Southern California -- Any suggestions for HOA earthquake insurace?

Greeting fellow chat board folk,

This is a (Southern) California type topic...

Our HOA is in So Cal, was built in 1982/3, and has 105 units (2-story townhomes, 3 or 4 or 5 unit buildings in the complex).

Our HOA just found out that our regular insurance company is dropping our earthquake coverage. The reason they gave is that they will no longer provide earthquake insurance for any buildings that have living space above a garage. Personally, I think that's like a legal excuse to drop us since we've had a very good grandfathered rate for earthquake coverage for many years (and we've never filed a claim)but that's a side issue.

Our current need is to find an agency that will provide earthquake coverage at a rate our HOA can afford.

So does anyone else have any experience in California with such a situation?

It's difficult to even find an insurance company that covers Homeowner Associations. I've been to the California Eathquake Authority website but their info is geared more to individual homeowners and they don't offer any HOA specific information. Plus, if I read the website info correctly, they don't insure themselves but work through insurance agents.

Our management company will find someone to give us a quote, but I wanted to independently get a quote or two myself, just to make sure the HOA is getting the best deal we can. As a board member, it just seems more responsible to do that, especially when given such a large amount of money involved (our old earthquake insurance coverage cost $25,000 per year).

So if any one else who reads this chat board can offer some suggestions given the above situation, it would be much appreciated.

Cheers! (:

Did you check with the CEA (California Earthquake Authority) for replacement?

Our board has discussed getting quake ins., but we haven't due to the expense. Our PM checked with several--about 15-- highrises like ours in our downtown area and found that only one has quake ins. and only because it's required by their CC&Rs, which that HOA is trying to amend.

This year, we did purchase quake ins. for our many common area plate glass windows and a few other highrises near us have it.

All of the highrises are steel & concrete structures with "sway" built in, which supposedly will withstand a 7-8.0 quake. And I'll tell you, our 17th flr. unit did sway during that Easter quake of, when?, 2010? '11?

But your older buildings, Paddy, were constructed before (I think?) stricter construction codes were put into effect following the Northridge quake, so you may be a greater risk for damage.

In our towers some bookcases fell over (must be secured to the wall in these parts!) and some had cracks in their granite flooring but our towers had no structural damage whatsoever.

The 40-floor tower across the street from us has a 4000 sf top floor penthouse with its own lap pool (I know, lay-de-dah). Some folks here looked up at it and saw water washing out of the pool over the side of the building. Wish I'd seen it, but I was as far away from our windows as possible!

Hello there!
I came accross your topic of concern and would love to have a have a conversation with you pertaining some specific info about HOA's being dropped from Earthquake coverage.

Kyle