Storm or flood damage in NZ: a home insurance claim checklist

After storm or flood damage: safety, then your insurer

Once everyone is safe, contact your home or contents insurer, record the damage without putting yourself at risk, and ask what it needs before repairs or disposal. Keep a record of each conversation. This is a claims preparation checklist for New Zealand households, not a decision about whether a loss is covered.

ICNZ's claims guide puts safety first and says to follow local authorities' guidance. Do not enter an unsafe building or floodwater to retrieve insurance documents or take photographs. Tell your insurer if the home cannot be lived in or you need urgent assistance; ask about the temporary accommodation terms in your own policy.

Use the insurer's official claims channel. Have your policy details ready if accessible, and save the claim reference when one is issued. An initial message to Gold Star is not a claim lodged with your insurer.

Build a small, usable damage record

ICNZ identifies event details and evidence of the loss as useful claims information. Start with what you know, and mark uncertain details rather than guessing. If an item is not safely accessible, tell the insurer.

• Event note: the address, when you first noticed the damage, and what you actually observed. Separate observations from assumptions about the cause.
• Photo index: one label for each affected room or item, with the matching filenames. Take photographs only from safe places.
• Item record: what was damaged, with any existing purchase records or photographs of the actual item. The home contents inventory guide can help organise these.
• Actions and costs: what was done, who did it, when, and any invoice or receipt. Keep the insurer's instructions alongside these records.

Keep original files and make a separate working list. A useful entry might say “lounge-02: photograph taken Monday morning; purchase date not yet found”. That makes missing information visible without changing the evidence.

Ask before non-urgent repairs or disposal

State's storm and flood guidance distinguishes temporary work to make a property safe from non-urgent repairs, and advises contacting it before engaging a tradesperson where possible. It also recommends recording damage before clean-up. Its instructions apply to State customers and do not establish another insurer's rules.

Ask your own insurer what you should do now, which work needs approval, and what evidence it needs before items are removed. Follow local safety and public-health directions. If something must be disposed of urgently for safety, record what you safely can and tell the insurer what happened. Do not keep dangerous material merely for evidence.

Fictional organising example: a household creates a folder for a storm-damaged room, puts safely taken photographs and an emergency contractor's invoice inside, then notes “insurer asked for repair quote; permanent work not yet authorised”. This shows a record-keeping method, not a claim outcome or permission to do work.

Keep the next action clear

After each call, write down the date, claim reference, documents requested and who is to act next. If instructions are unclear, ask for written clarification. Save later discoveries as dated additions, rather than rewriting the original event note.

Before paying for work or accommodation, ask which costs your policy may cover, what limits or excesses apply, and what approval is needed. Read the excess guide for the separate question of your contribution to a covered claim. No checklist can confirm acceptance or a settlement amount.

For a future review of your home and contents cover, contact James with a short outline of your question. Send claim evidence and policy details through the insurer's agreed channel; keep these and other sensitive information out of the initial website enquiry.