Earthquake insurance in Switzerland?

The recent tremmor in the area I live in and the major earthquakes in Italy last year have gotten me wondering whether earthquake insurance is included in regular Swiss homeowners insurance or if this is something separate. The reason I am asking is that I am considering buying a house here.

Hi there,

In Switzerland, earthquake insurance is generally not a standard feature in buildings insurance. Only the Canton of Zurich includes earthquake insurance in its compulsory cantonal buildings insurance, and only with a 50,000 Swiss franc deductible. A number of other cantonal building insurance schemes provide optional earthquake coverage on a voluntary basis, and these also have high deductibles.

Coverage from antonal buildings insurance schemes which provide earthquake insurance is generally limited to a maximum of 2 billion francs per earthquake, which means that if a large number of properties in the canton are damaged by the same earthquake, homeowners may not be compensated up to the full value of their property.

Several Swiss insurance companies offer private earthquake insurance which can supplement the buildings insurance you have. The Swiss homeowners association HEV also provides earthquake insurance. These private insurances generally provide more comprehensive coverage than that offered by cantonal insurance schemes.

Things you may want to consider before spending money on earthquake insurance include the history of earthquakes in your area and the damage which an earthquake could inflict on your home (this largely depends on the building's design and materials).

Best regards from Moneyguru

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