Suggested earthquake insurance claim evaluation criteria for building damage caused by soil liquefaction in Taiwan

Taiwan is located in a seismically active zone between the Eurasian Plate and the Philippine Sea Plate. Taiwan has a great geological diversity, but widespread alluvium deposits create the potential for soil liquefaction, which has considerable impact on society and the economy. Taiwan residential earthquake insurance was established after the Chi-Chi earthquake occurred in 1999, which had a death toll of more than 2400 and a ranking as the 12th costliest earthquake worldwide, with US$10 billion in property losses. The damage and impact of soil liquefaction were observed at the first time after the Chi-Chi earthquake. Nevertheless, the earthquake insurance claim criteria were based on the evaluation of structural components. Such criteria created difficulties for earthquake insurance inspectors in assessing the building damage caused by soil liquefaction during the 0206 Meinong earthquake in 2016 because such damage is often appeared as building rigid body tilt and settlement. As a result, geotechnical-related structural damage assessments were all performed by registered professional engineers. This study aims to develop and suggest earthquake insurance claim criteria for soil liquefaction-induced building damage, with the dual indices of settlement and tilt. The suggested criteria meet the requirements of current evaluation standards, reduce the necessity for further assessments performed by registered professional engineers, and would expedite the process of earthquake insurance claims for the ultimate goal of emergency relief.