At 1:04 am on Saturday 15 August, a magnitude 5.0 earthquake with its epicentre next to Alhendín shook the Granada metropolitan area. According to Spain’s National Geographic Institute (IGN), it was felt in more than 200 municipalities with a maximum intensity of V-VI: cracked façades, falling cornices and debris, cars crushed by falling masonry and hundreds of calls to firefighters and local police. Granada City Council alone handled more than 400 incidents that same night.
Once the shock passes, the question every affected building is asking is the same: who pays for this? The Andalusian Council of Property Administrators’ Associations (Cafincas) answered it in a statement picked up by the press: earthquake damage is claimed from the Consorcio de Compensación de Seguros (Spain’s public Insurance Compensation Consortium), provided the legal requirements are met. In this guide we explain, with the regulations in hand, exactly what the Consortium covers, who claims what in a homeowners’ association and how to file the claim step by step.
Your insurer does not pay for the earthquake: the Consortium does
In Spain, damage caused by extraordinary natural events is not covered by your ordinary policy but by a public body attached to the Ministry of Economy: the Consorcio de Compensación de Seguros (CCS), governed by its Legal Statute (Royal Legislative Decree 7/2004). The Extraordinary Risks Insurance Regulation (Royal Decree 300/2004) lists those events in its article 1, and the first one on the list is precisely the one at hand: earthquakes, defined in article 2.1.a as the «sudden shaking of the ground that spreads in all directions, produced by a movement of the earth’s crust».
And where does the money come from? From all of us: every time you pay your home insurance premium or the building’s policy, a small part of it is a mandatory surcharge in favour of the Consortium. That is why, after an earthquake like Alhendín’s, there is no small print to fight over with your insurer: extraordinary risks cover is incorporated into the policy by law.
The requirement that really matters: a policy in force
The Consortium compensates direct damage to insured property. The essential condition, as Cafincas points out, is that the policy was active and up to date with payments at the time of the loss. Any property damage policy with any insurer counts: home, building, business or garage.
Two nuances worth knowing before you claim:
- No insurance, no Consortium. The CCS only covers insured property. If the building or the home had no policy, the earthquake damage cannot be compensated through this channel; the only remaining route would be whatever public aid is approved.
- 7-day waiting period for new policies. Article 8 of RD 300/2004 sets a waiting period of seven calendar days: a policy taken out after the earthquake — or in the week before it — does not cover this event. The waiting period does not apply to uninterrupted renewals of existing policies.
Good news for homeowners’ associations: no deductible
Extraordinary risks insurance generally carries a deductible payable by the insured, but the Consortium itself says it literally in its official information: «no deductible applies to damage to dwellings or to homeowners’ associations of dwellings». In other words, in the situation that affects the vast majority of readers of this blog — your own home and the building under the horizontal property regime — compensation is paid with no deductible discount.
Who claims what: the community and each owner, separately
In a building under horizontal property, two different insurable estates coexist, and the Consortium treats them separately:
- The homeowners’ association claims damage to common elements under the building’s policy: façades, roofs, cornices, entrance halls, staircases, installations, lifts and garages.
- Each owner claims damage inside their home — private elements, furniture, belongings — under their own home insurance.
This split is not a technicality: filing through the wrong channel delays the loss adjuster’s work. The property administrator should channel the community claim and remind residents that theirs is individual. And if the building has to advance urgent repairs, remember that this is exactly what the community reserve fund is for.
How to file the claim, step by step
- Document the damage as soon as possible. Photos and videos of everything: cracks, detached elements, cornices, vehicles hit by debris. Cafincas insists on one key point: do not wait for a final economic valuation to report the loss.
- Keep the remains. The Consortium advises keeping damaged items available for the loss adjuster and, if they must be removed for safety, photographing them first.
- Gather the paperwork. Policy and premium receipt in force, repair estimates or invoices, and the bank details where the transfer should be received.
- Submit the compensation request. There are three official channels: the free phone line 900 222 665, the website consorseguros.es or the CCS regional office. The owner, the administrator or the broker can file it.
- Assist the loss adjuster. The Consortium appoints its own adjuster, who will assess common and private damage under each policy.
Deadline? The official recommendation is to file as soon as possible — the reference period for reporting a loss is seven days — although the Consortium itself clarifies that it will accept requests filed later.
Safety first: what not to do
Two warnings from Cafincas that every president and every administrator should have in writing these days:
- If cracks that may affect the stability of the building appear, do not enter those areas and request a technical inspection before repairing: a rushed repair can make it harder for the adjuster to identify the origin and extent of the damage.
- Urgent interventions to prevent greater harm (propping, removing loose debris, cordoning off) should indeed be carried out without delay, but keeping documentary evidence — photos and invoices — of everything done.
The administrator’s role: from a flood of calls to an orderly file
The night of 15 August proved it once again: when an earthquake hits dozens of buildings at once, the administrator’s problem is not legal, it is operational. Hundreds of reports coming in by phone and WhatsApp, damage to document in every building, adjusters to coordinate and residents asking about their home and the façade at the same time.
That is exactly the scenario FixrOS was built for: every report is logged as an incident with its photos from the resident’s or doorman’s phone, the claim file moves forward with full traceability — from opening to adjustment and closing — and the community can track the status of every repair without calling the office. If you manage buildings and want to see it working, request a demo or take a look at how we handle claims.
Frequently asked questions
My building has no insurance. Can it claim from the Consortium?
No. The Consortium compensates damage to insured property: without a policy in force there is no extraordinary risks cover. In that case the only route would be whatever public aid is approved for those affected.
I took out my policy a few days ago. Am I covered?
It depends. Article 8 of RD 300/2004 sets a seven-calendar-day waiting period for new policies: if the policy was taken out in the seven days before the earthquake (or afterwards), the Consortium does not cover this event. Uninterrupted renewals of previous policies have no waiting period.
Will a deductible be taken off my compensation?
No, not for a dwelling or a homeowners’ association of dwellings: the Consortium expressly states that no deductible applies in these cases.
Who claims the damage to the garage and the lift?
The homeowners’ association, under its building policy, because they are common elements. Damage inside each home is claimed by its owner under their home insurance. They are separate requests, even if the Consortium’s adjuster visits both on the same day.
Do you manage buildings affected by the earthquake? The FixrOS team can show you in 30 minutes how to keep every open claim in order. Book your demo here.