A Napier man's questioning of his regional council's hazard map has led to his insurer agreeing to pay back several thousand in insurance premiums.
Philip Dol says his insurance premiums at his house in Napier South went up from about $2000 a year to more than $5000 in the period after Cyclone Gabrielle, and it rose to just shy of $8000 for the latest year.
He was able to work out the Hawke's Bay Regional Council hadn't included key information about his property, which had been elevated to a higher level than a neighbouring suburb, in its hazard maps.
The council updated its maps and that led to his insurer - a mix of two companies through a broker - agreeing to pay him back about $3000 for the previous three years.
That change could lead to more than 200 houses as well as 100 units at a nearby retirement village being taken off the 1-in-50 flood category.
Philip talks to Kathryn about how he got the flood maps updated, while Insurance and Financial Services Ombudsman Karen Stevens talks about the wider issue of the data behind insurers' decisions.
Photo: RNZ
