Southern Response appeal on Dodds decision largely dismissed
From Checkpoint, 5:07 pm on 7 September 2020
The government could be liable for hundreds of millions of dollars in quake insurance payments following a potentially precedent-setting Court of Appeal decision out today.
The court upheld an earlier ruling that found state-owned insurer Southern Response was guilty of misleading and deceptive behaviour when it short-changed Karl and Alison Dodds tens of thousands of dollars after their quake damaged house was written off.
The Dodds say they were tricked into accepting a lower offer from Southern Response only to later discover the insurer had kept secret from them a second higher estimate to rebuild their damaged house.
The High Court ordered Southern Response to pay the Dodds almost $180,000 in damages, plus costs. But the government supported the appeal saying it needed clarity around similar cases.
Lawyer for the Dodds, Peter Woods, said the decision delivered "clarity" in spades.
"The Court of Appeal was absolutely clear Southern Response had made representations that were false, that the Dodds had relied on those, they were induced to enter into an agreement based on those misrepresentations, that the misrepresentations were also misleading and deceptive, and the Dodds were entitled to almost their full claim, so it totals up to about $250,000."
Woods said the government should now have "perfect clarity", which could apply to thousands of other cases.
"In the High Court, Southern Response's evidence was there was at least 1600 other claims in a similar position. If they are all valued at $250,000 then you do the maths on that ... the government's probably exposed to in excess of $500 million as a result of this."
Woods said the other claimants should be paid out "without a doubt", and Southern Response had already estimated how much it might cost.
FULL STORY HERE: https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/checkpoint/audio/2018762957/southern-response-appeal-on-dodds-decision-largely-dismissed