Call to recheck all EQC repairs and shift deadlines

The rising tide of on-sold homes with botched earthquake repairs has triggered calls for all Earthquake Commission (EQC) repairs to be reassessed and insurers to reset deadlines.

In what the Government has acknowledged could be a billiondollar problem, EQC has revealed that 664 repairs of on-sold homes have already gone over its $100,000 liability cap. Without insurance cover for damage repaired for previous owners, new owners have no-one to fund the remaining cost.

EQC Minister Megan Woods said the Government’s legal test cases to clarify liability for those repairs and get a declaratory judgment could take up to 18 months to reach court.

‘‘We are, however, looking at what options we have about speeding that up,’’ she said.

EQC is also considering whether to take legal action over the botched repairs against Fletcher Building, which managed its home repair programme.

Meanwhile, law firm Shine Lawyers has filed court proceedings for its own test case against EQC on behalf of owners of on-sold homes with botched repairs.

Managing director Andrew Hooker said EQC should offer an independent assessment to owners of all homes repaired under their $100,000 liability cap.

‘‘But as yet this has not happened, and there must be hundreds if not thousands of people who are living is one of these houses and don’t even know that they are sitting on a timebomb.

‘‘It is very important that anyone who has bought a house repaired under-cap by EQC take action to claim off EQC,’’ Hooker said.

An Australian litigation funding company will fund the cases and take a percentage of any winnings. Shine filed proceedings in September, but has just had the go-ahead from its funders and hopes the cases will be heard this year.

Homeowner Mike Stewart, who has discovered botched repairs in a home he and partner Julia McEntyre bought after the earthquakes, said they just wanted action from the minister and EQC.

‘‘They are talking the talk, but they are not walking the walk,’’ Stewart said. ‘‘Who owns EQC? It’s the Government. Why can’t they just say what is wrong, and fix it? It’s just delaying tactics and it’s all about cost.’’

Statutes of limitations on legal challenges to insurance companies are also looming for many claimants.

The deadlines have already been pushed out several times by insurers after intervention from the previous Government.

Former EQC Minister Gerry Brownlee said Woods should be negotiating with insurers to do the same.

Woods said it was a matter she was ‘‘highly attuned to’’.

She had instructed officials from the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment to ‘‘work with private insurers to see what can be done to expedite unresolved claims’’, she said.