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Emergency Management Bill (No 2)

Information, enforcement, compensation, appeals, and secondary legislation - Compensation, civil liability, and other protections - Compensation for loss or damage due to exercise of other powers

199: Principles for payment of compensation recovered under section 197

You could also call this:

"How compensation is paid for damaged property"

Illustration for Emergency Management Bill (No 2)

If you make a claim under section 197(4) and get compensation, it must be paid according to this section. You can only get compensation up to the replacement value of the property. If your property is insured, the insurance company pays first, and then others may pay for any extra damage. If your property is not insured, the same rules apply as for insured property. In some cases, if the damage is from a natural hazard, it is treated differently. You can still get a special payment if the Crown, an Emergency Management Committee, or a territorial authority thinks it is fair.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=LMS1037165.

This page was last updated on 31 December 2025 — View changes

Topics:

Housing and property > Home safety and repairsMoney and consumer rights > InsuranceGovernment and voting > Emergency management

198: Parties from whom person may recover compensation under section 197, or

"Who you can claim compensation from if the new emergency law affects you"

200: Considerations for court if claim brought under section 197, or

"What the court thinks about when you claim for compensation"

Part 5Information, enforcement, compensation, appeals, and secondary legislation
Compensation, civil liability, and other protections: Compensation for loss or damage due to exercise of other powers

199Principles for payment of compensation recovered under section 197

Compensation recovered as a result of a claim brought under section 197(4) must be paid in accordance with this section.
Liability for the loss or damage to property must not exceed the replacement value.
In the case of insured property, liability is covered—
by a contract of insurance that covers the property regardless of how it describes loss or damage; and
with respect to any loss or damage exceeding the cover of that contract of insurance, in the following manner:
1. by the Crown if the action or measure that caused the loss or damage was taken by a person specified in section 198(2):
2. by the local authority members of the responsible Emergency Management Committee or Committees if the action or measure that caused the loss or damage was taken by a person specified in section 198(3):
3. by the responsible territorial authority if the action or measure that caused the loss or damage was taken by a person specified in section 198(4).

In the case of uninsured property, liability is covered in the manner specified in subsection (3)(b).
Despite this section, if an emergency or anticipated emergency is a natural hazard—
within the meaning of section 5(1) of the Natural Hazards Insurance Act 2023, the loss or damage is to be treated as natural hazard damage for the purposes of that Act; and
within the meaning given to that term in a policy or contract of insurance, the loss or damage is to be treated as natural hazard damage for the purposes of that policy or contract of insurance.

Nothing in this section or section 197 or 198 prevents the Crown, an Emergency Management Committee, or a territorial authority from making an ex gratia payment it considers justifiable on the basis of hardship or fairness.