Amica Earthquake Insurance

In California, Amica Mutual Provides Earthquake Insurance through the CEA

The Insurer is based in Rhode Island

Amica has an A+ Financial Strength Rating while the CEA has an Fincnial Strength Rating of A-.

When you purchase earthquake with Amica you are purchasing a CEA policy.

About Amica’s Earthquake Offering:

According to the California Department of Insurance – Amica Mutual is a participating earthquake insurer. All home insurers [in the state of CA] are required to offer earthquake insurance biannually. [Every other year.] Some insurers work with the CEA and some do not. Amica does partner with the CEA for their earthquake offering. Therefore the earthquake insurance you are going to get through Amica is pretty similar to the earthquake insurance you might get from other CEA partner insurers. However each partnering insurer handles things a bit differently,

According to an article on Investopedia, Amica stands out as one of the best options for Earthquake Insurance in California. The website Treehugger also ranks Amica CEA earthquake as one of the best options. Amica itself, is highly rated for its customer service. Within the insurance industy Amica stands out ahead of a very crowded field for its consumer loyalty and appreciation.

The CEA is the California Earthquake Authority. A public private earthquake insurance partnership in the state of California.

Please note that this website does not sell, service, or provide earthquake insurance through Amica.

The Amica Earthquake Coverage Options:

Since Amica sells CEA earthquake policies their coverage options are either the same or similar to other CEA vendors. However variances in procedure do occur between different CEA partners.

Options for Amica Mutual – CEA coverage include:

Dwelling: Dwelling coverage is the property coverage that most people look for when they purchase earthquake insurance. This is coverage for the actual structure. The CEA offers large deductible on these policies from usually 5% to 25%.

Personal Property: Coverage for personal property is limited and will contain sublimits. Personal Property EQ deductibles can range from 5% to 25%. It is important to understand with all property policies that for personal property items some specific items may be excluded and some subject to reduced coverage limits. Examples of limited coverage are for items such as Bank Notes, Business Property, and Collectibles. Examples of personal property items that would likely not be covered are: Pets, Motor Vehicles, Valuable Papers, and much more. Inquire with your agent for more information on your specific policy.

Loss of Use: Loss of Use coverage can provide a limited amount of money for you to rent a place to live following a covered peril. Coverage options can often go up to $100,000. It “can also protect your lost rental income on this home.” Amica does offer Loss of Use on its Earthquake Policies.

Building Code Upgrade: This coverage”helps with required costs of bringing damaged dwellings to current building codes.” Standard coverage on this is about $10,000 and can be increased to $30,000.

Emergency Repairs: a coverage for a very small amount of up to $1,500 in coverage. This coverage is quite simple but very difficult to explain.

Masonary Vaneer Coverage: this limited coverage can help restore some masonary vaneer that is on the house. Inquire with your agent about this coverage and how it works.

Breakables Coverage: provides “valuable fragile personal property like your wedding china, glassware, crystal, ceramic, pottery, porcelain, or marble items that are broken because of an earthquake.”

Loss Assessment: Loss assessment coverage is complicated yet very important. According to a CEA policy Loss Assessment “means an assessment charged by an association of owners against all property owners in a common interest development that is properly and legally made as a result of a loss to structures or other real property contained within that common interest development, and those structures or other real property are owned by one or any combination of the following three categories: (i) all members of the association of owners collectively, (ii) the association of owners, or (iii) you.” It is imperative to understand that the “Assessment” must be made in regards to a covered peril for the Loss Assement coverage to be useful. CA CEA Loss Assessment Definition. If you own a property that is partially owned by an HOA, you should seriously consider Earthquake Loss of Use through Amica Mutual.

*Please note that coverage limits will be restricted to the underlying homeowner policy limits and time frames. Not all coverages are available with all types of insurance, obviously. It should also be noted that many of the endorsements do not carry over from the underlying home policy.

*It should also be noted that not all coverage options are provided on all CEA policies. In other words just because its an option does not mean that you have that option. Some forms of CEA policies do not allow for all types of coverages. One should inquire with your licensed insurance agent to get further details. Additionally reading your entire Amica CEA policy should be done.

Rating Factors with Amica Mutual’s Earthquake Policy:

Here is a partial list of rating factors that go into calcuating your earthquake premium with Amica:

Age of Home: When was the house built. What year?

Age and Type of Foundation: What type of foundation is it: Slab, Crawl, Open Pier, etc. And how old is it.

Number of Stories: One or More Stories to the Structure. Does the basement count, ask your insurer.

Age and Type of Roof: What type of roof do you have? How old is it?

Exact Location of Property: What is the address of the property?

