AMI, State And NZI On The Ground In Storm-hit Regions

New Zealand’s largest insurer has insurance representatives at community information hubs in Auckland and Hawkes Bay for all customers affected by Cyclone Gabrielle and the North Island floods, to discuss their claims in person.

As of 10am this morning, AMI, State and NZI have received over 22,000 claims for the North Island floods, and just over 10,000 claims for Cyclone Gabrielle.

Of the 10,000 cyclone claims, around 60% are for homes, 20% for contents, 10% for businesses, and the remainder for vehicles and other items, such as boats. Most claims are from the Auckland region, with 3,603 claims, followed by the Hawke’s Bay with 2,064 claims, and then Northland and the Waikato, with around 1,000 claims each. Claims in Gisborne remain low, and we expect that to rise over coming days.

AMI, State and NZI CEO, Amanda Whiting says, “We are doing everything we can to support our customers through these unprecedented weather events. We want customers to know we are here, and we’ll continue to work closely with Emergency Management, Councils and other partners to ensure we have a presence in the severely affected areas, for as long as needed.

“I would also like to acknowledge our team members who have been working long hours to support our customers, especially when many of our people have been affected themselves,” said Ms Whiting.

Community Information Hub details

The information hubs support all IAG customers: AMI, State, NZI, NAC, Lumley, Lantern, and insurance customers for BNZ, ASB, Westpac and the Co-operative Bank.

Each hub will have IAG representatives on site from 9am-5pm, able to help with lodging claims and answering any queries about the process.

Please note, due to factors outside our control, these locations may change at short notice. For the latest information, please refer to our Disaster Claims Hub, which is updated frequently.

Auckland:

Waimauku

Address: Waimauku War Memorial Hall, 24 Waimauku Station Road

Open: Daily, 9am-5pm and to remain open until reviewed

Muriwai

Address: Rangers Station, Motutara Road opposite Sand Dunz Beach Café (operating from marquee outside Rangers Station)

Open: Daily, 9am-5pm and to remain open until reviewed (dependent on current weather conditions)

Piha

Address: Surf Club, 23 Marine Parade South

Open: Daily, 9am-5pm and to remain open until reviewed (dependent on current weather conditions)

Hawke’s Bay:

Napier

Address: Centennial Hall at McLean Park (Rodney Green Centennial Event Centre)

Open: Daily, 9am-5pm and to remain open until reviewed

Hastings

Address: Flaxmere Community Centre, 400 Swansea Road

Open: Daily, 9am-5pm and to remain open until reviewed

Please note, due to factors outside our control, these locations may change at short notice. For the latest locations, please refer to our Disaster Claims Hub, which is updated frequently.

Disaster Claims Hubs

We have information relating to issues such as emergency repairs, flooded carpet, evacuations, temporary accommodation and the process for lodging claims on our Disaster Claims Hubs:

AMI: https://ami.custhelp.com/app/disaster-claims-hub

State: https://statenz.custhelp.com/app/disaster-claims-hub

NZI: Contact your broker. For general advice, go to https://iagnz.custhelp.com/

With the upcoming weather warnings, please find helpful insurance tips below:

What to do if your property is damaged during a storm:

• Ensure you and your whānau are safe first. Follow all advice from Civil Defence.
• If you need to make a claim, as soon as you’re able to let us know about any damage to your property, the sooner we can help – especially if your home becomes uninhabitable or we need to arrange temporary accommodation for you, your family, and your pets.
• Be careful not to return to your home or business until it’s safe to do so and avoid anything that could potentially cause more damage.
• You can do temporary 'make safe' repairs to make your home safe and weathertight, such as boarding up broken windows, just try to take photos before you do so. Where possible, please contact us before you engage a tradesperson or make any non-urgent repairs.
• It’s okay to start to clean up if you’ve been affected by flooding, especially if it can prevent further damage, but remember it’s best to treat all flood water as blackwater (i.e., contaminated with sewerage), so make sure you stay safe by wearing heavy duty gloves, boots, and a face mask.
• If water has entered your home or business, turn off the power at the mains and ensure an electrician has checked the power supply before turning it back on.
• If your home or business is without power, you should turn your appliances off at the wall in case of a potentially damaging power surge.

What to do if your vehicle is damaged during a storm:

• If your windscreen has been damaged or your car has been flooded, please don’t attempt to drive it.
• As soon as you’re able to let us know about any damage to your vehicle, the sooner we can help – especially if you have cover for a temporary vehicle that we can arrange for you.
• If your vehicle needs to be towed, remember to remove any personal items if you can, and make sure it’s securely locked with no keys left inside – the tow team will get in touch to pick your keys up instead.
• Also, if you have contents insurance, let us know if any items in your car were damaged.

About IAG:

IAG New Zealand is the largest general insurer in the country, trading under the AMI, State, NZI, NAC, Lumley and Lantern brands, as well as providing the general insurance products sold by ASB, BNZ, Westpac and The Co-operative Bank. IAG employs over 3,500 people, holds relationships with one in every two New Zealand households, and insures more than $680 billion of commercial and domestic assets.

For assistance, please contact:

IAG External Communications +64 27 405 9335 or media@iag.co.nz

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