Earthquakes and Your Car: What Pays and What Doesn't

On this page:

• What earthquakes actually do to cars
• Which coverage applies
• Why the home or earthquake policy won't help
• If it hits while you're driving
• The first days after
• Getting ready

Californians think about earthquake insurance for their homes. Very few think about their cars until the morning they find one under a collapsed carport. Here is how the coverage actually works, where it tends to fall short, and what to do before and after.

What earthquakes actually do to cars

Most earthquake damage to vehicles is not from the ground moving under the car. It comes from things falling on it:

• Garage and carport roofs, walls and garage doors coming down.
• Chimneys, brick facades and masonry walls collapsing onto cars parked alongside.
• Concrete and fixtures falling inside parking structures.
• Shelving and stored items toppling onto a car in a home garage.
• Fires that break out after the shaking.

Which coverage applies

Comprehensive is the coverage for physical damage to your car from causes other than a collision, including falling objects and fire, and that is where earthquake damage to a parked car commonly lands. Read your own policy to confirm, because how earth movement and earthquake losses are described varies by insurance company. Your comprehensive deductible applies, and the most the policy pays is the car's actual value.

Remember what a comprehensive payout is measured against. It is the car's actual cash value just before the loss, minus your deductible, not what you paid for it or what you still owe. On an older car with a high deductible, a moderate earthquake claim may barely be worth filing; on a newer financed car, it can be the difference between a repair and a debt. That is a decision best made calmly, before the next quake, by looking at the deductible on your declarations page.

Collision comes in if the car was moving and hit something, for example if the shaking threw you off the road or into another car.

Liability-only coverage pays nothing toward your own car in an earthquake, any more than it would in a fire or flood. Liability pays for harm you cause to others.

Why the home or earthquake policy won't help

A homeowners policy is written for the house, other structures and personal belongings, and cars are excluded from it as a rule; check your own. Earthquake policies sold for homes are written for the dwelling and its contents, and they generally do not extend to vehicles either. That means the car parked in a garage that collapses is covered, if at all, by your auto policy, while the garage itself is a question for the home or earthquake policy. Personal belongings that were inside the car may fall to a home or renters policy.

If your car was damaged in someone else's building, such as a parking structure, the owner is not automatically responsible. A building owner may be liable if negligence played a part, for example a known structural problem that was ignored, but a strong earthquake on its own is usually treated as nobody's fault. Your own comprehensive coverage is the dependable route.

If it hits while you're driving

A strong earthquake can make a car feel as if it has several flat tires at once. Emergency officials commonly advise drivers to slow down and pull over somewhere clear, away from overpasses, bridges, power lines, trees and buildings, set the parking brake and stay in the car until the shaking stops. Afterward, drive slowly and watch for cracked pavement, fallen debris and damaged bridges or ramps, and expect closures and signal outages.

The first days after

1. Check for hazards such as gas leaks, downed lines and unstable structures before going near a damaged garage or car.
2. Photograph the car where it is, along with whatever fell on it, before anything is moved.
3. Do not drive a car with structural or glass damage until it has been checked.
4. Report the claim promptly. After a large earthquake, claim volumes are heavy and adjusters and body shops get backlogged.
5. Ask about rental coverage and how a total loss would be valued.

The same regulations that govern every California claim apply after a disaster: the insurer must acknowledge your claim within 15 calendar days and, with limited exceptions, accept or deny it within 40 calendar days of receiving proof of claim.

Getting ready

• Confirm you carry comprehensive and that the deductible is one you could pay.
• Park thoughtfully. Where you have a choice, avoid parking right beside unreinforced masonry, chimneys or tall shelving.
• Secure the garage. Heavy items on high shelves are the easiest earthquake damage to prevent.
• Keep the tank at least half full and a basic kit in the car, since fuel and supplies can be scarce for days.

Earthquakes are one of the few California disasters with no season, so the time to check your coverage is now. You can have a licensed broker look at your policy in a couple of minutes.