Frame Construction or Other: Is the home constructed by frame, steel, masonary, other?

Other rating and pricing considerations such as the coverage selection choices and amounts of coverage. Typically the coverages for the Main Policy and the CEA companion policy will be similar in certain respects, yet completely different or absent in other respects.

Ultimatly these are not all of the rating factors involved for a variety of reasons. Most significantly you first need to qualify for an Amica home insurance policy to be able to get an Amica Earthquake policy.

The Amica CEA Earthquake Insurance Discount:

The California Earthquake Authority provides a significant discount if you have fortified/retrofitted your home. This also applies to the Amica CEA quake policies. The potential “Hazard Reduction Discount” may also be granted if the following have been completed:

1. “Home is anchored to the foundation AND
2. Water heater is secured to the house’s frame AND
3. If the home has cripple walls, they must be braced with plywood or equivalent in accordance with state building codes (“Cripple walls” are walls under the main floor that are less than full-story height and not all homes have them.)OR If the home was built on a post-and-pier, post-and-beam, or unreinforced masonry foundation, the foundation has been modified in accordance with state building codes.”

Contact Amica for more details.

Amica Mutual Financial Strength Rating:

According to AM Best, Amica Mutual has a Financial Strength Rating of an A+. The Rhode Island Mutual insurer has had this rating through at least 2017. This is considered a terrific rating and means that according to AM Best there is a low chance that they will not be able to meet or pay claims.

However it should be noted that earthquake insurance sold with CEA depends on the California Earthquake Authority Rating, not the partnering insurer. The CEA Financial Strength Rating is an A-. In the event of an true homeowner’s earthquake claim, it is the CEA that will pay the claim not Amica.

Amica FSR: A+

CEA FSR: A-

About Amica Mutual:

Mailing Address: PO Box 6008, Providence RI 02940-6008

Phone Number: 1-800-652-6422

NAIC Number: 19976

The CEO as of 2022 is Robert DiMuccio.

According to wikipedia, Amica was founded in 1907 by  A.T. Vigneron. The company provides personal lines coverages: Auto, Home, and Life Insurance. The Amica website lists the following types of insurance offerings: Auto, Home, Life, Condo, Renters, Flood, Retirement, Marine, Motorcycle, Umbrella, Small Business, Pet, RV and Trailer. Amica is licensed to provide insurance in the state of California and some other US States.

Amica – A Mutual Insurer:

Amica is a mutual insurer. This means that the insurer is owned by its policyholders. Mutuals are a popular type of insurer ownership. Corporate Finance Institute explans that a Mutual Insurer is a “privately-held insurance company that is 100% owned by its policyholders.” It further explains that they ” are established with the sole purpose of providing its members with insurance…” Profits from mutual insurers can potentially be paid out to policyholders via special dividends. Mutual insurers are very popular with some lines of insurance such as Property/Casualty and Life Insurance. Not all insurers are mutuals.

Historical, Ben Franklin may have established the first mutual insurer in 1752 when he created the “Philadelphia Contributionship.” According to their site, they are “the longest tenured insurance company in the country” and apparently – are still in business.

The CEA, the earthquake partner though is – NOT a mutual insurer.

Other Earthquake Options for Amica Mutual Insureds:

You might not have to purchase earthquake insurance through the CEA. There exist multiple insurers, especially in California, Oregon, and Washington that provide standalone earthquake property policies. These are sometimes referred to as CEA Alternatives. This is what quakecov does best. Provide competitive earthquake coverages vs. the California Earthquake Authority. You may have a choice, and you might be able to save yourself money.

How to Purchase Earthquake Insurance through Amica:

We do not sell Amica CEA earthquake policies here. Please contact Amica directly to add the coverage onto your existing property policy. Several phone numbers are listed on the Amica Mutual Site, among them are:

1-844-206-8144

1-800-242-6422

1-866-972-6422

1-800-652-6422

Or call the phone number listed on your Amica insurance policy. Please note that to purchase a CEA policy you must have a policy with a CEA partnering insurer. Amica is one of the partnering insurers.

How to Ammend, Cancel, and Otherwise Change an Amica Earthquake Policy?

To change your Amica earthquake policy you must contact Amica directly. One cannot call the CEA to make changes. Locate the number on your earthquake policy through Amica and contact them. Some changes may required written proof of request. If you cannot locate a phone number try one of the above numbers to make changes.

A Note on Amica Earthquake Insurance:

This website does not sell, service, or provide earthquake insurance through Amica. We are providing this information as a resource for consumers. Our purpose is to sell and solicit independent earthquake insurance policies.