Technical categories and your property

Technical

categories

and your

property

Information about residential

green zone technical categories

1

2

3

4

Outline

of land

assessments

Assessment of the land is undertaken by a range of organisations

for different purposes, ranging in scale from area-wide

assessments of entire neighbourhoods down to individual homes.

In summary, these assessments are:

CERA’s consultants undertake area-wide assessment of the areas of most severe land damage, and CERA provides recommendations to Government regarding the suitability for ongoing residential occupation. This area-wide assessment includes information on land, building and infrastructure damage, as well as broader issues of timeliness, cost-effectiveness, disruption, certainty and well-being. This area-wide assessment

determines whether your property is in the residential green or red zone.

The Department of Building and Housing (DBH) undertakes area-wide assessment of the entire residential green zone, mapping the susceptibility of the land to damage from liquefaction. The DBH also provides guidance on the types of house foundations which can be used to build on land which is susceptible to liquefaction. This area-wide assessment

determines the Technical Category for your property – TC1, TC2 or TC3.

EQC undertakes individual land damage assessments on every insured property. This involves a visual inspection of your land by an EQC assessor or geotechnical engineer, as well as analysis of the data collected from aerial surveying and neighbourhood geotechnical investigations. This individual site assessment is used by EQC in the assessment of compensation in accordance with the EQC Act 1993.

If your property is in TC3 and needs repair or rebuilding of the foundations, then a site-specific deep geotechnical investigation and specific

Contents

Recent land zone announcements in greater Christchurch have included information about the Department of Building and Housing’s technical categories for foundation systems in the residential green zone. This booklet provides information to guide your decisions when repairing or rebuilding your property.

The three technical categories for foundation systems in the residential green zone result from greater knowledge of the land following the earthquakes and describe how the land is expected to perform in any future earthquakes.

If a property has no foundation damage and does not require rebuilding, the technical categories do not apply.

This booklet has been prepared by CERA and other agencies working on Canterbury earthquake recovery to better inform residential property owners about the technical categories and what they mean.

Technical categories explained ... page 2 Claim process flow chart ... page 4 Technical categories and EQC ... page 6 Next steps for your insurance claim ... page 7 Infrastructure and consenting ... page 8

Disclaimer

The information contained in this booklet is only intended as a guide. For more detailed information about technical categories and rebuilding in Christchurch visit the Department of Building and Housing’s website http://www.dbh.govt.nz/canterbury-earthquake-residential-building.

Land in the green zone is generally considered suitable for residential construction but some properties have experienced liquefaction and considerable settlement during the series of Canterbury earthquakes. These properties will need more rigid foundations or site-specific engineering foundation design to reduce the risk of injury to people and damage to homes in any future earthquakes.

The technical categories form part of the Department of Building and Housing’s guidance for the repair and reconstruction of houses following the Canterbury earthquake

sequence.

The technical categories describe how the land is expected to perform in future significant earthquakes and guide the selection of appropriate foundations solutions. The technical categories only apply if foundation repairs or rebuilding is required – there is no general requirement to upgrade house foundations. If in future you rebuild or

substantially modify the house the technical categories would apply.

TECHNICAL CA

TEGOR

Y _{TC1, grey}

Land in TC1 (grey) is unlikely to incur future land damage from liquefaction. Standard foundations for concrete slabs and timber floors are acceptable. In some cases, some minor additional foundation works may be required such as providing more reinforcing in the foundations.

TECHNICAL CA

TEGOR

Y _{TC2, yellow}

Land in TC2 (yellow) may incur minor to moderate land damage from liquefaction, and the foundations needed range from standard timber piled foundations to enhanced concrete foundations depending on the house design.

The Department of Building and Housing has prepared guidance for repairing and rebuilding foundations in TC1 and TC2. More information is available on the Department of Building and Housing’s website

www.dbh.govt.nz/canterbury-earthquake-residential-building.

What do the different

technical categories in

the green zone mean?

TECHNICAL CA

TEGOR

Y _{TC3, blue}

Land in TC3 (blue) may suffer moderate to significant liquefaction in future significant earthquakes. To reduce the risk this poses to people and buildings, where foundation repair or rebuilding is required, each site must be assessed individually to determine an appropriate foundation design. This means site-specific deep geotechnical investigation and specific engineering foundation design must be carried out. Site-specific engineering foundation design is commonplace in many parts of New Zealand.

