How to Qualify for an Earthquake Insurance Premium Discount

A Quick Look: Discounts for Single-Family homes

If you’re a homeowner, you may be eligible to receive up to a 25% discount on your CEA earthquake insurance premium if your house meets select criteria and has been seismically retrofitted in accordance with California standards.*

For Your House	Year Built
For Your House	1940 - 1979	1939 or Earlier
Raised Foundation	20% Discount	25% Discount
Other (non-slab) Foundation	10% Discount	15% Discount

Image of a home under construction with built prior to 1980 text in the left hand side

A Deeper Dive: Does your Home Qualify?

Homes with all of the construction characteristics below are eligible for the Hazard Reduction Discount

Year and Type of Construction

To qualify for a premium discount, your house must have been built prior to 1980 with wood-frame construction.

House Foundation Types

If your home has one of the following foundation types, and it has been properly retrofitted, you may qualify for a premium discount of up to 25% on your CEA earthquake policy premium.

Raised Foundation

A house with a raised foundation has an area created underneath the dwelling floor (may be referred to as a crawl space). This area may be supported (raised off the ground) by (but not limited to):

Cripple Walls

Short frame walls that extend from the foundation to the bottom of the first floor. These walls often enclose a crawl space or serve as walls for a stepped foundation.

before and after image of crippling walls

Continuous Concrete Stem Wall

Crawl space with a closed concrete perimeter foundation where the wood frame floor is supported on a wall of poured concrete.

Post and Pier

Wood frame floor is supported by upright wood posts that rest on individual concrete blocks or pier pads around the perimeter and interior of the crawl space.

Unreinforced Masonry or Concrete Block

Wood frame is supported on unreinforced masonry-brick (poured without steel), or hollow concrete blocks or stone.

Other Foundation Types

A house that is defined as having an other foundation type includes any of the following:

Full Basement

A house that is built above a full basement – a basement that is the full footprint of the house, and the basement walls have a six-foot or greater clearance from the finished floor to the ceiling.

Partial Basement

Partial basements – tiny rooms tucked below grade to house (below ground). This space is usually used to house a water heater, ductwork, and electrical panels. It’s not used as a living area.

Walkout Basement

Walkout basements – a basement that is built on a hillside or slope so that part of the floor is above ground, with full windows and a door to the outside (part of the basement level is above ground).

Walk-up Basement

Walk-up basements – built into a hillside or slope that has an exterior entrance via a stairwell.

Multiple Foundation Types

A house constructed with a foundation that includes more than one foundation-type (excluding the garage).

An example would be an addition or remodel that uses a different foundation from the original foundation of the home.

What if my house is not a raised or other foundation type?

If your house’s foundation is not one of the types listed above, it is likely categorized as slab, which typically is a four- to twelve-inch concrete layer that is poured directly at ground level (also called “grade level”) and acts as a first-floor sub-surface.

Great news! Since a slab foundation house is built at ground level and supported by concrete, it is already more earthquake resistant. As this foundation type is already more likely to better withstand earthquake damage, your CEA earthquake insurance premium already reflects this lower rate.

If your house meets the above requirements and already has been properly retrofitted, work with an Inspection Professional (contractor or a structural engineer) to verify your retrofit. We have created a directory for your convenience to help you choose and hire an Inspection Professional in your area.

Work with your Inspection Professional to fill out the CEA Earthquake Insurance – Dwelling Retrofit Verification (DRV) form (PDF) and submit it to your residential insurer. The instructions below will aid your Inspection Professional in filling out the DRV form.

Dwelling Retrofit Verification Form (PDF)

Dwelling Retrofit Verification Form Instructions (DRV) (PDF)

Find a contractor to complete your retrofit, or see if you are eligible for $3,000 toward a retrofit through the Earthquake Brace + Bolt program.

Once you hire a retrofit contractor or engineer to complete your retrofit, share the Dwelling Retrofit Verification Instructions (PDF) with them. These guidelines will aid them in filling out the DRV form and verifying that your seismic retrofit is complete.

Or, if your retrofit was completed through the Earthquake Brace + Bolt program, provide a valid Brace + Bolt verification number on your form.

Then, submit the form to your residential insurer to receive your discount.

Dwelling Retrofit Verification Form (PDF)

Dwelling Retrofit Verification Form Instructions (DRV) (PDF)

For more information about CEA’s discount (HRD), please contact your residential insurer.

You may receive a 21% discount on your CEA earthquake insurance premium if your mobilehome:

Has been reinforced by an earthquake-resistant bracing system certified by the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD), or
Has been installed on an approved foundation system in accordance with subdivisions (a) or (b) of section 18551 of the California Health and Safety Code.

If your mobilehome has already been certified with an earthquake-resistant bracing system, submit a copy of a final inspection report that verifies prior issuance of a building permit and that the system and installation meet one of the eligibility criteria above to your residential insurer to obtain your premium discount.

To obtain the necessary forms to get your bracing system certified by HCD, or to learn more about installing an earthquake-resistant bracing system on your mobilehome, please contact HCD.

* To qualify for a premium discount, a house with a seismic retrofit must have the following elements, either as originally built or a subsequent improvement or seismic retrofit:

If the house has cripple walls, they all must be braced in accordance with CBC standards, as determined by an inspection conducted in accordance with the CEA Earthquake Insurance – Dwelling Retrofit Verification Form (PDF) Requirements; or the home has a valid Brace + Bolt verification number. 
If a house has a post-and-pier, post-and-beam, or unreinforced masonry brick/stone foundation, the dwelling must, in compliance with CBC standards, have foundations that are placed continuously under all exterior bearing walls and be anchored to the perimeter foundation. In addition, all cripple walls must be braced as noted above. 
A water heater that is properly secured to the building frame, in accordance with Guidelines for Earthquake Bracing of Residential Water Heaters (California Department of General Services, Division of the State Architect)

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