Following the Northridge disaster, which was responsible for estimated damages in excess of $20 billion, the majority of insurance companies representing homeowners in California severely restricted–or completely stopped offering—new policies because the law required them to also offer earthquake coverage.
http://www.history.com/topics/1994-northridge-earthquake
Special Publication 116, The Northridge, California, Earthquake of 17 January 1994, Edited by Mary C. Woods and W. Ray Seiple, 1995, California Department of Conservation Division of Mines and Geology, 801 K Street, Sacramento, California, 95814-3531, University of California, Davis, February 1, 1996.
http://www.earthquakecountry.org/northridge/facts/
The Northridge Earthquake. On the morning of Jan. 17, 1994, a 6.7 magnitude earthquake centered in Northridge hit the Los Angeles area, collapsing several buildings, destroying stretches of freeways, and sparking several fires in the area. At final count, the quake resulted in at least 57 deaths and rendered about 125,000 people homeless.
http://www.scpr.org/northridge-earthquake
The Northridge earthquake was the costliest natural disaster to have occurred in the United States at the time, and is today the third largest economic loss caused by a natural disaster in the nation’s history. The damage cost estimate reached $20 billion in damages, and $49 billion in economic loss.
http://www.earthquakecountry.org/northridge/facts/
The initial Northridge quake shook with a staggering Richter magnitude of 6.9, and lasted for more than 20 seconds. The earthquake occurred along a blind thrust fault, close to the San Andreas fault. The outcome resulted in one of the most financially destructive natural disasters in American history. The Northridge quake also claimed 72 lives and inflicted 9,000 injuries, where 1,500 of the injuries were considered severe.
http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h2176.html
California State University-Northridge was grievously damaged. In the three years that followed Northridge, more than 681,000 residents applied for assistance from federal and state governments  making the earthquake both a devastating natural and economic disaster.
http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h2176.html
Occurring 16.5 miles northwest of Los Angeles, the height of the Northridge quake activity was just 11.8 miles below the Earth's crust, making sitting ducks of one of the nation's largest populations.
http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h2176.html
The area of strongest shaking in the earthquake was about 30 miles in diameter from Northridge, California, encompassing southern Ventura and northern Los Angeles counties. Earthquake activity was felt as far away as Las Vegas and San Diego.
http://www.earthquakecountry.org/northridge/facts/
The Northridge Earthquake of January 17, 1994: Report of Data Collection and Analysis, Part B: Analysis and Trends, EQE International, Inc. and the Geographic Information Systems Group of the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services, April 1997.
http://www.earthquakecountry.org/northridge/facts/
Timeline: The 1994 Northridge Quake. See a timeline of key events connected to the 1994 Northridge Earthquake and its aftermath in the days, weeks, months and years that followed. The quake resulted in at least 57 deaths, more than 9,000 injured, and cost $20 billion in damage.
http://www.scpr.org/northridge-earthquake
when was the northridge california earthquake
The Northridge earthquake, California was on January 17, 1994.   The Northridge California earthquake happened on Jan. 17, 1994.