide:
- Could you rebuild without it? Compare the deductible in dollars with your savings and home equity.
- How old is the house and what is it built on? Pre-1980 raised-foundation houses and rooms over garages are the types the state's retrofit programs target.
- Do you own a condo? Loss assessment coverage protects you from your share of an uninsured building repair.
- Would you need to move out? Loss of use has no deductible and can matter more than the dwelling coverage for many owners.
- What else is in your hazard picture? Wildfire zones and insurance availability also shape your costs; see the wildfire zones guide.
Common earthquake insurance mistakes
- Assuming homeowners insurance covers earthquakes. It covers fire after a quake, not shaking damage.
- Ignoring the mandatory offer. Not replying within 30 days counts as a refusal, though you can still buy later.
- Working out the deductible from market value. The deductible is a percentage of the dwelling limit on your policy, not the price of the home.
- Skipping the retrofit discount. A pre-1980 raised-foundation home can save up to 25% after a retrofit, and grants may pay most of the retrofit.
- Expecting the pool, fence and landscaping to be covered. CEA policies exclude them.
- Condo owners relying on the HOA. The master policy may not include earthquake, and assessments can follow a loss.