The first 48 hours after a big southerly decide most of what happens to a claim. I have assessed two villas on the same street where a chimney flashing let go in the same storm. One owner photographed the water coming through the ceiling rose, got a tarpaulin over the roof that afternoon, and kept the wet carpet in the garage. The other waited nine days for a roofer, by which time the ceiling had come down, the gib had wicked moisture up the walls, and nobody could say which damage came from the storm and which came from the nine days.
Make safe first, and document while you do it
Making the building safe is not prejudicing your claim — it is expected of you, and most policies require you to prevent further loss where it is reasonable to do so. What matters is that the temporary work is genuinely temporary and that it is recorded. Photograph the damage before the tarpaulin goes on, then photograph the tarpaulin. Keep receipts for everything, including the hardware store run at 8pm.
The things not to do are more specific. Do not throw out damaged material until it has been seen or photographed in place. Do not have permanent repairs done before the insurer has had a chance to assess, unless the alternative is more damage. And do not let anybody strip a roof “to see what is underneath” without a plan to close it in the same day.
Grading what you are looking at
From the ground, with binoculars, before anyone climbs anything:
- Urgent. Water entering the ceiling cavity now. Sheets or tiles displaced or missing. A chimney or brick parapet that has moved. Anything electrical that is wet.
- Serious but not tonight. Lifted flashings, a cracked ridge line, spouting torn off its brackets, a broken valley. These will leak in the next event but are not leaking into the house yet.
- Record and monitor. Lost lichen, scuffed coating, a few loose fixings, debris in the spouting. Worth noting in the claim as storm-related so it is not disputed later, but not a reason to go up a ladder in a gale.
On a villa the specific weak points are the chimney flashings, the valley between the main roof and a later lean-to, and the finials and bargeboards, which are often original timber and let go in high wind.
The claim, in the order assessors actually want it
Notify the insurer early, even before the full extent is known. Give them the date and time of the event, a short factual description, and the photographs. Do not estimate the cost in the first call — an early guess becomes an anchor you then have to argue away from.
Expect the assessment to separate storm damage from pre-existing wear. That distinction is where most disputes live: a flashing that was already corroded and finally failed in a gale is often treated as maintenance rather than storm loss. The best defence against that argument is evidence that the roof was being maintained, which is a good reason to keep dated photographs of every roof wash and every repair, storm or not.
For the temporary repair itself, speed beats price. In the last big Auckland blow the roofers with capacity were booked out within hours, and the owner who got attention fastest was the one who rang early and accepted whoever had a crew out the same afternoon rather than waiting for a preferred name to come free.
Frequently asked questions
Will making a claim put my premium up? Possibly, but an unclaimed water ingress that turns into a rotten ceiling and framing costs far more than a premium adjustment. Weigh the excess against the likely repair, and remember that hidden damage often exceeds the visible damage on older houses.
Does EQC cover storm damage? No. Natural hazard cover through the Natural Hazards Commission applies to events like earthquakes, landslips and volcanic activity. Wind and rain damage sits with your private house insurer.
How long should a temporary repair be left in place? Weeks, not months. Tarpaulins fail in the next wind and the second failure is rarely treated as a fresh storm event. Use the temporary period to get a proper repair scoped and booked.