Does insurance pay for subsidence?

Does insurance pay for subsidence depends on policy and cause, but generally home building insurance in Australia and UK may pay for subsidence if it is sudden and caused by insured event, but often excludes gradual subsidence and has high excess. Standard home building insurance covers sudden and unforeseen damage like storm, fire, flood, but subsidence is often excluded or limited, with many policies excluding subsidence, heave and landslip unless caused by earthquake or mining, or offering optional cover with excess $1,000 to $2,500. For example, in Australia, NRMA, Allianz and Budget Direct building insurance excludes damage caused by subsidence, heave, landslip, erosion, except if caused by earthquake, and requires you to buy additional cover or prove sudden cause like leaking pipe washing away soil. In UK, subsidence cover is usually included as standard due to clay soils, with insurers paying for underpinning $20K to $100K, but with excess $1,000. If subsidence caused by mining, mining subsidence board may pay. For claim to be paid, you need geotechnical report showing cause, and insurer may pay for stabilisation and repairs but not for preventative work. If subsidence caused by tree roots, insurer may pay but then require tree removal. So insurance may pay for subsidence if sudden and insured event, but many policies exclude gradual subsidence, so check PDS, and consider specialist subsidence insurance or mining subsidence cover, as standard home insurance often excludes it.