Natural Hazards Commission (NHC) Toka Tū Ake

An overview of New Zealand Government Land Insurance, what is and isn’t covered by Natural Hazards Commission (NHC) Toka Tū Ake.

How Vero works with Natural Hazards Commission Toka Tū Ake

Vero manages your home and land claims on behalf of the NHC Toka Tū Ake. This means we can provide you with a seamless process for natural hazard claims whether they’re covered under the NHI Act or under your Vero policy.

The NHC Toka Tū Ake provides cover of up to $300,000 for a residential building. If the damage to your home goes over this amount, your Vero Residential Home insurance will cover damage above the NHC Toka Tū Ake limit up to the amount you are insured for.

The NHC Toka Tū Ake also provides cover for:

• land damage due to natural hazards to land under or within 8 metres of your home
• land under your main accessway that is not more than 60 metres from your home.

To find out more on land cover visit the NHC Toka Tū Ake website for more information.

Natural hazards happen

Natural hazards can happen to anyone, anywhere. If you’ve been affected by a natural hazard and you have Vero home insurance, you’re also covered through the NHC Toka Tū Ake Natural Hazards cover programme.

What natural hazards are:

• earthquake
• natural landslide (not including gradual landslide)
• volcanic activity
• hydrothermal activity
• tsunami
• storm and flood damage to your land (within limits); or
• fire resulting from one of these natural hazards.

Is land covered by insurance?

New Zealand is unique for many reasons, but one insurance related reason that stands out is all insured residential dwellings (with fire insurance as a minimum) have automatic access to land cover; something that is not available to homeowners anywhere else in the world.

Cover for land is provided by the New Zealand Government via NHC Toka Tū Ake. However, the NHC Toka Tū Ake cover comes with limitations regarding the location of the damaged land in relation to the home itself, the natural hazard that has caused the land damage, and the purpose for which the land is used. There are also limits around the amount that a claim can be settled for.

What isn’t covered by Vero?

Like all other insurers, Vero does not provide any cover for land. Land is not included in the policy definition of ‘home’ and is also specifically excluded by certain policy exclusions. 

What is and isn’t covered by NHC Toka Tū Ake?

NHC Toka Tū Ake provides cover for land located at the insured property if it is impacted by a natural disaster event, specifically arising from: 

• Earthquake

• Natural landslides

• Volcanic eruption 

• Hydrothermal activity

• Tsunami

• Storm

• Flood or, 

• Fire resulting from any of the above.

For there to be cover, the damaged land must be located within at least one of the following areas:

• Directly under the home or any outbuildings covered by NHC Toka Tū Ake

• Within eight metres of the home and those outbuildings 

• Under or supporting the main accessway (up to 60 metres from the home) 

• The maximum that will be paid is capped at the value of the insured land.

NHC Toka Tū Ake will also cover the following land structures: 

• Bridges and culverts within the above areas

• Retaining walls within 60 metres of the home that are necessary to support or protect the home, outbuildings, or land that is covered by NHC Toka Tū Ake. 

   

NHC Toka Tū Ake maximum liability for land damage is the lesser of either:

• The market value of the relevant area of damaged land, or

• The repair or reinstatement costs of the relevant areas of damaged land.

   

NHC Toka Tū Ake maximum liability for damaged land structures such as bridges, culverts and retaining walls is the undepreciated value of that structure subject to the following limits:

• Retaining walls - $50,000 plus GST per dwelling

• Bridges & Culverts - $25,000 plus GST.

An excess of $500 per dwelling applies, up to a maximum of $5,000.

You can find more information within the Householders’ Guide to NHCover for Residential Land (PDF).

Disclaimer – The information on this page is of a general nature only, intended to provide guidance about how your claim may be managed. The steps which will be taken to manage your particular claim will depend upon your individual circumstances and your policy wording. Please refer to your policy wording for full details of your insurance cover. If in doubt about what you should do, speak to your Broker or contact Vero on 0800 800 134.