Insured losses from New Zealand’s recent April storms have reached NZD $72 million (USD $50 million), prompting a boost in funding to the country’s emergency response section and a series of climate resilience measures, according to the Insurance Council of New Zealand (ICNZ).
The storm battered New Zealand’s North Island over 10 and 11 April with wind gusts of around 140 km/h, leaving 180,000 homes in Auckland without power and resulting in 13,000 insurance claims thus far.
“The 10 and 11 April storm has been the most expensive so far this year and has cost more than cyclones Gita and Fehi combined,” said Insurance Council Chief Executive Tim Grafton.
“Last year was the most expensive year on record for severe weather events with $243 million in insured losses. This storm brings the total for this year to $173.1 million and we are only in May and still have the late-April floods to calculate so it is not hard to imagine this year being another big one” he added.
This latest storm is currently ranked as the 5th costliest to have ever hit New Zealand, with 2017’s Cyclone Debbie taking second place at insured losses of $91.5 million, and 2004’s Lower North Island Storms considered the costliest ever, at insured losses of $148.3 million.
The majority of insurance claims for the April storm were related to ‘House and Contents’, with 10,713 claims filed and estimated costs of $34.9 million, while Commercial losses also reached $34.2 million with 1,810 total claims received, according to ICNZ.
In response to the losses, the Climate Change Adaptation Technical Working Group compiled a report titled ‘Adapting to Climate Change in New Zealand’, which proposed a national survey to identify high-risk areas, and a subsequent national adaptation action plan.
Additionally, Auckland Mayor Phil Goff committed $40 million as part of a 10-year budget plan for Auckland’s emergency response sector, as well as a $90 million investment in coastal protection schemes and a programme to help clean up the region’s beaches and harbours.
These proposals were welcomed by ICNZ’s Grafton, who commented: “Every dollar spent on adaptation now will be more than repaid in future savings. The longer we wait to adapt, the more it will cost us and if we fail to adapt altogether it will cost us the most.”
