DASK and Your Alanya Investment: How the Compulsory Earthquake Insurance Cap Affects an Owner's Downside
For an investor, DASK — Turkey's compulsory earthquake insurance from the Doğal Afet Sigortaları Kurumu — looks like a trivial line on the holding-cost sheet. It is cheap, it is mandatory, and it is easy to forget once the tapu is signed. But the way DASK is capped and scoped has a direct effect on your real downside if the worst happens, and on whether a rental property keeps producing income after a major event. This is the investor's read on a policy most buyers treat as a formality.
A small cost with an outsized role
DASK is mandatory under Law No. 6305, required for every residential title in the land registry within municipal boundaries, and a precondition for both completing the tapu and opening utilities. The premium follows a state tariff — a per-m² rate by construction type (reinforced concrete vs other), multiplied by gross floor area and adjusted for the building's earthquake risk group. In annual terms it is one of the smallest entries in your cost stack, well below your FX-conversion friction; if you are still modelling returns, pair this with our DAB and FX Conversion: What Turkey's Currency Rule Means for Property Investors' Returns to see how the bigger leakages compare.
Where the cap actually bites
For 2026 the maximum sum insured per dwelling is 2,095,462 TL. For a modern Alanya apartment, that cap can sit below full rebuild value — which is exactly the gap an investor needs to price in. DASK also covers only the structure: not your furnishings, not your fit-out, and crucially not loss of rent. For a short-let unit, a quake that takes the building offline stops your income while the cap does nothing to replace it.
| Risk to your investment | Covered by DASK? | What the investor does |
|---|---|---|
| Structural earthquake damage, up to 2,095,462 TL (2026) | Yes | Confirm sum insured is updated to the 2026 limit |
| Rebuild cost above the cap | No | Add voluntary/private earthquake top-up |
| Furniture, appliances, fit-out | No | Add contents cover (vital for furnished short-lets) |
| Loss of rent while offline | No | Add loss-of-rent / holiday-home cover |
| Fire, flood, theft | No | Separate home/landlord policy |
Short-let yield is the most exposed of all, because the income depends on the unit being habitable; our Can You Airbnb Your Alanya Apartment in 2026? Turkey's 100-Day Rental Permit Rules explains the permit side of that same income stream.
DASK is not a structural-quality signal
A common investor mistake is treating "it has DASK" as a proxy for "it is well built." It is not. DASK is priced off construction type and location, not an engineering survey, and from 1 January 2026 policies must be amended to the new 2,095,462 TL limit or claims pay at the old ~1.7 million TL cap. For diligence on build quality, verify the building licence, the iskan, and compliance with the 2018 Turkish Building Earthquake Code — especially in high-demand rental districts like the ones profiled in our Mahmutlar, Alanya Property: High-Rise Living and Strong Rental Demand.
Frequently asked questions
Is DASK enough to protect my rental investment in a major earthquake? No. DASK pays for structural damage only, up to the 2026 cap of 2,095,462 TL — which can be below full rebuild value. It excludes contents, fit-out and loss of rent, so a serious investor layers voluntary cover on top to protect both the asset and the income.
How is the DASK premium worked out, and can I lower it? The premium is fixed by a state tariff: a per-m² rate set by construction type, multiplied by gross floor area and adjusted for the building's earthquake risk group. You cannot negotiate it down, so treat it as a fixed, modest holding cost rather than a variable.
Does a property carrying DASK signal that it is structurally sound? No. DASK is insurance priced on type and location, not a structural audit. Verify the building licence, the iskan occupancy permit and 2018 Turkish Building Earthquake Code compliance before you rely on rental cash flow from it.