Get to know your natural hazards cover
The best time to learn about natural hazards insurance is before you need it.
Translations and alternate formatsDo you know what’s covered if disaster hits your home?
If a natural disaster affects your home, insurance cover for your property is provided by both the Natural Hazards Commission and your private insurer.
For damage to your home, we cover the first $300,000 of damage and your private insurance covers the rest, up to your policy limits.
We also provide limited cover for some of the land under and around your home. You can't buy extra land cover from your insurer, so it's important to understand the limits of the land area that is covered, and the maximum amount you can be paid.
A contribution towards land repairs
New Zealand is one of the only countries in the world with access to residential land insurance, but it has limits.
The amount you can be paid for damage to your land is usually a contribution towards the total repair costs. This means it may not cover the full cost of repairing all the natural hazard damage.
You are covered for the cost of repairing a limited area of your land, up to a maximum amount known as the land cover cap. This cap is based on the value of the insured areas of damaged land.
Cover for a limited area
Only certain areas of your residential land are covered by insurance.
You're covered for the land:
- under and up to 8m around your home, related buildings, and structures,
- and under or supporting your main access way, up to 60m from your home.
Any land outside of these areas is not covered.
You're also covered for some retaining walls, bridges and culverts, to a limit.
Long or winding driveways
You're covered for the land under or supporting your main accessway (usually your driveway), for up to 60 metres from the edge of your home.
If your driveway is longer than 60 metres, or has winding sections, the land beyond this distance won't be covered.
If this is the case at your place, make a plan for how you will manage any shortfall if the unexpected happens.
Cover for your home
You're covered for:
- your home or holiday home
- related buildings or structures that are used as part of your day-to-day living, such as sheds, garages, or pergolas
- some essential services associated with your home, such as water supply, gas or electricity.
Know your cover
This information provides a general summary of the insurance we provide under under our governing legislation, being the EQC Act for claims for damage that occurred before 1 July 2024, and the NHI Act for claims for damage that occurred on or after 1 July 2024. The Acts will always prevail over the content of this webpage.
- We use the term “home” in this information while the Act uses the term “dwelling”.
- Generally, everyone with valid private insurance for their home or holiday home that includes fire insurance pays the Natural Hazards Insurance levy and has access to our insurance cover.
- Some insurers may offer additional top- up cover for land structures such as retaining walls, bridges and culverts. Talk to your insurer to find out what extra cover is available.
- Information in this webpage is valid for homeowners who pay the Natural Hazards Insurance levy through a private insurer that is a member of the insurance partnership with us. For Direct NHCover customers or those whose private insurer does not partner with us, details on how you access NHCover or make a claim may be different.
Photo credit: Graham Hancox, GNS Science.