The Earthquake Commission (EQC)’s annual report, which included a formal apology to its customers, was tabled in Parliament yesterday.
The EQC Annual Report 2018 to 2019 summarised the insurer’s progress in regards to its mission “to reduce the impact on people and property when natural disasters occur,” and noted its shortcomings in managing the aftermath of the Canterbury earthquakes.
However, the EQC Board Chair emphasised that the report gave them a chance to prove that they are determined to improve for the Canterbury community and the rest of New Zealand in the future.
EQC promised that settling outstanding claims from the Canterbury earthquake sequence remains its top priority – revealing that 84% of the remaining 2010 to 2011 claims were resolved over the year against a target of 98%, which leaves it with 556 claims left.
Meanwhile, total ongoing Canterbury claims dropped from 4,800 to 2,588 from June 30, 2018 to June 30, 2019 – a period when around 6,600 claims were reopened and around 8,200 reopened claims were resolved. The insurer confirmed that it has made improvements to the timeliness and quality of claim resolution as well as the quality of customer communication.
Sir Michael Cullen, chair of EQC, concluded that changes were being made in the organisation to be better prepared for future events.
