Luck Runs Out For Ashton Grove

Christchurch furniture manufacturer & retailer Ashton Grove thought luck was on their side when they escaped the first Christhchurch earthquake with no damage. They sustained a few cracks in the subsequent aftershocks, but nothing major.

Then the second quake hit and they were not so lucky. But they still counted their blessing compared to most of Christchurch after the second quake. Owner Robert Hood explained "While we sustained damage to the buildings in the second earthquake, compared to the suffering and loss most Cantabrians were experiencing, we felt extremely lucky. The engineer's report told us that structurally the building was very sound and we had insurance cover in place so knew that all the asthetic damage would eventually be fixed."

Last Friday, Robert received a phone call from their insurance broker, ODL Group advising him that their insurance company Western Pacific was rumoured to be in financial trouble and they were most likely uninsured. ODL had managed to secure insurance for the other property in Auckland leased by Ashton Grove but could not get insurance for the Christchurch property and business.

A week later, Ashton Grove's Raycroft St property and business remains uninsured. "We feel gutted that this is happened, especially after three years of recession has made running a small business tough to say the least. It seems unfair that the Government are bailing out AMI, but it appears there is not the same treatment for all. Our building is structurally sound and yet we cannot get insurance for it. It is a very uneasy feeling knowing it could burn down tomorrow and we are uninsured. We have been told by ODL that they have not even been formally advised by Western Pacific and that they have only gleened their information via the media. So we are in limobo"

ENDS

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