Insurers settle $16 billion Canterbury claims

9 November 2015

Insurers settle $16 billion Canterbury claims

The Insurance Council of New Zealand announced today that private insurers have settled $15.9 billion in Canterbury earthquake claims in its latest release of quarterly progress data.

Insurance Council (ICNZ) Chief Executive Tim Grafton says insurers have now settled 70% of over cap residential Canterbury earthquake claims in what reinsurers have termed as one of the most complex natural disaster recoveries ever.

At the end of September 2015, there were 24,994 over cap residential claims with 467 transferred from the Earthquake Commission (EQC) in the last quarter, taking the total transferred from EQC since September 2014 to 1813.

Based on data jointly collected by ICNZ and the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority (CERA), 79% (19,734) of all over cap residential claims are resolved or have been fully settled. Resolved means the repair/rebuild is under construction, in consenting or a building contract has been signed. A further 16% (3,928) of the 24,994 over cap claims are in resolution, meaning the rebuild/repair is in the pricing and design process or cash settlement is pending.

“Insurers are continuing to make a major contribution to Canterbury and the New Zealand economy and are committed to settling the remaining claims as quickly as possible. We’d encourage any customers who are unsure about the offer they’ve received or have yet to make a decision to contact either their insurer or the Residential Advisory Service. The service is cost-free, totally independent and can help provide customers advice and assistance that may help progress their claim,” says Grafton.

The number of customers who are still to receive offers from their private insurer is down to 465 and there are 314 people who have yet to make decisions on the offers they’ve received.

ENDS

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