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Earthquake damages homes and commercial properties

Posted: 27 February 2008

Author: Amy Duckworth

Property owners insurers and home insurance providers are still assessing the impact of this morning's earthquake. Leading insurance broker, Alan Boswell Group, considers the insurance coverage for earthquakes in the UK and looks at similar events from the recent past.

Much of Britain was woken just before 1am this morning by an unusual rumbling sound: an earthquake. The epicentre was near Market Rasen in Lincolnshire but the tremor could be felt across most of England and parts of Scotland. With a magnitude of 5.3 on the Richter scale, this was the strongest earthquake in he UK for nearly 25 years.

For most of us the outcome was nothing more than a distrubed night's sleep but for some living close to the epicentre the story was different.

By mid morning, Claims Executive Andrew Higgins from Alan Boswell Group had begun to receive reports of structural damage caused by the earthquake. "Some people have suffered large cracks to their walls, fallen chimneys, and damage to internal decorations. Luckily, most of the damage is superficial and can be easily repaired."

The last earthquake to cause any significant structural damage occurred on 28th April 2007 and affected parts of Kent. Following that occurence, Alan Boswell Group dealt with 115 home insurance and landlord insurance claims.