CONCIERIA, the property brand of CLEARTH LIFE in Tokyo

■Fire Insurance ?

Fire insurance is optional. However, for condominiums, there are exclusive areas owned by the owner and common areas. The owner is responsible for compensation for their own exclusive areas. Without fire insurance, they might have to pay a large amount of compensation in the event of a fire or other accident.

The following are some cases that indicate the necessity of fire insurance. Please read and consider purchasing fire insurance. Additionally, if purchasing a property with a loan, fire insurance is required.

■Cases where the owner must pay for room restoration or repair after a fire.

In the event of a fire, if there is no intentional gross negligence, the owner is responsible for the cost of restoring their own room. For example, if their room is damaged by a fire from the neighboring room (including damage from fire extinguishing activities), they cannot usually claim damages from the neighboring room's owner, based on the Act on Liability for Fire Caused by Negligence.

Additionally, some owners mistakenly believe that they do not need fire insurance because tenants have their own insurance. However, the insurance tenants purchase is typically only for home contents and liability. Therefore, accidents not caused by the tenant's intentional gross negligence will not be covered.

■Cases where the owner is liable for compensation to the tenant of their room or the owner/resident of the downstairs room.

If an accident, such as a water leak from the owner's exclusive area, damages the tenant's home contents or neighboring rooms, the owner could be liable for compensation, leading to unexpected costs.
For example, in older properties, deteriorating water supply and drainage pipes under the floor can cause water leaks, making the owner liable for compensation to the downstairs room's owner.
Additionally, the owner might also be held liable for compensation due to other unexpected accidents.

■Cases where fire or damage occurs due to earthquakes.

If fire or damage occurs due to an earthquake, tsunami, etc., fire insurance alone will not cover it. Earthquake insurance is available for such cases and must be purchased together with fire insurance (it can be added later). The maximum coverage of earthquake insurance is up to half of the fire insurance amount.
Although condominiums have excellent durability and fire resistance, making earthquake insurance less common compared to wooden buildings, we still recommend purchasing earthquake insurance as a precaution.

In preparation for the above cases, we recommend purchasing fire insurance.
Please use this as a reference when choosing coverage and plans.