There are currently no standard solutions for foundations for homes in TC3, although research is currently underway to address this. The appropriate foundation system (and associated costs) will vary from property to property. Options may include deep pile foundations or innovative solutions such as ground strengthening.

If as a result of existing earthquake damage, you need to rebuild or carry out repairs to foundations in TC3, talk to your insurer first. Your insurer may be able to arrange for a geotechnical engineer to carry out an individual site assessment of your property as part of your insurance claim (depending on your policy).

Note that in some cases the geotechnical assessment required for TC3 properties may confirm a TC2 foundation solution is all that is required.

Remember, the technical categories only apply to houses that require foundation repairs or rebuilding because of earthquake damage, or if you later rebuild or extend your house, or you are building a new house on TC3 land. Owners of houses that do not have

damaged foundations should be able to complete repairs as part of their normal insurance process.

Homeowners temporarily moving out of their earthquake-damaged homes while repairs are completed may be eligible for Government-supported temporary accommodation. Financial assistance may also be available. For more information visit

Claim

Assessment land/building

Under

cap

Decisions

Fix/settle

your insurer

Referred to

You discuss options

with your insurer

Managed

repair

Repair/rebuild

Self manage

repair/rebuild

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

EQC/Insurers

Claim process flowchart

Over

cap

You lodge your building and land claim with EQC.

EQC will verify that you were insured at the date of the event, and open a file for your property.

Depending on what insurance cover you have, it may open both building and contents files – this means you may have three different types of claim with EQC. EQC will provide you with a claim number.

Your private insurer will communicate with EQC confirming you were insured at the date of the event, will note you have made a claim and await the results of your EQC claim, to see if and where they need to assist.

EQC will assess the damage to your building caused by each insurable event to determine the likely cost of repair. EQC will undertake a separate assessment on your land to determine if any land remediation is required. If you are in a TC3 house with damaged foundations, EQC and your insurer will conduct a site specific geotechnical inspection to determine the best solution for your property.

EQC will determine whether or not your building damage is over or under the $100,000 + GST per event cap.

If EQC determines the damage to your building is over the $100,000 + GST per event cap, it may cash settle with the homeowner or mortgage holder. In that case, you will then be referred to your insurance company and you will discuss your options with them. These include repairing, rebuilding or cash settlement. If the damage is under $10,000, EQC will also cash settle. In all other instances, you will be referred to the fletcher EQR home repair programme. You can choose to opt out of this process and manage your repairs yourself.

If you decide to have your repair process managed by fletchers then you will begin the repair/rebuild process.

If you have decided to opt out of the managed repair process and manage it yourself, then you will manage the repair/rebuild yourself.

The technical categories relate to your building’s foundations, and therefore affect your building claim with EQC, rather than your land claim.

EQC covers damage to a residential building up to the EQC building claim cap (which is generally $100,000 plus GST per event). If new foundations are required on your house, these will be covered by EQC along with other building damage up to the cap.

However in many cases the amount of damage across the whole house will be over the EQC cap for the building claim. In this case the building claim will be passed to your insurer. In general, your insurer will then cover the costs of these foundations. Talk to your insurer to establish what your policy covers and what will happen next.

If your house foundations do not need repair or replacement, you do not need to upgrade them to meet the requirements of the current Building Code. But if in future you rebuild or substantially modify the house, any new foundations will need to meet the requirements of the Building Code. This may mean you need to upgrade existing foundations.

A range of standard options are available for the repair and rebuilding of foundations in TC1 and TC2. More information is available on the Department of Building and Housing’s website www.dbh.govt.nz/canterbury-earthquake-residential-building.

In TC3, site-specific geotechnical investigation and specific engineering foundation design will be required before you repair your foundations.

In addition to your house inspection, EQC is carrying out individual land assessments on all properties in Canterbury with a land claim. This is separate to the zoning work undertaken by CERA, and the work undertaken by the Department of Building and Housing to define the boundaries for the technical categories.

Your EQC land damage assessment will not change the technical category that has been allocated to your land. Repair work to your land undertaken by EQC will also not change the technical category allocated to your land.

