KEY POINTS:
The magnitude 6.8 earthquake that struck Gisborne on December 20 did $34.5 million of damage, according to the latest estimate from the Insurance Council.
"This figure is likely to rise further," council chief executive Chris Ryan said.
Of the total, about $15 million is for commercial insurance. The Earthquake Commission has received $19.5 million of claims for households.
The Earthquake Commission covers insured New Zealanders for the first $100,000 of damage to their property. Insurance companies pay for the rest of the damage to private homes, and also for all damage to commercial properties and related insurance.
Initial reports said an apartment building and two shops had partially collapsed, roofs caved in, water tanks and winery vats burst and holes opened up in roadways. It later became clear that the central business district of the city was the worst hit and that damage was worse than first thought.
With structural engineers and insurance adjusters still on the ground in Gisborne the costs of repairing a number of commercial buildings was likely to rise, Mr Ryan said.
Insurers, loss adjusters and engineers were working out the best way to repair damaged buildings.
Some businesses were under-insured for the cost of having their business inoperable for some time and Mr Ryan said all businesses in New Zealand should check their cover for this.
Some buildings in Gisborne could take up to two years to repair or replace, leaving the building owners and tenants with far longer time out of normal business than they had expected.
Last year Insurance Council members paid out over $1.7 billion for all insurance claims. By far the most significant natural hazards were floods and climate-related disasters.
- NZPA
