PRISONERS IN THE TOWER GROUP

Press release – for immediate publication.

The Forgotten 6,358* Canterbury Earthquake Claimants still with EQC and Private Insurers

“Home Detention for 7 Years!”
"Justice delayed is justice denied"

The representative group of our members in the attached photo – all Tower Insurance claimants – are still struggling for justice and fair settlements 2,645 days after the 22 February 2011 earthquake. Tower still has around 40 cases before the High Court and an unspecified number of other, outstanding earthquake claims.

The New Zealand government owns almost 10% of Tower shares through the ACC (Accident Compensation Corporation) and is also responsible for the Earthquake Commission (EQC). So the government must take a large measure of responsibility for the endless delays and obstacles to settling earthquake claims in Canterbury.

The Tower claimants fall into three groups: some suffered serious foundation damage, but have been kept under the $100,000 cap by EQC for over seven years. Others (in some cases the elderly and vulnerable) have been pressured into signing agreements with Tower, allowing the insurer to continue to stall and delay, as well as make use of exemptions. Still others have filed in the High Court against the insurer.

But justice is hard to come by in the courts. Approximately 1,150 cases have accumulated on the High Court earthquake list since it was set up in 2013. The stated original objective was to establish precedents and allow following cases to be dealt with swiftly and efficiently. However, to date, there have been just 28 trials. Of this number, little more than a dozen judgments have involved individual claimants (as opposed to trusts or companies).

Cases were also to be dealt with as quickly as resources permitted, but there is little indication that serious resources were allocated to expedite earthquake cases. In 2017, the average time a claimant could expect to wait between filing and an actual court hearing was approximately 18 months. In addition, in the Earthquake List to 30 September 2017, just two judges were responsible for more than 74% of the total number of cases. In the latest list (13 March 2018), the names of the judges responsible have been removed.

And with the expected increase in litigation against the EQC due to failed repairs, resources are likely to be stretched even further.

*Approximate figure based on: Ministry of Justice figure of 2,741 claimants with private insurers and Southern Response as at 30 November 2017 plus EQC figure of 3,617 unresolved claims as at 15 May 2018

Prisoners in the Tower Group
(Facebook: prisonersinthetower)

Spokesperson: Séamus O’Cromtha

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