Source: New Zealand Treasury:
The Minister Responsible for the Earthquake Commission, Dr David Clark announced on 30 September 2021 that the Government will increase the EQC residential building cap from $150,000 (plus GST) to $300,000 (plus GST) from 1 October next year.
EQC cover currently costs 20 cents for every $100 (+ GST) of home fire insurance you have, and is capped at $345 (including GST) per dwelling per annum. You pay this amount to your private insurance company, which passes it on to EQC. Following the increase to the cap, the EQC levy (premium) rate will reduce from 20 cents per $100 of EQC cover, to 16 cents.
The net effect of the increase in cover and the reduction in levy is that the maximum annual EQC premiums will increase from $345 per dwelling to $552 (both including GST), an increase of $207 a year.
The Treasury is proactively releasing advice that supported the Government’s decision to increase the cap.
Some parts of this information release would not be appropriate to release and, if requested, would be withheld under the Official Information Act 1982 (the Act). Where information has been withheld, no public interest has been identified that would outweigh the reasons for withholding it.
