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Despite the passage of a federal law that forces insurers to provide coverage for terrorism, the owners of many of New York City's most famous buildings cannot buy policies that would allow them to rebuild if their properties were destroyed in an attack.
Owners of such landmarks as the Chrysler Building and the Rockefeller Center complex are finding it impossible to buy insurance that comes close to covering replacement value of their properties. Other top Manhattan buildings, including many in midtown, are also struggling.
Insurers argue that they could be wiped out if they provide full coverage for such world famous real estate. Rockefeller Center, for example, would cost at least $5 bil lion to rebuild if it were destroyed the way the World Trade Center was, according to real estate experts.
The Chrysler Building, deemed another "classic terrorism target" by Gregory Serio, New York state superintendent of insurance, would cost at least $500 million to replace, while the Empire State Building would ring up at $2 billion, these experts say.
The owners of Rockefeller Center, the Chrysler Building and the Empire State Building refused to comment, but insurance companies are clear about the limits of the coverage they are offering.
Insurance giant American International Group Inc. will cover only $150 million of loss per account, according to its senior property executive, Jack Graham. For that coverage, it charges 1% of the policy's value, or $1.5 million. In addition, AIG will take on no more than 10 such accounts within a sixth of a mile.
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