Some lobbyists in the insurance industry want fires caused by earthquakes removed from regular fire insurance as B.C.'s Ministry of Finance revamps the Insurance Act.

Currently, if a house catches fire because of an earthquake it would be covered under normal fire insurance. But, under the new proposal, policy-holders would need to purchase earthquake fire insurance separately.
 
The Minister of Finance, Carole Taylor, who is overseeing the renovation of the act, told CBC News on Friday no decision on the possible change has been made.

She is concerned the changes may be too complicated for consumers to understand.

"We are looking into all of the suggestions that come to us both from the consumer groups, but also from the insurance bureau," Taylor said.

Chuck Byrne, with the Insurance Brokers Association of B.C., told CBC News the proposal is supported by some in the industry, but not others.

Byrne couldn't say if the proposed change would mean consumers would have to pay more or not.

"If the standard policy was to have that pulled from it, you would think that the standard policy would go down in price," Byrne said. "And then the endorsement, if you chose to add it back on, would be for the fire and the shaking for an earthquake." 

The new legislation should be finished this spring.

Right now, about 40 per cent of people in Vancouver don't have earthquake insurance, and if a quake hit the city the economic consequences could be immense, Byrne said.

The tectonic plate movements in the area immediately west of Vancouver in the Juan de Fuca Strait are considered among the most dangerous in the world. Scientists say the Juan de Fuca Plate is gradually sliding underneath its neighbour, the North American Plate.

Eventually, scientists say, this will cause a "subduction earthquake," an incredibly powerful event that could measure up to a magnitude of 9 on the Richter scale.

Based on geological evidence in the region, it's believed that such quakes strike every 300 to 500 years. The last major quake in that zone was Jan. 26, 1700.