A huge dam formed by a landslide as a result of the 7.5 earthquake, on the Clarence River north of Kaikoura. The 7.5 magnitude earthquake struck 20km south-east of Hanmer Springs at 12.02am and triggered tsunami warnings for many coastal areas. (Photo/Getty Images)

Thousands still waiting for Kaikoura quake claims to be settled

Author: NZ Newswire ,
Publish Date: Mon, 6 Nov 2017, 2:56PM

Almost a year on from the Kaikoura earthquake, the Insurance Council says that private insurers will have 70 per cent of all residential claims cleared by the end of this year.

There are 39,000 residential home or contents claims to be settled from the November 14 earthquake amounting to almost $600 million.

The earthquake caused the second largest insurance losses of any earthquake in New Zealand's history.

Insurance Council chief executive Tim Grafton said he is confident that the majority of claims will be closed by the end of the year.

He said the settlement process had been sped up through a new model of handling claims.

"Insurers are acting as agents for the Earthquake Commission (EQC) and are managing most of the building and contents claims. We believe this is the model for future as it has proven to deliver efficiencies for everyone by reducing double handling and speeding up settlements," he said.

Reforms made to the EQC Act mean that claimants lodge their EQC claims with their private insurer who passes that claim on to EQC.

In a press statement released on June 27, the previous National government said it hoped to release a draft of the reform bill by early next year, with the changes to be implemented by 2020.