Negotiate with insurers: ICNZ

Some insurers have stopped taking on new business as a result of the weekend’s earthquakes, in an area stretching from Marlborough to Taupo.

Banks will not issue mortgages against properties without insurance.

Auckland Property Investors Association president David Whitburn said buyers should talk to their lawyers if they had not yet secured insurance on a property but were expected to settle before the exclusion expired.

“There could be a lot of late interest charged. If lawyers wanted to get aggressive, they could put late settlement notices on people.”

But Insurance Council spokesman John Lucas said people could try to arrange insurance through the vendor’s insurer. “They’ve already got the risk.”

AA insurance, which is not taking on new customers, confirmed it would do that. “We don’t want the property market to grind to a halt and we hope this will be a relief for some homebuyers in the affected area.”

It said buyers should get in touch as soon as possible.

That system had worked in Christchurch in 2010 and 2011, he said. He did not expect the exclusion zone to remain in place for long.