Home insurance in Morocco: what it covers and costs

Is it compulsory?

No. ACAPS confirms that neither owners nor tenants are required by law to insure a home. Three situations make it compulsory in practice.

A bank loan. The lender requires fire or multi-risk cover on the financed property for the whole life of the loan, with the bank named as beneficiary up to what you owe.
A lease. Many leases require the tenant to hold a policy and to show the certificate each year. Under the general law of leases, a tenant answers for fire damage to the rented premises unless they prove it was not their fault.
A co-owned building. The building's rules usually provide for a policy on the common parts, paid through the charges. Ask the managing agent (syndic) for the certificate.

A home policy also carries the guarantee against catastrophic events, which pays far more than the public fund gives to people without insurance: see Catastrophic events.

What a home policy covers

A multi-risk home policy is a bundle of guarantees. Each one has its own ceiling and deductible in the special conditions.

Guarantee	What it pays	What to check
Fire, explosion, lightning	Damage to the building and its contents, smoke damage, damage done by the firefighters	Whether electrical damage to appliances is included or optional
Water damage	Leaks, burst or overflowing pipes and appliances, infiltration through the roof	Slow seepage, damp and lack of maintenance are usually excluded. The repair of the pipe itself is often not paid
Theft and vandalism	Theft by break-in, and damage to doors, windows and locks	Security conditions, limits for jewellery and cash, and what happens when the home is empty
Glass breakage	Windows, glazed doors and fixed mirrors	Whether glass in furniture and appliances is included
Liability	Damage you cause to the landlord, to neighbours and to other third parties, and the private-life liability of the household	Who counts as a member of the household. Domestic staff and pets
Catastrophic events	Earthquake, flood and other events officially declared catastrophic	Added by law, with its own ceilings and deductible
Assistance	Emergency locksmith, plumber, guarding or temporary rehousing	Optional in most contracts

Tenant, owner, landlord, co-owner: what to insure

You are	Insure	You do not insure
A tenant	Your liability to the landlord for fire, water and explosion (risques locatifs), claims by neighbours, your own belongings, private-life liability	The walls: they are the landlord's
An owner living in the home	The building at its rebuilding cost, your contents, claims by neighbours and third parties, private-life liability	The land
A landlord	The building, your liability as owner towards tenants and neighbours, your furniture if you let furnished	The tenant's belongings
A co-owner	The inside of your unit, your contents and your liability	The common parts, when the building has its own policy

A landlord's contract is called propriétaire non occupant. It matters between two tenants and when the tenant's policy has lapsed without anyone noticing.

A woman photographing a water leak from her kitchen ceiling — Water damage: take photos before you clean up, and keep every receipt.

What it costs and how to set the sums insured

Expect roughly 300 to 3,000 MAD a year. Bank packages for a small flat start at about 350 MAD. The price depends on the number of rooms or the surface, the sums insured, the city and floor, the security of the home and the options chosen. The premium includes the 14% insurance tax, the 1.5% solidarity levy and the price of the catastrophic-events guarantee, about 8% of the premium for property damage.

The figures you declare decide what you are paid.

The building. Declare what it would cost to rebuild, not the market price. The land is not insured.
The contents. Go room by room and add up what it would cost to replace everything: furniture, appliances, clothes, electronics. Keep invoices and photos somewhere other than the home.
Valuables. Jewellery, art and collections need a separate declaration and have their own ceiling.
Updates. Raise the sums after renovation work or a large purchase.

Under-insured by 40%

To scale

Real value of the furniture200,000 MAD

Sum insured: 60% of the value120,000 MAD

60%

Fire damage: 50,000 MAD

30,000 MAD paid · 20,000 MAD stays with you

The insurer pays the same share of the loss as the share of the value you insured, here 60%, then takes off the deductible.

See what under-insurance would cost you

Get and compare home insurance quotes

Two options change the payout more than any other. Replacement-value cover (valeur à neuf) pays the price of new items instead of deducting for age. A higher deductible lowers the premium and leaves small repairs to you.

Pitfalls to check before you sign

Empty home: many contracts suspend theft cover when the home is unoccupied beyond a set period, often 90 days in a row
Security: required locks, shutters or bars, and the duty to use them when you are out
Jewellery and cash: low ceilings, and cash is often excluded
Water damage: exclusions for poor maintenance, damp and slow seepage
Age deduction: how much is taken off for wear, and from what age of the item
Household: whether your liability cover extends to your children, domestic staff and pets
Outside equipment: air-conditioning units, solar water heater, satellite dish, garden walls
Working from home: professional equipment and stock are excluded unless declared
Short lets: renting to tourists must be declared, or cover can be refused
Storms and hail: natural events that are not declared catastrophic are covered only if the contract includes them

When something happens

Limit the damage: cut the water or the electricity, and call the fire service on 15 (150 from a mobile).
After a theft, file a complaint with the police or the Gendarmerie within 24 to 48 hours and keep the receipt.
Declare the loss to your insurer in writing within 5 days. For a theft, follow the shorter time in your contract.
Keep the damaged items and take photos. Apart from emergency measures, repair nothing before the adjuster has come.
Send a list of what was damaged or stolen, with values and proof: invoices, photos, bank statements.
The adjuster assesses the damage and the insurer makes an offer.

After a fire, if the assessment is not finished three months after you handed in your list of losses, you can formally demand interest on the sum due. After six months either side can go to court.

When water comes from a neighbour's flat, declare to your own insurer anyway. It pays you under your contract and recovers from the neighbour's insurer.

Home claims step by step

Questions

My landlord asks for an insurance certificate. Must I provide one?

If the lease says so, yes: it is a term of the contract you signed. Even without such a clause, you remain liable for fire and water damage to the premises, so the policy protects you first.

Does home insurance cover earthquakes and floods?

Yes, through the catastrophic-events guarantee, when the event is officially declared catastrophic by the Head of Government. The payout for a home is capped at 2 million MAD with a deductible of 10% of the damage, 7,000 MAD at least. See if you are insured.

Are my phone and laptop covered outside the home?

Usually not. Contents are insured inside the home against the listed events. Theft or breakage outside needs a specific option or a separate contract.

The bank that finances my flat sells its own policy. Can I take another?

You can ask to provide a policy from another insurer that gives the bank the same protection. The bank does not always have to accept, so raise it before you sign the loan offer and compare the prices.

I own a flat I do not live in. Do I need a policy if my tenant has one?

The tenant's policy covers the tenant's liability and belongings. Damage that is not the tenant's fault, a vacant period or a lapsed tenant policy fall on you. A landlord's contract is inexpensive.

I live abroad and my house in Morocco is empty most of the year. What should I check?

The vacancy clause above all, and who can act for you if something happens. See your home in Morocco.