DEP Secretary David E. Hess announced a new web site to
provide a faster way to get information on mine-subsidence insurance. The
new web site - http://www.pamsi.org/-
will provide Pennsylvanians with information about the program and will help
them decide if they need the coverage. The web address stands for
Pennsylvania Mine Subsidence Insurance, which can also be reached by calling
1-800-922-1678. Standard homeowners’ insurance policies usually exclude
coverage for losses caused by mine subsidence.
The Mine Subsidence Insurance Program provides coverage at a
cost of approximately $1 for every $1,000 of coverage at the average coverage
of level of $80,000. The web site provides access to a table that charts
the coverage rates and includes information on a 10-percent discount for senior
citizens.
The site also allows people to begin the application process
online by providing an electronic form that can be filled out and submitted
with the click of a mouse. Staff members of the Mine Subsidence Insurance
Program then will check to see if the applicant lives in an area where
underground mining is known to have occurred, and then will respond to the
resident in order to proceed with the application process.
Pennsylvania established the Mine Subsidence Insurance Fund
in 1961 to provide reliable source of insurance against losses caused by
underground coal and clay mine subsidence. The Mine Subsidence Insurance
Board, through DEP, administers this nonprofit insurance fund that is sustained
by its policyholders’ premiums.
DEP also plans to expand the site by providing a full online
application that will allow people to submit debit and credit card information
in order to purchase the coverage quickly and conveniently online.
Structures eligible for coverage are completed buildings
with walls, a roof and a foundation that firmly anchors the building to the
earth. Homes that have unrepaired damage from an earlier mine-subsidence
problem are not eligible. If the earlier damage were repaired, then those
homes would be eligible. Buildings that are under construction also may
be eligible for coverage under a special construction policy.
The site also provides a link to the Surface Subsidence
Agent Program page. This page provides information regarding the
responsibilities of active mine operators in cases of damage due to their
active mining operations.