More than 600 compensation claims have been filed since an earthquake measuring 3.0 on the Richter scale struck the Eleveld gas field in Drenthe.

The quake in the early hours of Saturday morning could be felt in Assen, as well as the nearby villages of Ekehaar and Hooghalen, which were hit by smaller earthquakes three years ago.

More than 680 compensation claims were submitted in the last three days, but some people may have claimed twice because of confusion about which organisation was responsible for handling them.

RTV Drenthe reported that 460 claims had been received by the Instituut Mijnbouwschade Groningen (IMG), which only deals with damage connected to the Groningen gas field and the storage facilities at Norg and Grijpskerk.

Claims from the Ereveld field are handled by the Commissie Mijnbouwschade, which has received 220 complaints so far.

The new centre-right government of D66, VVD and CDA has pledged to introduce a better compensation scheme for victims of the smaller gas field in Drenthe, junior climate minister Jo-Annes de Bat told residents on a visit to Ekehaar on Monday.

The Commissie Mijnbouwschade earlier this year said the €80,000 it was allocated to compensate victims of the earlier earthquakes in Ekehaar and Hooghalen was not enough, after an assessment of the damage concluded it would cost €440,000 to repair.