Technical

categories

and EQC

Next steps

for your

insurance

claim

EQC provides natural disaster cover for insured homeowners. It either reinstates or cash settles up to $100,000 plus GST for earthquake building damage, and up to $20,000 plus GST contents per event, and land for the amount of EQC’s maximum liability under the EQC Act.

If a property has no foundation damage and does not require rebuilding, the technical categories do not apply. Either EQC (if under cap) or your insurer (if over cap) will be in touch about a timeline for repairs or rebuild.

Where a property has foundation damage or needs rebuilding:

• the Department of Building and Housing has prepared guidance for repairing and rebuilding foundations in TC1 and TC2.

• site-specific geotechnical investigation will be required for TC3, and a structural engineer will need to design suitable foundations to meet the land conditions.

If the building damage is under $100,000 plus GST from each event, EQC will pay for and manage the repairs, including any repairs to the foundations.

If the damage is over EQC’s cap for the property, the following will apply:

• Land damage will be assessed to understand the implications of any land remediation. Insurers will organise geotechnical assessments when they are required to progress repairs to your home.

• A scope of works will be created for the repair or rebuild of your home. If work is required to repair damage to foundations, the associated cost will be included in the scope of work.

• If EQC determines remediation of your land is uneconomic, it will cash settle for the amount of EQC’s maximum liability. The owner retains ownership of the land, and will negotiate with the insurer for further options regarding the repair or rebuild of the property. Just because you are paid out for your land does not mean it cannot be rebuilt on.

For other issues, such as the consenting process, please: Call 9418999 or 0800800169 (for Banks Peninsula residents) Visit www.ccc.govt.nz/consents

or email, [email protected]

For people living in Waimakariri and Selwyn Districts contact your local council building departments for information about their respective processes.

For further information: www.ccc.govt.nz/consents www.selwyn.govt.nz/services/building www.waimakariri.govt.nz/services/building_services/building-consents.aspx Infrastructure services to your house

The $2 billion repair of Christchurch’s earthquake-damaged infrastructure is expected to take around five years to complete. Good progress is being made, but there is a big job ahead.

The Stronger Christchurch Infrastructure Rebuild Plan, adopted by Christchurch City Council in early December, explains how the city is preparing a programme of work for the next five years. You can read this at www.ccc.govt.nz/earthquake. This is a complex piece of work requiring consideration of a range of priorities and external influences to decide what comes first. Until now, the focus has been on emergency repairs and making our roads and other infrastructure safe. The next step is to prepare a long-term plan for the rebuild.

By the end of the year, a six-month work programme will be set for the infrastructure rebuild. After that, ongoing work will be considered as part of the Council’s Annual Plan process. In the meantime, you can find out about all the work going on in the city right now online at www.strongerchristchurch.govt.nz.

The Waimakariri District Council advises that repairing infrastructure is generally being prioritised so that in the green zones underground services will be replaced before the roads and footpaths are permanently repaired. This means roads and footpaths in all earthquake damaged areas will remain in a temporary state for some time yet.

Infrastructure

and consenting

In many areas the roads will remain uneven and temporary 30km/h speed limits will be in place. Residents should contact their local Council if they have concerns about the condition of their road or footpath. Planning is underway to permanently repair the green zone areas, however in the red zones only temporary repairs will continue until more detail is known about the future of these areas.

Consenting process

In most cases you will find your project manager will be able to advise you on consenting issues, and will often take care of the process with you as they will be familiar with the channels and procedures. If your insurance company is handling repairs or rebuilding your house on your existing site they will engage a project manager on your behalf. EQC uses Fletcher Construction.

As a property owner, you are responsible for ensuring your property meets the Building Code.

The Christchurch City Council will help you to make sure your repairs and rebuilds are safe and meet the requirements of the Building Code. The Council expects over three times more consents than usual as a result of the earthquake – but is prepared and working to ensure the consenting process is streamlined. Every month the Council is consenting hundreds of millions of dollars of rebuild work.

Processing consents as quickly as possible is a priority, balanced against the need to ensure this is done correctly and making sure new building and repair work meets Building Code requirements.

Building work done without a building consent may be illegal and could be unsafe. It may also void your insurance. Before undertaking any work you should check with the Council to find out what consents might be needed. If building work has already been undertaken without checking, you should contact the Council to find out how to get a certificate of acceptance.

contacts CERA