Flooded Auckland homeowners plead for Govt help as some near end of insurance accomodation cover

Thursday, 25 May 2023

West Aucklanders whose homes flooded on Auckland Anniversary Weekend have banded together to press the Government for a managed retreat.

People forced out of their homes after flooding in Auckland in January have written to the Government and opposition parties asking for help as their insurance cover for accommodation is running out.

The West Auckland Is Flooding (WAIF) homeowner group says some homeowners’ insurance had as little as 25 weeks of accommodation cover, which pays the cost of alternative accommodation while their homes are being made habitable again.

Others have as much as 12 months of accommodation cover, WAIF says in the letter to ministers and opposition MPs.

The letter calls on politicians to work together to provide financial support for people when their accommodation cover runs out, giving them a lifeline until their homes are fixed, or they are bought out in a 'managed retreat'.

Among the politicians to get the letter from WAIF are Prime Minister Chris Hipkins, opposition leader Christopher Luxon, and Grant Robertson, Minister of Finance and Minister of Cyclone Recovery.

The letter from WAIF chairperson Lyall Carter says: “As we wait for further clarity around managed retreat and measures to be put in place to mitigate further weather-induced damage to our homes, many families and individuals find themselves in a very desperate situation.

The independent review outlines mistakes made by Mayor Wayne Brown and officials as the floods unfolded in January.

“Their insurance accommodation payouts are running out fast. While the Temporary Accommodation Service is available, it only helps to subsidise and not completely cover the financial shortfall.

“Families and individuals are having to pay for temporary rental accommodation on top of mortgage payments out of their own very empty back pocket. There are people in our communities that are at absolute breaking point,” he said.

“We are calling on the Government to create an additional fund that weather-impacted people can apply to so that they can cover their temporary accommodation in full while decisions around managed retreat are being finalised and actioned.”

In March Lyall Carter chaired a meeting of West Auckland residents advocating for managed retreat after they were flooded out of their homes.

Carter said the Government had signalled it would make an announcement on a managed retreat scheme by the end of May.

But homeowners had been confused that no money for the scheme was earmarked in the budget.

Carter said homeowners had been heartened when Auckland Council mayor Wayne Brown released his “Making Space for Water” plan the day before the Budget.

It included nine initiatives including storm water maintenance, rehabilitating streams, and “site-specific solutions for high-risk properties”, including some owners being bought out.

“Property acquisition is appropriate for stormwater solutions that benefit the wider community as part of our plans,” Brown said.

Carter said the months since the Auckland Anniversary Weekend flooding had been tough for people whose homes had flooded.

“Aucklanders who have been displaced from their homes due to the violent and destructive weather of the last five months are daily reliving the horror of those events. It is taking an incredible toll on the hearts, minds, and spirits of the children, parents, and individuals in our community,” he said.