Year from hell: Hastings man loses job in Covid, van in flooding

Jaimz Horne's Mazda Biante has been falling apart since it was caught up in the Napier flooding. Photo / Paul Taylor

A Hastings man has been unable to get his flood-damaged car fixed having had to cancel his insurance after losing his job at the beginning of Covid lockdown.

On November 9, Jaimz Horne drove to Napier to pick up his friends, who had rung asking for help as they were worried about the rising floodwaters.

Horne said his 2011 Mazda Biante minivan got stuck when he tried to drive away again.

"The carpet was absolutely damp and the engine just would not turn over at all," he said.

"So we had to push it to a dry area and wait it out."

Horne said he was able to start the vehicle after that, but it deteriorated badly and is now falling apart.

He doesn't think the minivan will ever be drivable again, as the parts it requires would cost more than he paid for the vehicle itself.

"The parts for it are so rare it's not even funny," Horne said.

Losing his job to Covid meant Jaimz Horne did not have insurance for his flooded minivan. Photo / Paul Taylor

This is where an insurer would normally step in, write the car off and help pay for a replacement.

However, Horne doesn't have insurance, having lost his job as a site traffic management supervisor due to Covid.

He said it has obviously been a really tough year.

"Everything's just been going wrong," Horne said, noting losing his van was really tough as he was just trying to help his friends out.

"Just trying to help someone, and the world just pays you back in an absolutely horrible way."

The 20-year-old lives in Parkvale with his sister and his mother, whom he would typically drive to town and the doctor because she finds it hard to walk or catch the bus.

Horne is holding out hope for a better year in 2021, and hopes to attain work soon as a security guard.