Time almost out to lodge quake claims

Buildings damaged in the September 4 earthquake. Photo / Mark Mitchell.

Residents affected by the magnitude 7.1 earthquake that struck Canterbury on September 4 are urged to lodge any outstanding claims to the Earthquake Commission (EQC) ahead of tomorrow's three-month deadline.

More than 151,000 claims for quake damage have been lodged with EQC, which has settled about 15,500 claims and visited or contacted more than 52,000 property owners, commission chief executive Ian Simpson said.

"It is critical for people to lodge claims today before the cut-off for lodging claims with EQC of midnight, Saturday 4 December 2010," Mr Simpson said.

The EQC has paid out more than $330 million in claims resulting from the earthquake.

A report on land damage released this week found that 3300 properties fell into Zone C, which covered the areas most affected by land damage and will require significant land repair or protection work before rebuilding can happen.

"The work required to repair the most seriously land-damaged areas of Canterbury is unprecedented in New Zealand history," Mr Simpson said.

The commission has said it hoped to have settled all claims for less than $10,000 by Christmas and to have inspected all properties likely to have damage over $10,000 by March.

However, repairs for all the claims of between $10,000 and $100,000 could take up to two years to complete.

- NZPA