Fence not fixed due to lack of insurance
A FIX for the fence of a historic Dunedin building on one of the city’s main streets could be some way off.
Sections of a solid fence at the front of King Edward Court in Stuart St were smashed when an Intergroup truck had a mechanical failure, rolled and crashed in the front of the building in April 2018.
Dunedin resident Steve Brown, who went to school in the building when it was the King Edward Technical College, this week contacted the Otago Daily Times wondering why the damage had not been repaired after so long.
‘‘It is an eyesore and a disgrace.’’
The building is owned by Ray and Gwynn Joseph, who live in the United States.
The ODT reported in October 2018 that repairs were stalled for months by insurance delays.
Building manager Roberta Coutts yesterday said it was her understanding the building was not insured.
There were ongoing discussions over who was responsible for paying for the repairs.
She believed an insurance claim lodged by the trucking company had been denied.
‘‘The trucking company has still not taken responsibility for the damage . . . I have never given up the fight.’’
Bryce McLean, an insurance broker acting for Intergroup, said Intergroup had insurance that covered damage to its truck as well as third party liability for property damage, but when a claim was lodged for both, the part referring to the building was not applicable.
That was because a police investigation found the truck had a mechanical failure that could not have been foreseen and that meant the trucking company was not liable for the damage to the fence by law, he said.
‘‘It is not fair to say [insurance company] NZI denied the claim.
‘‘They haven’t. There is no claim to decline. There is simply no liability on the trucking company,’’ he said.
When the mechanical failure happened, the driver decided to crash the truck into the fence, rather than continue heading down the hill towards the Octagon, he said.
He said it was the same as if a tyre burst on a vehicle, causing it to crash into another vehicle. The first would not be liable and both vehicles’ owners would rely on their own insurance to cover their own damage.
The fence, the truck and two parked cars were all damaged in the 2018 incident.
The truck driver, a man in his 40s, was taken to hospital with moderate injuries.
The building had its centenary in 2013 and is home to a wide variety of sports clubs, small businesses and community groups.