What is Mandatory Earthquake Insurance?
Mandatory Earthquake Insurance is insurance that covers the damages caused by earthquakes and other disasters that earthquakes can cause. Among the disasters that earthquakes can cause, indirect disasters such as tsunami, explosion, landslide, and fire can also be counted. Mandatory Earthquake Insurance financially covers the damages of individuals in such situations, within the framework of the insurance policy rules and according to the policy limit. Mandatory Earthquake Insurance was developed by our country. The reason for this is that approximately 98% of Turkey's total population is located in a geography that lies within an active earthquake zone. In terms of land area, 66% of Turkey's population is located in 1st and 2nd degree earthquake zones. The Mandatory Earthquake Insurance system has been managed by the Natural Disaster Insurance Institution, DASK for short, since the year 2000. The 17 August 1999 earthquake had a significant impact on the introduction of mandatory earthquake insurance as of this date.
Scope of Mandatory Earthquake Insurance
There is no condition or rule such as the building being completely damaged for Mandatory Earthquake Insurance to be valid. Partial damage to the building is also covered. Building sections such as garden walls, building stairs, corridors, roofs, elevators, ceilings and floors of apartments, and the building's foundation are within the scope of coverage, individually or together.
Exclusions from Mandatory Earthquake Insurance Coverage
If a building is constructed on lands where the village population resides, if it is located in the vicinity of villages or hamlets, if it is not constructed in accordance with the plan without a project being drawn and no engineer being assigned during its construction, if the procedures required by the legislation were not applied during the construction phase, if it is deemed necessary to be demolished by authorized public institutions and organizations, and if the occupancy permit within it is found to be dangerous in terms of life safety, this building is outside the scope of Mandatory Earthquake Insurance. Some documents are needed when going to the insurance company to be able to get Mandatory Earthquake Insurance for the real estate you own.
Information Required to Obtain a DASK Policy
- Name - surname
- Open address of the building
- Contact information (phone number)
- TR identity number
- Tax identity number
- Year of construction of the building
- Type of construction
- Total number of floors in the building
- Total gross area of the structure in square meters
Other Important Points to Know About Mandatory Earthquake Insurance
Mandatory Earthquake Insurance is under the guarantee of DASK. The validity period of this insurance is 1 year and it must be renewed every year. The maximum coverage that can be given to an insured under Mandatory Earthquake Insurance is 240,000 Turkish Liras. This amount is valid regardless of the type of construction, but since this amount is updated annually, the current amount should be learned from the Natural Disaster Insurance Institution or insurance companies. When electricity and water subscriptions are made for the relevant residence, whether purchased or rented, a declaration of Mandatory Earthquake Insurance is requested. When applying for a housing loan at a bank, it will be necessary to have Mandatory Earthquake Insurance to get this loan. DASK's total damage payment capacity is 12 billion TL as of 2014 data, and this amount is increasing every year.
