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Getting your claim reviewed

If you’ve discovered missed earthquake damage to your home, land or contents, you can request a review of your original Canterbury claim. The process for requesting a review differs slightly depending on the type of claim — either building, contents, or land.

If you’d like to discuss having your claim reviewed, please contact us.


Claim review process for a settled Toka Tū Ake EQC claim

We have developed a guide outlining the steps involved in reopening and resolving a settled EQC claim.

Guide to reopening and resolving a settled EQC claim.

 Initial claim review process

  • Contact us to discuss your concerns. Provide us with as much information as you can. See below for the types of information that may be helpful to have on hand.
  • A settlement specialist/claim manager will be assigned to review your concerns.
  • The settlement specialist/claim manager will contact you to discuss the next steps.

Reviewing a building query

There are several reasons why you might request a review of your building queries.

You might request a review of your building queries if you’re concerned that:

  • EQC’s settlement did not include all earthquake damage.
  • EQC’s repair work or repair strategy hasn’t or won’t repair the earthquake damage to the standard required by the EQC Act.
  • EQC’s cash settlement wasn’t or isn’t sufficient to meet the reasonable costs of undertaking EQC’s repair strategy.

How to request a building claim review

Contact us with your claim number or address of your property ready, or complete our online Claim Review Form.

Useful information to provide

Sometimes, you will already have information that could assist your settlement specialist/claim manager with understanding your concerns when you contact us.

Information to include (but it is not limited to);

  • A list containing the specific damages that you are concerned about and the rooms where they are located.
  • Examples of how you noticed the damage: e.g. doors not shutting, carpet has been lifted, cracking on the wall, you have a professional report etc.
  • Any photos you have taken of the damage.
  • If you bought the property after the earthquakes, the sale and purchase agreement, deed of assignment and any pre- purchase reports.
  • Any reports or documents you think may be helpful during the review.

Your settlement specialist/claim manager will be able to discuss all the above with you if you have any questions.

Information for building contractors


Ask your contractor to complete this step to inform EQC of your damage details.

This form is for building contractors to submit detailed information about missed damaged or sub-standard repairs.

Contractors will need to include the property claim number so please note this on your assessment visit.

Contractor statement of damage – Online lodgement

Contractor statement of damage – Printer friendly [PDF, 155 KB]


Reviewing a land claim

If you have concerns with the decision made for your land claim, or you have new information that supports your concerns, you can ask us to review your claim. Contact us first to speak to one of our team about your concerns and the next steps.

You might request a review if your concerns relate to the following:

  • Visible land damage PDF - 6.7MB
  • Increased Flooding Vulnerability damage (IFV)
  • Increased Liquefaction Vulnerability damage (ILV)

Depending on your concerns, there are different types of supporting information that you can provide that may be helpful for you to share with us. We encourage you to contact us so we can help explain the information that may be required.

If you already have information that you think may support your concerns, you can send this to info@eqc.govt.nz or post to PO Box 311, Wellington 6140.


Reviewing a contents claim

Many outstanding contents claims relate to homes that have been or are to be demolished due to the severity of the damage caused by the earthquakes. These claims are usually for carpets and drapes.

Information to support your contents claim


Provide any one of the following:

  • Confirmation from your private insurer that the home is to be demolished
  • Demolition certificate
  • Other evidence that the house has been demolished or rebuilt

Damaged items


In some instances, there may still be outstanding claims for items that were damaged at the time of the earthquakes. If you would like to claim for these items, please complete a Schedule of Contents form. Alternatively, speak to one of our team about your concerns.

Some things to think about:

  • Do you have photos of the damaged items?
  • Do you still have the damaged items?
  • Have the items been in storage?
  • It would be useful to understand why your concerns were not lodged at the time of the original claim

In February 2019 the EQC Act changed in regards to contents cover.

Find out about the changes on our Act changes page.


Limitation Legislation

This section talks to the length of time EQC customers have to issue proceedings challenging a settlement for a claim made under the Earthquake Commission Act 1993 (EQC Act).

When does EQC consider the limitation period starting?
EQC’s position is that it does not consider the six-year limitation period in the Limitation Act 1950 and Limitation Act 2010 (together, the Limitation Act) runs from the date of each Canterbury earthquake.

EQC will approach the six-year limitation period for each land, building and contents claim from each earthquake, as running:

  • where an EQC claim has been settled, from the date EQC settled that claim;
  • where an EQC claim has not yet been settled, from the date when EQC settles or declines that claim; or
  • where a claim is declined, from the date that EQC declines the claim.

EQC reserves the right to change its approach to the application of limitation periods, but if it does so it will give public notice of that change. Any such changes will not have retrospective effect, and will not be relied on by EQC until 6 months after the date EQC has published public notice of its change on its website.

When is the settlement date of a claim?
If your land, building or contents claim has been settled, EQC will calculate the limitation date for that claim from its settlement date.

If your claim has been settled by payment:

  • The limitation period starts running from the date EQC makes payment in settlement of your claim under the EQC Act.
  • Where EQC has made one or more “top-up” settlements for a claim, then the date will be calculated from the most recent settlement payment.
  • If no payment is made because the settlement due is less than the excess amount, the date will be calculated from when EQC communicates its settlement position to the customer.

If your claim was settled through repair under the Canterbury Home Repair Programme (CHRP) or through an EQC managed repair:

  • The limitation period starts running from the date of practical completion of the repairs.
  • If there have been further repairs carried out by EQC after the date of practical completion, then the date will be calculated from the most recent date those further repairs were completed

When is the date that a claim has been declined?
If a claim has been, or will be, declined (which may also be described as “not accepted”, “closed”, or other similar language), the customer will have received correspondence from EQC communicating that decision. The limitation period will begin to run from the date in that communication.

What if my claim hasn’t been settled or declined?
If a claim has not yet been settled, and has not been declined, then the limitation period will start to run only when the claim is settled or declined.

Frequently Asked Questions


Why doesn’t EQC announce an extension of the limitation date, as insurers have done?

EQC’s approach to limitation periods takes into account the circumstances of each individual claim and allows customers six years after that claim was settled or declined to decide whether to bring legal proceedings.

Insurers have announced extensions of the limitation date because some consider that under their policies the limitation period starts running from the date of each earthquake. However, EQC does not consider that is the case for claims under the EQC Act.

How the Limitation Act applies to policies provided by private insurers may differ between policies and people should talk with their private insurer and potentially their lawyer about their individual claims.

What is the date of practical completion?

The date of practical completion is the date that EQC and its building contractor agreed that the repair work to your property was completed, apart from minor issues that could be rectified without affecting the use of the property.

What should I do if I disagree with my claim settlement?

If you have any concerns with your settlement or become aware of new information relevant to your claim, you can raise this with EQC for review.