Calls for public inquiry into EQC after settlement
Audio, Radio New Zealand
What's being called a landmark settlement with the Earthquake Commission has been reached today, which may have far-reaching consequences for Canterbury home-owners.
What's being called a landmark settlement with the Earthquake Commission has been reached today, which may have far-reaching consequences for Canterbury home-owners.
A project manager for a company doing home repairs in the Christchurch earthquake rebuild says it is highly likely as many as 60-thousand people have been exposed to potentially lethal asbestos fibres.
An report into EQC finds it was poorly prepared for the Canterbury earthquakes. Quarantined travelers have moved before 14 days. Anna Thomas has the news.
The Canterbury earthquakes will wipe out all the funds held in reserve to cover claims to the Earthquake Commission.
A landmark court settlement two months ago has led to a growing workload for the Earthquake Commission in Christchurch. Conan Young reports.
Group action may be taken against the Earthquake Commission over the quality of repairs to damaged Christchurch homes.
Political Editor Brent Edwards reports live from parliament on the implications of the rising costs of the Christchurch earthquake for the EQC and the Government's finances.
Christchurch homeowners speak to Checkpoint about their battles with EQC, to have their homes repaired to "as new" standard, not "pre earthquake".
The Earthquake Commission has been granted an interim injunction stopping a blogger sharing details from a leaked email with Canterbury home owners.
The Earthquake Commission is expected to face tough questioning when its handling of the Canterbury Earthquakes is reviewed early next year.
Labour is calling for the Government to rethink how the Earthquake Commission insures homeowners, in the aftermath of the disaster in Canterbury.
A Canterbury woman has finally settled an insurance claim seven years to the day her family home was damaged in the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake.
The Earthquake Commission has just two days to settle all of the Canterbury earthquake claims worth less than 15-thousand-dollars.
A scathing inquiry into the Earthquake Commission's handling of the 2010 and 2011 Canterbury earthquakes could mean huge change for how it handles claims. The Government says it's committed to implementing all of the recommendations from the inquiry, including improving its communication, planning and preparedness and dispute resolution. John Goddard, an insurance and employment law barrister who dealt with more than 4000 claims at the time, says repairs were handled poorly and the new recommendations won't cover all the bases. John Goddard and Melanie Bourke of EQC Fix speak to Corin Dann.
Nearly seven years on from the Christchurch earthquake, some quake damaged homeowners with unresolved insurance claims say they are being driven to the point of complete exhaustion.
Residents of Christchurch's flood-prone Flockton Basin say a court judgment on how the Earthquake Commission handles claims based on the increased flood risk caused by the earthquakes is bitter sweet.
With Christchurch having its first real taste of winter , the Earthquake Commission is telling Christchurch residents that its focus is on emergency repairs.
Some Canterbury homeowners say their houses are dropping in value because of misleading estimates of damage to foundations from the 2010 and 2011 earthquakes.
The man who received Earthquake Commission files detailing claims by 83,000 Christchurch people says he's appalled the slip-up has become a political football.
Phil Holdstock, a homeowner; Leanne Curtis, relationships manager for the Canterbury Communities' Earthquake Recovery Network, a network of residents association and community group representatives from the earthquake-affected neighbourhoods of Canterbury; and Jeremy Johnson, insurance partner at Wynn Williams in Christchurch.
It's been revealed that the Earthquake Commission knew a wall which crushed two people in Christchurch's February earthquake was at risk of collapsing.
It's been more than seven years since the fatal 6.3 earthquake broke thousands of Christchurch homes, and yet many homeowners are still waiting for repairs, re-repairs, or to settle with EQC.
Time is nearly up for owners of on-sold quake damaged properties in Canterbury to apply to claim money for botched repairs. The Government announced last year it would give an ex-gratia payment to home-owners with properties that went over the Earthquake Commission's then cap of $100,000. Today is the last day for applications after the original August deadline was extended due to Covid-19. But there are calls to extend that deadline again, as applications have flooded in over the past month.
An inquiry into the Earthquake Commission has found it was poorly prepared for the Canterbury earthquakes - and has left people with a "deep mistrust of government" that will take years to overcome. The government has this morning released findings from the inquiry, chaired by Dame Silvia Cartwright. Our Christchurch reporter, Conan Young, has been reading through the details and spoke with Māni Dunlop.
More than four years after earthquakes first damaged home in Christchurch, hundreds of Canterbury homeowners are finding out that they may have to wait another two years before their damaged homes are repaired.
It could be up to 18 months before 660 Christchurch homeowners know who will pay for earthquake damage repairs with a $1 billion price tag. The bill to fix houses in Christchurch that weren't repaired properly the first time round, or have suffered more damage in aftershocks, is climbing - and the government can't say who's liable. The problem is the homes have new owners who can't claim on theri insurance because the damage pre-dates them owning the home. Earlier Greater Christchurch Regeneration Minister Megan Woods told us the previous National government put no plan in place, and the current government is being left to pick up the pieces. Former Christchurch earthquake recovery minister Gerry Brownlee disputes the issue.
Owners of earthquake-damaged land in Christchurch may not get an individual payout from the Earthquake Commission if it goes ahead instead with a more widespread approach to fixing the land.
Nick Rogers, project director, Canterbury Land Assessment for Tonkin & Taylor. Tonkin & Taylor is the environmental and engineering consultancy doing the Canterbury land damage assessment work for EQC and the Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority.
The EQC undertook a rapid assessment of houses over a week ago and say they are confident they will get round all the residences in the Christchurch area within its eight week timeframe. Some Christchurch residents who say they are frustrated and angry about the lack of communication from the Earthquake Commission.
Plumbers say EQC paying bills too slowly, Earthquake Commission defends its claim process, Events centre, not stimulus package, for West Coast, Harawira calls meeting to consider forming new party, Government, Auckland council split over development, Search work in Christchurch central city nears completion, Power in South Christchurch threatened by cut cable.